Anxiety, Depression As It Relates To Substance Abuse, Addiction

Anxiety, Depression As It Relates To Substance Abuse, Addiction

Substance abuse has become common in the present world, and the number of those not involved is becoming negligible. Drug abuse is common among the youth, but it is no surprise that even the elderly are presently involved. According to the World Health Organization, about 9.5% of the youths are globally involved in drug abuse compared to the 1% of the involved older adults (Ohio, 2017). Some of the effects of drug abuse are addiction, depression, anxiety, withdrawal syndromes, violence and mental retardation, among other symptoms among other effects. The severity of the effects increases with an increase in age, therefore, justifying the elderly at the highest risk of the severe effects. The paper below focuses on the relationship between depression, general anxiety disorder and anxiety as symptoms of substance abuse among the elderly.

The mood is achieved through normal neurotransmission and the release of neurotransmitters in the brain. As an individual age, there is a reduction in cell production and reduced neurotransmitter activities whose aftermath is reduced mood because neurotransmitters play a role in mood. Drug addiction leads to poor mood responses due to interference with the neurotransmission system, resulting in overwhelmed feelings and depression. Carried research in 2020 that involved subjecting two groups of people to drugs and monitoring the results regarding the age difference. Ten of the members were youths, and the other ten were older adults. The groups were subjected to drugs, and their brain response was monitored. The result showed that more than half the older adults’ brains were hypersensitive due to introduction compared to two youths who experienced a similar mechanism (Abuse, 2020a). The hypersensitive brain reaction causes the elderly to be overwhelmed, thus causing a higher prevalence of depression than older adults.

According to Smith and Book (2018), aging leads to physical and social changes that increase the susceptibility to misuse and use of drugs. The physical and social changes lead to anxiety and general anxiety disorders. Smith and Book (2018) explain the above claim stating that; an increase in age reduces the brain’s ability to metabolize substances that increase the brain’s susceptibility and sensitivity to drugs. In confirming the provided explanation, Smith and Book (2018) state that individuals that are exposed to drugs such as cocaine in their earlier ages are likely to develop reduced temporal lobe of the gray matter in their older ages compared to the individuals that don’t use the drugs (Smith & Book, 2018). The gray matter of the nervous system plays a regulatory role in the regulation of anxiety, and its reduction is an insinuation of increased anxiety. The situation is similar to general anxiety disorders among older adults exposed to substance abuse. Therefore, increased ae increases the manifestation of anxiety among older adults involved in drug and substance abuse.

Aging leads to a reduction in several pathological responses, and the brain is not exempted. According to research carried out to identify the brains response between elderly and several young youths, results reveal that the elderly develop complications in handling and effectively responding to several issues. The reduced effective response makes them vulnerable to mental issues caused by drug and substance abuse than youths at younger ages (Abuse, 2020b). Therefore, the information relates increased age to increase chances of developing mental issues for older adults who have prior exposure to drug and substance abuse.

In conclusion, depression, anxiety and mental disorders are associated with the elderly population with a history of drug and substance abuse. Anxiety among older people results from destroying the brain’s gray matter. The mental results are due to reduced neural response to pathological encounters. Depression occurs due to mechanical interference with the neurotransmitter system of the brain. 

References

Abuse, N. I. on D. (2020a). Drugs and the Brain. National Institute on Drug Abuse. https://nida.nih.gov/publications/drugs-brains-behavior-science-addiction/drugs-brain#:~:text=How%20do%20drugs%20work%20in%20the%20brain%3F&text=Drugs%20interfere%20with%20the%20way

Smith, J. P., & Book, S. W. (2018). Anxiety and Substance Use Disorders: A Review. The Psychiatric Times, 25(10), 19–23. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2904966/

Ohio, T. R. U., PharmD Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice Northeastern Ohio University College of Pharmacy Rootstown. (2017). Prevalence of Substance Abuse in the Adolescent Population. Www.uspharmacist.com. https://www.uspharmacist.com/article/prevalence-of-substance-abuse-in-the-adolescent-population

Abuse, N. I. on D. (2020b, July 9). Substance Use in Older Adults DrugFacts. National Institute on Drug Abuse. https://nida.nih.gov/publications/drugfacts/substance-use-in-older-adults-drugfacts