How addiction is formed, part 2 The most common addictions include: drug addiction, alcoholism, gaming addiction, smoking, food addiction, porn addiction, sex addiction, shopaholism, addiction to new information (Internet addiction) etc. And here it should be noted that many modern experts do not consider addiction to be a disease, but rather a bad habit, which, nevertheless, can lead a person to very sad consequences. What happens during the formation of addiction? The leading role in the occurrence of addiction, as studies have shown M. Lewis, the amygdala, striatum and orbitofrontal cortex play. As soon as an alcohol addict saw a bottle, or heard the clink of glasses, as soon as a drug addict saw a syringe, and a smoker noticed someone opening a pack of cigarettes, when a shopaholic saw an item of purchase, as soon as a gambler saw a roulette or heard the melody of a slot machine, he instantly gets emotional reaction from the amygdala. In tenths of a second, the orbitofrontal cortex joins the amygdala, picks up the emotional signal, amplifies it and forms a certain sequence of actions. Moreover, the orbitofrontal cortex directly stores information about how pleasant it is to get another dose of alcohol, drugs, food (for food addiction), sex (for sex addicts), to buy another unnecessary item and enjoy contemplating it (for shopaholics and collectors) and etc. And what is especially important is this part of the cortex that motivates and lets you know how good it is to get it here and now, and the rest is not so important. Signals from these two structures enter the ventral (southern, thickened) part of the caudate nucleus, which is responsible for impulsive actions, the desire for reward, in this case, receiving the next dose of dopamine. A fairly strong arousal is created and the transfer of conscious thinking to the subject of addiction. The work of the orbitofrontal cortex is enhanced. Obsessive thoughts appear, motivation is created and a choice of strategy is created to satisfy the need for the subject of addiction. A psychological trap arises that destroys volitional processes. Willpower weakens, the personality becomes focused on receiving momentary pleasure in the form of a new dose of dopamine. Over time, if the addiction is not resisted, the ventral part of the striatum sends more and more signals to the source of dopamine - to the hypothalamus, the number of dopamine receptors in the sinuses increases and the hypothalamus begins send more and more dopamine, changing transport routes. And now not only the ventral, but also the dorsal (northern) part of the striatum begins to receive dopamine. After a certain time, the entire caudate nucleus becomes enveloped in dopamine pathways, where new pathways intertwine with previous active pathways. Thus, the addict’s impulsive desire to receive the next dose of pleasure moves to an automatic level, forcing the person to chase the next dose of alcohol, drugs, food, sex, the next bets in the game, another dose of information on the Internet, for the next purchase. Where is the way out? Is there a way to get rid of addiction? Yes. But for this, an addicted person must want to get rid of his addiction more than the next dose of the subject of addiction. Only in this case can it be possible, over time, to destroy the connections between dopamine pathways that no longer receive reinforcement. And the main thing is to revive the old connections between the striatum and the dorsolateral part of the prefrontal cortex. Since it is the prefrontal cortex (PFC) of the brain that is responsible for willpower. By training willpower and strengthening the functioning of the dorsolateral PFC, a person is able to resist immediate pleasure and get rid of addiction. There are hundreds of thousands of such examples. This is precisely what the main methods of psychotherapeutic influence when working with addictions are aimed at. There is no magic pill. A person must learn to resist 8-951-712-33-55