When you hear the terms, abuse, dependence, addiction, and overdose, where does your mind take you to? Most would probably say confidently: drugs. When you look back at the terms, you may notice that these are all negative words. However, drugs are not necessarily such a bad thing. When used irresponsibly, of course, it can lead to all of the words above. However, when used in controlled amounts for medical purposes, drugs can be useful to treat some of the mental illnesses that society sees in people of all ages today. Here, we will show you that with microdosing, the terms listed above are in no way related to each other. 

According to Macmillan Dictionary, abuse is defined as the use of alcohol or illegal drugs in a way that is harmful to your health. An individual is not able to abuse the drugs that are used in microdosing practices because the amount of consumption of the psychedelic drug is that of a tiny amount compared to a regular dosage of the drug that may be used recreationally. 

Dependence is defined as the fact that someone is addicted to a drug or alcohol. An individual is not able to develop a dependence, or tolerance of the drug because the drug that is taken for microdosing is provided in small amounts and is taken only a couple times per week. It can only be built if an individual were to be taking normal doses regularly. 

Addiction is defined as a strong need that someone feels to regularly take an illegal or harmful drug. An individual cannot be addicted to the drugs they are microdosing with because the drug is consumed in miniscule amounts. The individual may choose to take the drug if they are dealing with mental illness or if they want to enhance their cognitive abilities in their workplace; however, this is a choice that the individual is able to make since they do not depend on the drug. 

Overdose is defined as too much of a drug that someone takes at a time. An individual cannot overdose when they are microdosing because in order to overdose, an individual must take more than the normal dosage; however, when microdosing, an individual is taking just one tenth of the normal dosage, so there are no problems with overdosing while practicing microdosing.

Citations: Relating to using illegal drugs – synonyms and related words: Macmillan Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://www.macmillandictionary.com/us/thesaurus-category/american/relating-to-using-illegal-drugs