In "Sonny's Blues," Baldwin explores the impact of drugs on users and their families. Heroin abuse causes the destruction of artistic talent, life and relationships with family members. Sonny uses drugs as a means to escape from a depressive, stressful and suffering-filled environment. Baldwin refrains from judging Sonny due to his addiction problems because he wants to bring out the destructive effects of drug abuse and the role the brain plays in drug abuse. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Considering that millions of people may be facing the problem of drug addiction, sending them to prison is not a viable remedy (Eagleman 203). The problem of drug addiction lies in the brain; therefore, it is imperative to develop strategies that focus on brain operations to improve addicts' ability to exercise impulse control. Drug addiction is difficult to shake off because once one is addicted to drugs, they want to use them. them continuously. Sonny describes what it feels like to be under the influence of heroin when he says that "When he was singing before," Sonny said, suddenly, "his voice reminded me for a minute of what it feels like on heroin sometimes - when it's in your veins you feel warm and cool at the same time" (Baldwin 17). Here, son means that it takes courage to resist the temptation to try heroin after tasting it because it makes you feel high. The comparison between heroin and heroin recovery music means that once a person takes heroin, they experience instant gratification and feel like they are in another world. Therefore, the only thing you think about when using heroin is the sensation you feel at that moment and not the long-term consequences of the drug on the body. Sonny immersed himself in the battle of the present versus the future and that's why he didn't think about the long-term consequences of drug abuse. At that moment he wanted to get excitement from drugs. Eagleman writes that “for the brain, the future may be only a pale shadow of the present. The power of the present explains why people make decisions that feel good in the moment but have terrible consequences in the future: people who drink or take drugs even if they know they shouldn't (191). At the time Sonny was abusing heroin, he didn't care if it would destroy his life and relationship with his brother. All he wanted right now was to feel high. Therefore, the decision to use drugs is a perfect manifestation of the brain battle between the present and the future. In particular, impulse control is a perfect strategy for dealing with drug addiction because the brain controls the aspect of drug addiction. To elaborate, Sonny exemplifies impulse control when he says that "sometimes I think I'll turn around and never go out again, and sometimes I think I'll go right back. I tell you what, though, I'd rather blow it drives me crazy than go through it again ” (Baldwin 16) compares the effects of heroin to blasted music to show that drug addiction is powerful and impairs one's ability to think clearly. Overcoming drug addiction is not easy, but Sonny refrains from going back to them because of his experiences with them. Sonny states that he is ready to die rather than go back to prison due to drug abuse. His realization of the dangerous implications of drug abuse makes him exercise impulse control and therefore does not fall into the temptation to resort to drugs again. Eagleman explains that, 2015.