"Opium, a substance used to manage diarrhea and respiratory issues quickly found a niche in managing pain. Then it exploded in use to informally address psychic pain. To the vulnerable, opium's capacity to manage psychic pain may be its most damning power. Something adaptive and beneficial created a vulnerability and gateway to an addictive pathology. In A Perspective on Opiate Addiction, Jay Schulkin provides his unique combination of neuroscientific knowledge and pragmatist philosophy to explain the persistent problem of opiate addiction in society. He covers the natural and social history of opium, how opium affects the brain, the interaction of pleasure and effort, the relationship between addiction and depression, the meaning of recovery, pain management, and societal and individual accountability in addiction. The book concludes with reflections on choice and limits"-- Provided by publisher.
Today, the opioid crisis often feels intractable. This book offers a wider perspective on its underlying causes, examining the biological, psychological, and social aspects of addiction and the interactions among them.
Jay Schulkin, a behavioral neuroscientist, and Bryce Huebner, a philosopher, explore the complexities of opioid addiction through a distinctive combination of neuroscientific knowledge and pragmatist thought. They detail the biological and neurological processes that shape and sustain addiction, showing why opiates’ power to ease pain makes us vulnerable to abusing them. The book discusses the relationship between addiction and depression, the dilemmas of pain management, and the meaning of recovery. Schulkin and Huebner underscore the stigma that marginalizes people who struggle with addiction and the social factors that shape access to treatment and care, calling for a focus on harm reduction. They consider questions of individual and social accountability, reflecting on choice, autonomy, and freedom.
Interdisciplinary and wide-ranging, this book brings deep learning, empathy, and insight to understanding the experience of addiction.
Jay Schulkin, a behavioral neuroscientist, and Bryce Huebner, a philosopher, explore the complexities of opioid addiction through a distinctive combination of neuroscientific knowledge and pragmatist thought.
