Sublime

A Stands for Abstinence

The poor and undereducated, especially those living in rich nations, are most susceptible to the problem of compulsive overconsumption. They have easy access to high-reward, high-potency, high-novelty drugs at the same time that they lack access to meaningful work, safe housing, quality education, affordable health care, and race and class equality

But how about patients addicted to food? Or smartphones? Drugs that can’t be stopped altogether? The question of how to moderate is becoming an increasingly important one in modern-day life, because of the sheer ubiquity of high-dopamine goods, making us all more vulnerable to compulsive overconsumption, even when not meeting clinical criteria for

Pain to treat pain. Anxiety to treat anxiety. This approach is counterintuitive, and exactly opposite to what we’ve been taught over the last 150 years about how to manage disease, distress, and discomfort.

One of the biggest risk factors for getting addicted to any drug is easy access to that drug. When it’s easier to get a drug, we’re more likely to try it. In trying it, we’re more likely to get addicted to it.