Working with Euphoric Memory in Addicts

Denys Starkov G.S. Kostyuk Institute of Psychology of the National Academy of Pedagogical Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9220-8703

Keywords: chemical dependency, addictive euphoric memory, consolidation, reconsolidation, memory proconsolidation

Abstract

The article conceptualises the phenomenon of addictive euphoric memory as stable, emotionally intense memories of psychoactive substance use with dissociative experiences and a deficit of symbolic meaning. Phenomenologically, two modules can be distinguished: (1) acute ‘euphoric intrusions’ with vegetative reactions and attraction; (2) latent ‘memory of paradise lost’ with a pronounced component of longing and narcissistic content. At the neurobiological level, a multisystem model of memory has been summarised (hippocampus-context/stimulus-stimulus, amygdala-stimulus-affect, dorsal striatum-stimulus-response) and the role of stress mediators and glutamate-dependent plasticity in the consolidation and maintenance of addictive memory traces, which makes it possible to reactivate cravings even after years of remission. The limitations of reconsolidation approaches (dependence of effects on the ‘strength’ and ‘age’ of memory, context, and duration of intervention) and the ambiguous results of exposure techniques in the treatment of addiction are critically analysed. An alternative therapeutic strategy of proconsolidation has been proposed, involving bringing the addictive experience to the level of a semanticised life narrative and strengthening cortico-cortical integration. The strategy consists of three consecutive modules: symbolisation/mentalisation of motivations for use (in particular, through drawings and imagery techniques) and narrativisation (constructing a third-person narrative with a redistribution of affects from a temporal perspective). The following indications are emphasised: stable remission (predominantly ≥2–3 years for chemical addictions); earlier use is possible for behavioural addictions. Illustrative clinical cases demonstrate the operationalisation of techniques and the potential for change from subjective “euphoric intrusion” to integrated experience.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Gorski, T. T. (2009). Passages through recovery: An Action Plan for Preventing Relapse. Simon and Schuster.

Milton, A. L., & Everitt, B. J. (2012). The persistence of maladaptive memory: Addiction, drug memories and anti-relapse treatments. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 36(4), 1119–1139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2012.01.002.

Weiss, F. (2005). Neurobiology of craving, conditioned reward and relapse. Current Opinion in Pharmacology, 5(1), 9–19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coph.2004.11.001.

Kandasamy, A., & Menon, J. (2018). Relapse prevention. Indian Journal of Psychiatry, 60(8), 473. https://doi.org/10.4103/psychiatry.indianjpsychiatry_36_18.

Taujanskaitė, U., Cahill, E. N., & Milton, A. L. (2020). Targeting drug memory reconsolidation: a neural analysis. Current Opinion in Pharmacology, 56, 7–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coph.2020.08.007.

Goodman, J., & Packard, M. G. (2016). Memory systems and the addicted brain. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2016.00024.

White, N. M. (1996). Addictive drugs as reinforcers: multiple partial actions on memory systems. Addiction, 91(7), 921–950. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1360-0443.1996.9179212.x.

Goldfarb, E. V., & Sinha, R. (2018). Drug-Induced glucocorticoids and memory for substance use. Trends in Neurosciences, 41(11), 853–868. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tins.2018.08.005.

Baker, T. B., Piper, M. E., McCarthy, D. E., Majeskie, M. R., & Fiore, M. C. (2004). Addiction motivation reformulated: an affective processing model of negative reinforcement. Psychological Review, 111(1), 33–51. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295x.111.1.33.

Holden, C. (2001). Zapping memory center triggers drug craving. Science, 292(5519), 1039. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.292.5519.1039a.

Rivera, C. C., Price, R., Fortuna, R. P., Li, C., Do, C., Shinkle, J., Ghilotti, M. G., Shi, X., Kirby, L. G., Smith, G. M., & Unterwald, E. M. (2023). The ventral hippocampus and nucleus accumbens as neural substrates for cocaine contextual memory reconsolidation. bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory). https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.11.29.569314.

Wang, W., Zeng, F., Hu, Y., & Li, X. (2019). A Mini-Review of the role of glutamate transporter in drug addiction. Frontiers in Neurology, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2019.01123.

Sorg, B. A. (2012). Reconsolidation of drug memories. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 36(5), 1400–1417. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2012.02.004.

Milton, A. L. (2023). Drug memory reconsolidation: from molecular mechanisms to the clinical context. Translational Psychiatry, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-023-02666-1.

Haubrich, J., & Nader, K. (2016). Memory reconsolidation. Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences, 151–176. https://doi.org/10.1007/7854_2016_463.

Lechner, H. A., Squire, L. R., & Byrne, J. H. (1999). 100 years of consolidation – Remembering Müller and Pilzecker. Learning & Memory, 6(2), 77–87. https://doi.org/10.1101/lm.6.2.77.

Squire, L. R., Genzel, L., Wixted, J. T., & Morris, R. G. (2015). Memory consolidation. Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Biology, 7(8), a021766. https://doi.org/10.1101/cshperspect.a021766.

Zilverstand, A., Huang, A. S., Alia-Klein, N., & Goldstein, R. Z. (2018). Neuroimaging Impaired Response Inhibition and Salience Attribution in Human Drug Addiction: A Systematic review. Neuron, 98(5), 886–903. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2018.03.048.

López-Caneda, E., & Almeida-Antunes, N. (2025). Inhibitory control in addictive behaviors: is there room for memory suppression? Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 19. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2025.1545176.

Goldstein, R. Z., & Volkow, N. D. (2011). Dysfunction of the prefrontal cortex in addiction: neuroimaging findings and clinical implications. Nature Reviews. Neuroscience, 12(11), 652–669. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3119.

Bornstein, A. M., & Pickard, H. (2020). “Chasing the first high”: memory sampling in drug choice. Neuropsychopharmacology, 45(6), 907–915. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41386-019-0594-2.

Stewart, J., de Wit, H., & Eikelboom, R. (1984). Role of unconditioned and conditioned drug effects in the self-administration of opiates and stimulants. Psychological Review, 91(2), 251–268. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.91.2.251.

Dawe, S., Powell, J., Richards, D., Gossop, M., Marks, I., Strang, J., & Gray, J. A. (1993). Does post‐withdrawal cue exposure improve outcome in opiate addiction? A controlled trial. Addiction, 88(9), 1233–1245. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.1993.tb02146.x.

Mayet, S., Farrell, M., Ferri, M., Amato, L., & Davoli, M. (2004). Psychosocial treatment for opiate abuse and dependence. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.cd004330.pub2.

Kiyak, C., Simonetti, M. E., Norton, S., & Deluca, P. (2022). The efficacy of cue exposure therapy on alcohol use disorders: A quantitative meta-analysis and systematic review. Addictive Behaviors, 139, 107578. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2022.107578.

Back, S. E., Killeen, T., Badour, C. L., Flanagan, J. C., Allan, N. P., Ana, E. S., Lozano, B., Korte, K. J., Foa, E. B., & Brady, K. T. (2018). Concurrent treatment of substance use disorders and PTSD using prolonged exposure: A randomized clinical trial in military veterans. Addictive Behaviors, 90, 369–377. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2018.11.032.

Hammersley, R. (1994). A digest of memory phenomena for addiction research. Addiction, 89(3), 283–293. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.1994.tb00890.x.

Marlatt, G. A. (1985) Cognitive factors in the relapse process. In: Marlatt, G.A. and Gordon, J.R. Eds., Relapse Prevention, The Guilford Press, New York, 128–200.

Neighbors, C., Tomkins, M. M., Riggs, J. L., Angosta, J., & Weinstein, A. P. (2019). Cognitive factors and addiction. Current Opinion in Psychology, 30, 128–133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.05.004.

Scharff, J. S., & Scharff, D. E. (2005). The primer of object relations. Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.

Radô, S. (1933). The Psychoanalysis of Pharmacothymia (Drug Addiction). The Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 2(1), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/21674086.1933.11925163.

Kutter, P., & Müller, T. (2008). Psychoanalyse: eine Einführung in die Psychologie unbewusster Prozesse. Klett-Cotta.

Khantzian, E. J. (1982). Part II. Addiction and Psychological Disorders: The Self‐Medication Hypothesis: PSYCHOLOGICAL (STRUCTURAL) VULNERABILITIES AND THE SPECIFIC APPEAL OF NARCOTICS. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 398(1), 24–32. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.1982.tb39470.x.