Resilience and drug consumption: A review

Abstract

In the last few years, resilience, or the successful adaptation achieved by an individual despite very adverse or traumatic situations during their childhood, has become a concept of great importance both in the field of mental health and in drug abuse. Understanding how these individuals attain a level of normal functioning without developing personal or psychopathological problems in their adolescence or adulthood is of great relevance in not only the prevention but also the treatment of several disorders. In this paper we revised the studies that have analysed the relationship between resilience and drug consumption (tobacco, alcohol, and illegal drugs). The studies, both longitudinal and transversal, indicate that a number of individuals can be resilient (can make a normal adaptation) in adolescence or in adult life, in spite of having suffered serious traumas or adversities in their childhood. Several studies have shown clearly that resilience is a protective factor in determining whether or not an individual uses or abuses different drugs. We conclude that this concept is of great relevance to the field of drug use and abuse and, specifically, for the development of preventive programmes based on resilience.