On my daughter's fourth birthday, a swim party in 2002, my youngest sister showed up late in an outfit befitting a weekend rager: ratty black jeans, a threadbare camisole and a long-sleeved voile blouse in dingy white.
"It's the closest thing I had to a bathing suit," she told me skittishly, before wandering off to smoke a Camel.
Then, she disappeared for two hours. She reappeared only when everyone had left, running to us across a field, so skinny her bones seemed to rattle.
Looking back, her choice of swimwear should have been another of the warning bells going off that year. There were the false teeth she'd gotten to replace her own because of a rare gum disease. The frequent, sudden naps -- in a chair, on my rug. The strange gifts -- used teleconferencing software for me, worn beige tap shoes for my daughter. The way she'd fought me -- bitterly, unrelentingly -- when I'd refused to let her take my bike out late one night for a spin.
Two months after the party, I learned the reason for the get-up and behavior: My sister, then 42, had become addicted to methamphetamine. The shirt and long pants on that hot summer day were to cover the tracks from shooting up. And the lateness? Victim to the compulsive behavior that is one of meth's hallmarks, she'd been sidetracked diving into dumpsters to collect "treasures" on her way to see us.
What had driven this successful juvenile-defense attorney to turn to drugs? As she tells it, a big part was precisely that: the stress of winning cases--of keeping moms from having their parental rights terminated (one client's child died while in foster care). My sister, upended by the child's death, had "burned out."
September is National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month, proclaimed as such by President Barack Obama. It's a time for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, to celebrate folks like my sister (she's eight years clean this month!), as well as those who provide recovery services. This year the Recovery Month theme, "Join the Voices for Recovery: Now More Than Ever!," highlights how psychological stress contributes to alcohol and/or drug use, and the disorders or relapse that may follow.
My sister could have been the poster child.
"Stress is not a vague term; it is generally concerned with profound events in a person's life," says H. Westley Clark, M.D., director of SAMHSA's Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, which oversees Recovery Month. He ticks off several common stressors: job loss, death of a loved one, illness, financial worries. Why choose the theme "stress" now? "Given the current state of the economy, this is a particularly stressful time," he says.
How can we know if we might be at risk for alcohol or drug abuse? We can note not only if we're drinking more, but also our reactions to stressors. "Listen to other people," says Clark. "Are they saying you seem angry or irritable, or that your personality has changed--that perhaps you're more explosive or more withdrawn?" Those may be red flags.
Yet the relationship between stress and addiction is deeper than circumstantial; indeed, it runs right down to the cells in our brain.
Since at least the mid-1970s, scientists have been showing, through animal and human studies, that stress hormones--particularly "glucocorticoids" ("cortisol" in humans)--activate the same reward system in the brain as cocaine, heroin, and other drugs of abuse.
True, the degree of activation is different, but the process is the same. Both glucocorticoids and addictive drugs stimulate cells in a part of the brain called the ventral tegmental area (which sits atop the brainstem), to release the neurotransmitter dopamine. The dopamine then zips via nerve fibers over to the nucleus accumbens, a.k.a. the "pleasure center" of the brain. The information, "Ahh, pleasure," is then relayed to the prefrontal cortex, where it makes its way into consciousness.
Mind you, the dopamine itself is not the reward. Rather, it sparks the motivation to do the work to get the reward. The good feelings are ones of delicious anticipation and mastery: "Yes we can!" chanted Obama volunteers, their dopamine flowing, knowing in their hearts that the presidency was within reach. This dopamine-inspired drive exists to keep us alive. When we're hungry or thirsty, it drives us to seek food and water. When it's time to reproduce, it drives us to seek sex. Good job! the reward circuit tells us when we've located the watering hole or a mate, thereby reinforcing the behavior. We beam. Glucocorticoids pump up that drive, making the water appear even more sparkling and the mate even hunkier. They supercharge the wanting.
What we want during stress, scientists say, depends on context. The reward just has to be palatable, a natural reinforcer. Studies have shown that if a rat is stressed and a hunk of pork fat and regular chow are both within reach, it'll make a beeline for the pork fat. If cocaine is available at the push of a lever, it'll go for that. If a running wheel is the only game in town, it'll exercise its little legs off.
"The more glucocorticoids, the more dopamine," says Mary F. Dallman, Ph.D., professor emeritus at UCSF and an expert on stress physiology. "The more the dopamine, the more this pleasure center stuff turns on--the wanting, the salience."
Turning down the volume
Are there skills we can learn to turn down the volume of the wanting?
UCSF psychologist Judith T. Moskowitz, Ph.D., M.P.H., studies ways to "plant seeds of resilience" in people under extreme stress because they've recently been diagnosed with a chronic illness, in particular HIV. She knows, through years of research, that positive and negative emotions "co-occur" under conditions of stress but that people need help countering the negative and allowing the positive to rise through the muck. After scouring the scientific literature, she identified specific cognitive skills that are especially effective at helping people achieve this.
"Find at least one of these that works for you, and do it every day," she advises.
• Notice something good that happened to you today, and tell someone about it or write it down. The "event" can be as small as drinking an excellent cup of coffee or climbing out of bed when you planned to.
• Keep a "gratitude" record. Every day, to counter shortfalls, write down one thing you're grateful for. Again, it doesn't have to be earth shattering, or even big.
• Concentrate on being mindful for at least 10 minutes a day. Forget the past, forget the future: Take in, without judgment, your thoughts, feelings and physical sensations right now. For example, go for a 10-minute walk and zero in on the crunch of gravel beneath your feet and the wind on your face.
• Reinterpret a negative experience. The reinterpretation must be "do-able," says Moskowitz. You miss the bus to work and know your boss will be furious that you're late. But then another bus arrives, and you sit next to someone who tells a joke that sends you into hysterics. In a meta-analysis of studies about coping with HIV, Moskowitz found that reappraisal was one of the skills most effective at reducing negativity.
• Redirect your attention to your strengths.
• Make a list of attainable goals for the week, and work toward achieving one every day. Think how good you'll feel when you can cross that item off that list!
• Do something nice for someone else. The University of British Columbia's Elizabeth W. Dunn, Ph.D., has done several studies showing that giving can make people happier. In one, she had 46 UBC students rate their happiness, and then gave them envelopes containing $5 or $20 and told them either to spend the money on themselves or toward a bill, or to give it to charity or as a gift. Those who gave the money away rated themselves as happier at the end of the day than those who kept it for themselves.
Thea Singer is a science/health journalist. Her new book, "Stress Less," which comes out September 23, covers the latest findings on stress and how to reduce it to slow--or even reverse--aging. Her sister is a policy analyst for the National Council for Alcoholism and Drug Dependence--New Jersey and tells her story nationally to help others find recovery. Learn more at www.theasinger.com.
References
Adam TC, Epel ES. Stress, eating and the reward system. Physiol Behav. 2007 Jul 24;91(4):449-58. Epub 2007 Apr 14. Review.
Dallman MF, Pecoraro NC, la Fleur SE. Chronic stress and comfort foods: self-medication and abdominal obesity. Brain Behav Immun. 2005 Jul;19(4):275-80. Review.
Dallman MF, Pecoraro N, Akana SF, La Fleur SE, Gomez F, Houshyar H, Bell ME, Bhatnagar S, Laugero KD, Manalo S. Chronic stress and obesity: a new view of "comfort food." Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003 Sep 30;100(20):11696-701. Epub 2003 Sep 15.
Dallman MF, Warne JP, Foster MT, Pecoraro NC. Glucocorticoids and insulin both modulate caloric intake through actions on the brain. J Physiol. 2007 Sep 1;583(Pt 2):431-6. Epub 2007 Jun 7. Review
Dallman MF, Pecoraro NC, La Fleur SE, Warne JP, Ginsberg AB, Akana SF, Laugero KC, Houshyar H, Strack AM, Bhatnagar S, Bell ME. Glucocorticoids, chronic stress, and obesity. Prog Brain Res. 2006;153:75-105. Review.
Dallman MF, Akana SF, Pecoraro NC, Warne JP, la Fleur SE, Foster MT. Glucocorticoids, the etiology of obesity and the metabolic syndrome. Curr Alzheimer Res. 2007 Apr;4(2):199-204. Review.
Epel E, Lapidus R, McEwen B, Brownell K. Stress may add bite to appetite in women: a laboratory study of stress-induced cortisol and eating behavior. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2001 Jan;26(1):37-49.
Gibson EL. Emotional influences on food choice: sensory, physiological and psychological pathways. Physiol Behav. 2006 Aug 30;89(1):53-61. Epub 2006 Mar 20. Review.
Grigson PS. Like drugs for chocolate: separate rewards modulated by common mechanisms? Physiol Behav. 2002 Jul;76(3):389-95. Review.
Kelley AE, Bakshi VP, Haber SN, Steininger TL, Will MJ, Zhang M. Opioid modulation of taste hedonics within the ventral striatum. Physiol Behav. 2002 Jul;76(3):365-77. Review.
Naleid AM, Grimm JW, Kessler DA, Sipols AJ, Aliakbari S, Bennett JL, Wells J, Figlewicz DP. Deconstructing the vanilla milkshake: the dominant effect of sucrose on self-administration of nutrient-flavor mixtures. Appetite. 2008 Jan;50(1):128-38. Epub 2007 Jul 18.
O'Hare E, Shaw DL, Tierney KJ, E-M K, Levine AS, Shephard RA. Behavioral and neurochemical mechanisms of the action of mild stress in the enhancement of feeding. Behav Neurosci. 2004 Feb;118(1):173-7.
Pani L, Porcella A, Gessa GL. The role of stress in the pathophysiology of the dopaminergic system. Mol Psychiatry. 2000 Jan;5(1):14-21. Review.
Pecoraro N, Reyes F, Gomez F, Bhargava A, Dallman MF. Chronic stress promotes palatable feeding, which reduces signs of stress: feedforward and feedback effects of chronic stress. Endocrinology. 2004 Aug;145(8):3754-62. Epub 2004 May 13.
Teegarden SL, Scott AN, Bale TL. Early life exposure to a high fat diet promotes long-term changes in dietary preferences and central reward signaling. Neuroscience. 2009 Sep 15;162(4):924-32. Epub 2009 May 22.
Teegarden SL, Bale TL. Effects of stress on dietary preference and intake are dependent on access and stress sensitivity. Physiol Behav. 2008 Mar 18;93(4-5):713-23. Epub 2007 Nov 28.
Wand GS, Oswald LM, McCaul ME, Wong DF, Johnson E, Zhou Y, Kuwabara H, Kumar A. Association of amphetamine-induced striatal dopamine release and cortisol responses to psychological stress. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2007 Nov;32(11):2310-20. Epub 2007 Mar 7.
Warne JP, Dallman MF. Stress, diet and abdominal obesity: Y? Nat Med. 2007 Jul;13(7):781-3.
Zellner DA, Loaiza S, Gonzalez Z, Pita J, Morales J, Pecora D, Wolf A. Food selection changes under stress. Physiol Behav. 2006 Apr 15;87(4):789-93. Epub 2006 Mar 6.
Follow Thea Singer on Twitter: www.twitter.com/theasinger1
Rev. Dr. Paul Bradley: Christian Addiction Recovery: In Our Weakness Is Our Strength
Rabbi Shais Taub: Addiction Recovery and the Miracle of Transcending Human Nature
Kevin Griffin: One Blog at a Time: Karma and Recovery
Carole Bennett, MA: 4 New Year's Resolutions for Supporting Your Alcoholic/Addict Loved One
I'm a person in long term recovery.I haven’t used drugs/alcohol for 8 years. To recover I had to stay away from drugs long enough for my brain to heal - not easy- but I, unlike many others had the privaledge of long term treatment and Drug Court.
I found my hope in Drug Court. During the healing, Drug Court gave me a team to track, direct, structure, and reward me when I needed it.
Slowly my brain healed and the self loathing lifted. With the help of Drug Court I built a life I wanted to live-balanced. Drug Court, treatment, and self help groups helped “turn down the volume of wanting”
I've been employed at NCADD-NJ for 6 years as the research/policy analyst. I advocate for legislation/policies that promote recovery and end stigma/discrimination.
The relationships with my family were healed. A age 47 I gave birth to my first miracle child. My Drug officer was at the delivery. I recieved the Marty Mann award by the Lawyers Assistance Program.
My life came full circle. I react to stressors differently than ever before. The 7 skills mentioned in the article work. They are akin to what Drug Court/treatment/self help groups showed me.
I'm very different than 8 years ago. There are millions of people with an addiction or in recovery that this article and book can help.
Addicts may function well at first, making it seem to the non-addicted observer that using or drinking is a matter of choice, fueling the common misconception that addiction is not a real disease, but a matter of poor judgement.
Primary addiction treatment is not synonymous with participation in a 12 step program. Nor are the two interchangeable. Mis-managed withdrawal from alcohol, and many other drugs can be fatal. Without effective primary treatment of addiction disorders many people won't make it to 12 step programs.
Because functionality diminishes as the disease progresses, addicts often require comprehensive after care. The complex behavioral modification required for successful recovery requires life long reinforcement. Participation in a 12 step program can provide that to many people. Most 12 step meetings are widely available, requiring no reimbursement from a third party payor.
Re-education of the public and healthcare community that emphasizes the value of earlier, effective disease screening, with intervention, increased availability of primary addiction care will help.
The irony of recovery is that it requires some humility, preventing us from engaging in self-promotion. How do you make the value of recovery recognizeable to a non-addict?
-I have to disagree w/this statement. The dopamine is the reward produced by the drug, especially meth, it's just that many users don't realize the neurobiological process involved in addiction and recovery. I think some stress management advice is nice.
If we are to really do anything for addicts then we need to buck the system as it is because it's terrible. The reliance on 12 step needs to decrease, so better, more evidenced based tx can take its place. Instead they are closing beds & there weren't enough to begin with, esp for women.
I think it's important to mention whether there's a family history of addiction, if your sis had ever used alcohol too much, etc., because this makes it sound like one day she started shooting up, which can happen but is less common that some kind of progression.
I say this because those uneducated about addiction may read this and come away with an oversimplified "addiction is just like being excited for Obama" as well as getting another perpetuation of stereotype -- the toothless, dirty, tweaker, dumpster diver. Medial overdone.
This recovery month let's demand more treatment, options for recovery, and a public education campaign.
I speak from vast addiction experience & homelessness, and now do some outreach. Congrats to your sister on 8. I have 5. Thanks.
Among these thousands will be our brothers, our parents, our sons and daughters, our close friends. They will be our colleagues, students, and soldiers. As any who have been through it – or even near it - know, addiction is an equal opportunity menace, its cruelty unimpressed by wealth, unmoved by need, and indiscriminate when it comes to color.
On the morning of September 25, a joyous parade will make its way down Market Street in marking what amounts to an Independence Day for Recovery. Leading the procession will be members of an Honor Guard, people with at least 10 years free of the alcohol or drugs that once dictated their every move. These many in recovery certainly have earned a day to rejoice at having retaken charge of their lives, and they deserve the respect due any who have endured an ordeal and used the experience for the betterment of others.
Daniel J. Meara
Families and school staff concerned about a student with such problems can turn to this link from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry listing free helpful pamphlets for most common emotional conditions affecting youth and families: http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/facts_for_families
These pamphlets are available in English, Español, Malaysian, Polish, Icelandic, Arabic, Urdu and Hebrew. (Links are on the aacap site listed above.)
Another source of insight is the Stressed Family, Strong Family website,
at this link: http://americanconfusion.com
where you will find many ideas from the e-book,
Stressed Family, Strong Family.
Many can learn to cope with stress more effectively, and support one another.
http://winningtheobesitybattle.wordpress.com/
http://winningtheobesitybattle.wordpress.com/
http://winningtheobesitybattle.wordpress.com/
Looking at all the comments it seems like I read a different article. But, that happens.
Celebrate National Recovery Month by learning a medical fact about addiction/alcoholism. Without de-stigmatizing addiction it may be hard for a national agenda to occur.