Aug 06 (Jowhar)-While scrolling through social media, I came across a video of people who seemed unable to hold their legs and bodies still.
Zooming in, the video showed that these people were barely conscious and unaware of their surroundings. The video was captured in San Francisco, United States. When you look at videos and pictures like these, you can’t help but feel how unfortunate these people are and hope that this never happens to you or your loved ones.
I saw similar videos in Somali Social media, boys and girls acting in a strange way due to the drug use, and I was shocked to the core.
In her book “Dopamine Nation,” Dr. Anna Lembke explains that if people are not conscious of their pain and pleasure levels, the risk of tipping the scales too far in either direction is great.
She explains how seeking pleasure or pain might seem mundane at first, but the outcome can become so profound that it catastrophically impacts an individual’s well-being and normal functioning.
The Brain’s Role and the Unconscious Pursuit of Pleasure
Science has had difficulty understanding exactly how the brain mediates pleasure and pain signals, and vast resources are being spent on this complex issue.
Dr. Lembke believes that people tend to search for pleasure unconsciously. Without mechanisms to track pleasure consumption, it’s difficult for a person to know the risk of becoming dependent on pleasure-seeking, which can lead to addiction.
Training yourself to be conscious can help maintain a normal level of pleasure-seeking. Scientific studies show that people spend about 47% of their waking hours on autopilot.
The idea of spending nearly half of your waking life in an unconscious state is frightening, and yet most people don’t know this information.
It has been scientifically proven that practicing conscious training activities can have a huge positive impact on reducing stress and anxiety, as these ailments often lead to consuming more pleasure-seeking materials.
Being depressed, stressed, or anxious is one step closer to becoming addicted to drugs or other materials that elicit too much pleasure in the brain.
Therefore, addressing depression, stress, and anxiety can help in addressing addictions and excessive pleasure-seeking habits.
Somalia’s Unique Challenges
Tackling the situations and conditions that cause mental health problems can positively impact addressing drug abuse and addiction.
The living conditions in Somalia may be a factor in the increasing levels of drug use, addiction, and crime. Here are the current socio-economic, climate change, and displacement realities that Somalis are living in:
1. Socio-Economic Challenges:
Somalia faces significant hurdles in its economic development. Decades of conflict and instability have severely impacted infrastructure, institutions, and human capital.
The formal economy is nascent, with a large informal sector and high unemployment, particularly among youth. For instance, while the official unemployment rate is around 20%, experts estimate it to be much higher, with over two-thirds of young adults unemployed (BMZ, 2023).
Access to essential services such as education, healthcare, and financial services remains limited for a significant portion of the population.
Approximately 70% of Somalia’s population lives in extreme poverty, and only about 30% of school-aged children attend primary school (BMZ, 2023).
The World Bank noted that while Somalia’s economy showed positive growth in 2024 (4.0%), largely supported by agriculture and remittances, it remains heavily reliant on external assistance, and domestic revenue mobilization is among the lowest globally (World Bank, 2025).
2. Climate Vulnerability:
Somalia is highly susceptible to the impacts of climate change, experiencing some of the world’s harshest climate shocks. These include recurrent droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events that devastate livelihoods, particularly in a country heavily reliant on agriculture and pastoralism, which supports about 72% of the population (SIPRI, 2023).
Somalia experienced its worst drought on record between mid-2021 and early 2023, with five consecutive failed rainy seasons (SIPRI, 2023; International Crisis Group, 2024).
This was followed by severe flooding in November 2023, displacing over half a million people (International Crisis Group, 2024).
Mean annual temperatures have increased since 1991, and projections anticipate further increases, leading to higher exposure to heatwaves and exacerbating water shortages (UNEPGRID, n.d.; Climate Centre, 2024).
3. Displacement:
The combination of conflict, insecurity, and climate-induced disasters has led to massive internal displacement within Somalia.
As of January 2025, an estimated 3.5 million people in Somalia are displaced, driven by both climatic shocks and conflict (Humanitarian Action, 2025).
While new displacements linked to climate factors decreased in 2024 compared to 2023, conflict became the main driver, accounting for 53% of new internal displacements between January and November 2024 (Humanitarian Action, 2025).
Large populations are forced to leave their homes in search of safety, food, and water, often settling in overcrowded Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) sites.
These displacement-affected communities are among the most vulnerable, facing exacerbated socio-economic challenges and limited access to resources, with forced evictions continuing to affect many IDPs, particularly in urban centers (Humanitarian Action, 2025).
The Need for Action
Within this context, the increasing levels of addiction and drug use make the matter worse. The lack of regulatory bodies for drugs and a general lack of knowledge about the risks of drug use among the Somali public and authorities make this issue even more complex.
The government, civil society, and academia have a vital role in raising awareness about this growing danger. The absence of regular updates on lives lost due to drug use and addiction, as well as the financial burden placed on families for drug rehabilitation, doesn’t help in raising awareness.
Media channels, both traditional and social, are largely silent when it comes to the increasing level of drug use among Somali youth, especially those living in urban centers.
Acquiring habits that instill discipline can be tough, but consistent practice and conscious training activities can help tame the excessive desires that lead to a dopamine rush and addiction.
Habits such as reading, physical exercise, and meditation can help someone be more conscious in their life and improve their mental health.
Taking external materials to become happy is counterproductive most of the time. Cultivating inner peace through positive habits is a proven way to achieve happiness.
Amin Jamal amiinjamal25@gmail.com
