The “getting used to things” may work similar to addictions. But what is addiction in the sense of brain mechanics? Is it numbness to a substance? And how does numbness to a substance work then? please.
In: Biology
Your brain makes it’s own chemicals that make you happy. They are called dopamine and serotonin.
Many substances affect how your brain makes these chemicals. Some substances mimic these chemicals, so your brain stops making them altogether.
In cases of addiction where there is no actual substance (like gambling, or gaming, or even exercise), the activity causes your brain to have spikes of these chemicals, and you can actually become addicted to your own dopamine/serotonin.
When you stop taking the substance (or quit the activity), your brain will first try to get you to do the work by making you feel sick or tired or ill in some way. The brain is pretty lazy in this way. We call it “withdrawal”.
It takes time, but eventually your brain will figure out that no help is coming, and will start to produce these chemicals again naturally. In some cases, the brain may need help in relearning how to do this, which is why there are medications for people in recovery.
There are exceptions, but this is basically how addiction works. It isn’t really a numbness as much as it is your brain trying to take shortcuts.
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