A significant risk of some medications is the development of addiction. Prescription opioids were key contributors to the origins of the opioid crisis. Benzodiazepines, stimulants, and other pharmacological classes of medication also carry this risk. The challenge is to balance the need to have these medications available for therapeutic use while minimizing the risk of addiction. This course explores the complex issues related to addictive medications from many perspectives including the pharmacological features of medications that promote this risk, pathways to addiction including the risk of therapeutic exposures, the contribution of stigma, prevention, and treatment strategies and research methodologies used in this field.