Addiction is a condition that affects many people throughout the world. “Addiction appears to be a complicated disorder affecting brain processes responsible for motivation, decision making, pleasure seeking, inhibitory control and the way we learn and consolidate information and experiences.” (Benizet-Lewis) One Tree Hill is a TV drama that had its final season in 2012. Deb is a character in the show that, after a life of being abused and mistreated, becomes addicted to prescription painkillers. Many drug addictions begin with the excessive amount of Dopamine released in the body when the drug is put into the bloodstream, “People with low levels of D2 are more likely to find taking drugs pleasurable.”(Benizet-Lewis) Although medicines have …show more content…
Substance addiction affects your mental health just as much as it affects your body physically. During various episodes Deb clearly has a change in mindset. In the beginning of the show she loved her husband, even in the midst of his physical and verbal abuse towards her. Once she began to abuse prescription drugs, her entire perspective seemed to change. Deb began to have outbursts toward her husband. She began to resent him, and her actions showed it. Deb tried to verbally abuse her husband, Dan. Soon, Deb’s abuse turned physical. Within just a couple of month of abusing drugs, Deb was even considering murdering her husband that she onced loved and cherished. Deb was aware of the possible consequences of her actions. Mentally, she knew that she was pushing her family away, but she did not do anything to avoid these consequences. A drug addiction may cause a person to disregard negative outcomes,“Addictive substances hijack the brain's reward system, weakening our resolve to make wise choices even when painful consequences are sure to result.” (Scholastic Choices) During various episodes, Deb could not mentally keep away from her …show more content…
Deb began using prescription painkillers for the serious back pain she was experiencing but soon, she depended on them to bring her happiness and end her sadness. Nothing else mattered to her, because drugs were now her only concern. To Deb, drugs were now the only thing that mattered and the only thing that could make her happy, “Normally, the brain's pleasure center releases the neurotransmitter dopamine in response to positive experiences like a walk on the beach, a chat with friends, or victory in a big game. When a person becomes addicted to a drug, all those things lose their impact and diminish in importance. All that matters is finding and taking the drug that changed their brain to begin with.” (Scholastic Choices) In the later episodes of One Tree Hill, Deb tried to stop her addiction and wean away from the prescription pain killers. Through her withdraw, Deb went through a serious depression. She had become dependent on the drug,“Long-term use may also lead the body to produce fewer endorphins and opioid receptors. These changes signal a physical dependence, which causes people to go through withdrawal, feeling sick or depressed without opioid drugs. Physical dependence can--but doesn't always--lead to addiction, a disease that involves additional changes to brain circuitry.” (New York Times Upfront p 20) Deb was unable to wean away from the prescription drugs, making her an