Adrenaline junkie

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Template:Cleanup-date Template:Disambiguous Adrenaline junkie is a colloquialism used to describe somebody who is presumably addicted to adrenaline and its effects on the body. Another word for it is Adrenelosis. The adrenaline in question comes from an endogenous source (i.e., the adrenal gland) and does not imply the use of exogenous adrenaline (e.g., injection).

Adrenaline junkies enjoy engaging in activities that stimulate the adrenal glands, which are responsible for producing a broad spectrum of hormones which cause the stress response, also known as the fight-or-flight response. Adrenaline is the most well-known hormone in this family, although each of the hormones, which include noradrenaline, cortisol, and various other catecholamines and corticosteroids, play a part in the stress response. The effects include hyperarousal, increased blood flow, heightened pulse rate, and increased physical performance, which adrenaline junkies find an enjoyable and invigorating state of mind and body.

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What a rush!

The stereotypical adrenaline junkie enjoys engaging in extreme sports and other intense or dangerous activities, such as:

Less obvious but just as dramatic adrenaline junkies include gamblers, snow sports enthusiasts, highway speeders, emergency medical personnel, emergency response personnel, SWAT officers, stock market traders, and argumentative people.

People serving in the military can also become adrenaline junkies. This should come as no surprise, as the danger of imminent death is one of the most stimulating experiences one can undergo. The higher the probability of death, the bigger the "rush," even if death actually occurs, though there is no direct evidence to validate that (for obvious reasons). One Vietnam veteran was reported to say, "I never felt so alive as when I was risking my life". Other anecdotal reports say that after the military cutbacks during the Clinton administration, there was an above average number of suicides among Marines who were not allowed to reinlist.

As if to reinforce the claim that death is the "biggest rush", some adrenaline junkies will voluntarily pursue activities that carry an extremely high risk of fatality, even if there is no necessity for that risk. Russian Roulette is a prime example of this, as is the example of one man who climbed into a bag of rattlesnakes on a live television show, saying he did it for the "rush." Tom Sizemore's character in the movie "Heat" says essentially the same thing about the robberies his gang performed: "For me, the action is the juice."

Other examples, though less dramatic, are also considered socially undesirable. In the movie "Harold and Kumar" (2005), the "Extreme Sports Punks" engage in banally pathetic antics in search of adrenaline, all the while repeating their favorite maxim: "Extreme!"

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A true addiction?

Although "adrenaline junkie" is usually used facetiously without any genuine implication of addiction, there may be an element of truth to the term. Many of the key elements of addiction are present in the behaviour of an adrenaline junkie:

  1. An altered state of consciousness (in this case called an "adrenaline rush") causes desirable physiological and psychological effects.
  2. The altered state eventually disappears, leaving a "crash" in its wake, usually involving feelings of disappointment and depression.
  3. During the crash phase, craving for another rush manifests itself, prompting a search for a new rush.

This creates a pattern which is reminiscent of the classical addiction cycle.

An adrenaline rush is usually accompanied by an increase in endorphin activity. Endorphins are responsible for feelings of well being, as well as pain relief. Due to synaptic plasticity, increased endorphin activity creates an increase in endorphin receptor sites, which in turn can create a stronger desire for endorphins. Synaptic plasticity and receptor site proliferation are widely believed to be the mechanisms by which chemical addictions are developed.

However, the same can be said for any endorphin-stimulating activity, whether laughter, physical exertion, artistic expression, religious experience, or sexual intercourse. Although synaptic plasticity may responsible for chemical addictions, it is also believed to be involved in reinforcement, the mechanism by which animals learn to differentiate what is desirable from what is undesirable. Seen in this context, chemical addiction could simply be seen as an aberrant form of plasticity.

Although the effects of adrenaline is largely positive, increasing cardiovascular activity and oxygenation, extended or chronic adrenal stimulation can eventually lead to high blood pressure, heart disease, and other stress-related diseases.

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