Dopamine is better understood as a “learning” molecule than as a “pleasure” molecule (View Highlight)
Our brain is wired to help us see things that are important and respond to them. It determines whether we need to do something again or not. Do we need to move or stay? Is this good or bad? Is this something I need to pay attention to? Drugs are convincing our brains, “Yes, this is important. This is something we need to do again.” Drugs drive not only decisions about the drug itself, but also decisions about non-drug stimuli in our environment. They change how we learn (View Highlight)
Most people think of dopamine as a “pleasure molecule,” but that’s not the whole picture. Yes, dopamine is released by rewarding stimuli like chocolate or sugar. But it’s also released by aversive stimuli like stress or pain. It fires when things are new or different, whether they’re good or bad. And in that way, dopamine is critical for helping you learn (View Highlight)
Drugs basically continue to push dopamine even when things are no longer new or different. The brain continues to think that something is important, signaling you to keep paying attention. But while drugs increase dopamine in the moment, long-term drug use depletes it. So with more and more drug use, there’s less and less dopamine in the brain, which means you have a hard time learning anything new. (View Highlight)