This study is a theoretical literature study with the purpose of establishing an understanding of the mechanism that has produced the increased consumption of alcohol, antidepressant medication, and narcotics in Sweden. The objective is to establish a foundation from which further studies of the problem can begin. To reach this goal, the discussion seeks the answers to two questions: what function, do the intoxicants perform for the individuals that utilise them? And: what activates the individual’s desire for an intoxicant’s function? The discussion begins with a study of the available literature that researches this subject. From this literature, three reliable causes of the misuse of intoxicants are discovered. They are the individual’s social environment, unresolved childhood conflicts, and a need to satisfy a psychological dependency on intoxication. These then become the study’s points of focus. Through the application of Emil Durkheim’s theory on suicide, Erich Fromm’s theory that examines the process of identity construction and Roland Laing’s concept of mystification, the mechanism that produces the increased consumption of intoxicants becomes visible. Finally, the proposed mechanism is tested through a reflective examination of Sweden’s societal and political development during the last two hundred years.