Stressful Experiences Affect Likelihood of Remission of Drug Dependence, Continued Drug Use, and Relapse

Drs. Sean Esteban McCabe, James Cranford, and Carol Boyd. at the University of Michigan’s Center for the Study of Drugs, Alcohol, Smoking, and Health examined associations between stressful life events and drug use in the responses of 921 adults to the 2001-2002 National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC). All these respondents reported that at some time prior to the past year, they had symptoms that met the criteria for a diagnosis of drug dependence. At the time of the interview, 560 (60.5 percent) were no longer dependent and had been abstinent for at least a full year. The remaining 361 had used drugs during the past year.