In 2013, the American Psychological Association (APA) released the fifth edition of the DSM. In this edition, the definitions revolving around addiction were changed once again. The APA ditched both “substance abuse” and “substance dependence” in favor of “substance use disorder.” Substance use disorder is now the medical term for addiction. Previously, abuse was a mild form of addiction, and dependence was a moderate or severe form of addiction. That terminology was problematic because in biology — the study of organisms — dependence refers to a physical adaptation to a substance. Using a substance (such as a painkiller, antidepressant, narcotic, sedative or other drug) without medical supervision or in larger quantities than prescribed is substance abuse.

Substance Abuse

• An openness to accept the abuse is also paramount to successfully treat the illness.
• Lastly, recommendations for addressing prescription stimulant misuse and suggestions for future research are advanced.
• Stigma often surrounds the use of terms such as addiction, dependence and substance abuse.

Benzodiazepines can help alleviate withdrawal symptoms, while naltrexone may help you manage alcohol cravings. If you have developed alcohol dependence and decide to quit drinking, you can expect to experience withdrawal symptoms. According to information from the National Institutes of Health, these discomforts usually peak 24 to 72 hours after your last drink, but they may last for weeks. If that history lesson sounded confusing, that’s because it is, and there’s no way to simplify what happened. But the biggest source of confusion concerns the word “dependence.” Prior to the DSM-III, the term “dependence” simply meant physiological dependence, as indicated by tolerance and withdrawal symptoms.

Opioids: Understanding Addiction Versus Dependence

Our authors, editors, medical reviewers, website developers, and parent company do not assume any liability, obligation, or responsibility for addiction vs dependence any loss, damage, or adverse consequences alleged to have happened directly or indirectly as a result of the material presented on RehabAid.com. However, these recent changes mean that “dependence” now includes both physical and physiological dependence (in terms of tolerance and withdrawal symptoms). Substance use disorder, on the other hand, is used in clinical and diagnostic settings to refer to “addiction.” The condition also has varying levels of severity and is categorized as mild, moderate, or severe. Detoxification treatment may need to be administered to those with substance dependence due to the dangerous nature of some withdrawal symptoms.

Mental vs. physical dependence

For example, if you take a sedative to sleep, it may work very well at the first dose. When you first start drinking alcohol, it may have taken only a few drinks for you to feel drunk. As a person continues to use drugs, the brain adapts by reducing the ability of cells in the reward circuit to respond to it. This reduces the high that the person feels compared to the high they felt when first taking the drug—an effect known as tolerance. These brain adaptations often lead to the person becoming less and less able to derive pleasure from other things they once enjoyed, like food, sex, or social activities.

Prevalence rates of prescription stimulant misuse in these countries have ranged from approximately 3% to 13%, which indicates this behavior indeed occurs cross-culturally, highlighting the need for policy, prevention, and intervention to address this issue. To that end, identification of risk and protective factors is important; therefore, investigators have attempted to shed light on variables that may be predictive of prescription stimulant misuse behavior. The purpose of the present paper is to review and summarize the literature with respect to information concerning misuse among adults, including risk factors, mediators and moderators, and motivations for misuse. In addition, information is presented concerning whether prescription stimulants truly enhance cognitive functioning and the ethical and professional implications of these findings. Lastly, unanswered questions concerning prescription stimulant misuse are explored and suggestions for future research are advanced. Stigma often surrounds the use of terms such as addiction, dependence and substance abuse.

• Substance abuse is most prevalent among adults between the ages of 18 and 25, and level of education seems to be an important correlate of abuse.
• Research has shown that the terminology used does, in fact, influence how people with a substance use disorder view themselves as well as how others view them.
• These facilities usually provide 24-hour medical support and are often led by a team of counselors, clinicians, and doctors.
• Recently, Austic (2015) reported that the peak ages for beginning misuse of prescription stimulants was between 16 and 19 years, with 0.7% to 0.8% of young people reporting nonmedical use of stimulants for the first time in the past twelve months.
• Depending on the severity of the addiction, long-term treatment may be a good option, especially as many programs address the underlying emotional causes of one’s drug abuse.
• This recent upturn in illicit drug use among youths has important implications for substance abuse prevention and treatment efforts.

In the long run, the increasing proportion of young people using drugs will probably result in continued pressure on the substance abuse treatment system in future years, as many new drug users progress to addiction and require intervention. Addiction or substance use disorder occurs when individuals are largely unable to function without the drug. People who are addicted develop a physical and psychological reliance on a substance that leads them to go to extreme lengths to continue taking it.

If you’ve heard the terms “substance use” and “substance abuse,” you may wonder whether they mean the same thing or whether there’s any difference between them. If you are using drugs in large amounts, struggle to control your intake, or rely on them for specific functions like relaxing or boosting confidence, you’re likely abusing them. Drug dependence occurs when your body or mind adapts to regular substance use. Addiction is primarily a behavioral and psychological issue, often linked to changes in the brain’s reward system.