Many consider addiction to be a personal weakness, something that is started for enjoyment and persists because the person lacks the willpower or is unwilling to stop.
Addiction is a relationship between a person and an object or activity. When you become addicted, things that were formerly significant become less relevant and the object or activity becomes more and more important.
It is therefore, ultimately about the complex struggle between acting on impulse and resisting that impulse. When this struggle is causing pain and suffering related to health, family, work, and other activities of everyday life, addiction might be involved.
In this guide we will explore addiction; it’s definition, the various types, it’s symptoms and causes, stages and complications, and finally recovery – how to break an addiction.
This guide covers the following:
Addiction is a relationship between a person and an object or activity. When you become addicted, things that were formerly significant become less relevant and the object or activity becomes more and more important.
It is therefore, ultimately about the complex struggle between acting on impulse and resisting that impulse. When this struggle is causing pain and suffering related to health, family, work, and other activities of everyday life, addiction might be involved.
In this guide we will explore addiction; it’s definition, the various types, it’s symptoms and causes, stages and complications, and finally recovery – how to break an addiction.
This guide covers the following:
Understanding Addiction
Any activity that causes someone to participate compulsively in spite of grave consequences is considered addiction. It provides momentary comfort or enjoyment, but it hurts in the long run and you are unable to give it up in spite of the repercussions. From this perspective, it becomes clear that there are many addictions.
Types of Addictions
When most people hear the word addiction, they typically associate it with substance abuse, but there are other forms as well.
According to research, obsessive behavior patterns like gambling and shopping are similar to how substance addictions function.
Most experts now distinguish between two categories of addiction:
According to research, obsessive behavior patterns like gambling and shopping are similar to how substance addictions function.
Most experts now distinguish between two categories of addiction:
- Chemical addiction. This involves the use of substances. It is a chronic, progressive, and potentially lethal brain disorder.
- Behavioral addiction. These are persistent, repeated behaviors that you carry out even if they don’t offer any real benefit.
What to know about chemical addiction
The most recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) recommends using the term “substance use disorder.” This classification includes more diagnostic criteria to help healthcare professionals differentiate between mild, moderate, and severe cases.
Common symptoms of substance use disorder include:
Common symptoms of substance use disorder include:
- cravings intense enough to affect your ability to think about other things
- a need to use more of the substance to experience the same effects
- unease or discomfort if you can’t easily access the substance
- risky substance use, like driving or working while using it
- trouble managing work, school, or household responsibilities because of substance use
- friendship or relationship difficulties related to substance use
- spending less time on activities you used to enjoy
- an inability to stop using the substance
- withdrawal symptoms when you try to quit
Some of the more common addictive substances include:
What to know about behavioral addiction
Although the majority of medical professionals acknowledge that some behavioral patterns can eventually become problematic, there is still some disagreement regarding:
- the point when behaviors become addictions
- specific behaviors that can become addictive
For example, some may agree that shopping, sex, and exercise addictions exist but question the idea that people can become addicted to Facebook.
However, general signs of a potential behavioral addiction include:
However, general signs of a potential behavioral addiction include:
- spending large amounts of time engaging in the behavior
- urges to engage in the behavior even if it negatively affects daily life, responsibilities, or relationships
- using the behavior to manage unwanted emotions
- hiding the behavior or lying to other people about time spent on it
- difficulty avoiding the behavior
- irritability, restlessness, anxiety, depression, or other withdrawal symptoms when attempting to quit
- feeling compelled to continue the behavior even when it causes distress
Common behavioral addictions people often seek therapy and other professional support to address include:
Signs and Causes
What are the signs of addiction?
Addiction symptoms differ based on the substance or activity and from person to person. Generally, indicators consist of:
- Inability to stop: Even if they wish to stop, people may continue to take drugs or participate in dangerous addictive behaviors. They might have made several unsuccessful attempts to cut back on their substance usage or behavior. They might also attempt to conceal it or lie about it to their loved ones.
- Increased tolerance: They might require more of the drug or exercise over time in order to experience the same euphoric benefits.
- Intense focus on the substance or activity: Being addicted causes a person to become pathologically fixated on the drug or activity. They spend more and more time craving, obtaining and thinking of the subject of the addiction.
- Lack of control: They frequently feel powerless and may believe they have lost all control over their substance use or behavior. Their addiction and the extent to which it has affected their lives may frequently cause them to feel guilty, discouraged, and/or overwhelmed.
- Personal problems and health issues: Addiction affects every aspect of their life, including their physical and emotional well-being, interpersonal connections, and careers. They could struggle to complete tasks at home, at school, or at work because of their substance abuse or the activity. Again, they recognize the harm their addictions are causing to them, but they are unable to give them up.
- Withdrawal: When they stop using drugs, addicts may experience both physical and emotional withdrawal symptoms. A few physical signs are trembling, perspiration, or nausea. They might also start to feel agitated or nervous.
Causes of Addiction
What causes addiction?
Addiction is a greatly complex disorder with no single cause. Addiction occurs in large part due to alterations in brain chemistry.
Substances and certain activities affect your brain circuitry, especially the reward center of your brain. Hence making addiction difficult to overcome.
The desire for rewards is innate in human nature. These benefits frequently result from positive actions. Your body releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter that causes pleasure, when you eat a tasty meal or spend time with a loved one. It turns into a cycle where you look for these encounters because they make you feel wonderful.
Both drugs and behaviors, such as spending money or having sex, cause your brain to spike with dopamine. However, such high levels of dopamine can have detrimental impacts on your thoughts, feelings, and behavior rather than inspiring you to do the things you must do to survive (eat, work, and spend time with loved ones).
This can create an unhealthy drive to seek more pleasure from the substance or activity thus creating a vicious cycle.
You become desensitized to the effects of the substances or activities over time as they alter the chemistry of your brain. Then, more is required to have the same result.
For some substances, such as opioids, the withdrawal symptoms are so severe that they create significant motivation to continue using them.
Addiction is a greatly complex disorder with no single cause. Addiction occurs in large part due to alterations in brain chemistry.
Substances and certain activities affect your brain circuitry, especially the reward center of your brain. Hence making addiction difficult to overcome.
The desire for rewards is innate in human nature. These benefits frequently result from positive actions. Your body releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter that causes pleasure, when you eat a tasty meal or spend time with a loved one. It turns into a cycle where you look for these encounters because they make you feel wonderful.
Both drugs and behaviors, such as spending money or having sex, cause your brain to spike with dopamine. However, such high levels of dopamine can have detrimental impacts on your thoughts, feelings, and behavior rather than inspiring you to do the things you must do to survive (eat, work, and spend time with loved ones).
This can create an unhealthy drive to seek more pleasure from the substance or activity thus creating a vicious cycle.
You become desensitized to the effects of the substances or activities over time as they alter the chemistry of your brain. Then, more is required to have the same result.
For some substances, such as opioids, the withdrawal symptoms are so severe that they create significant motivation to continue using them.
Other factors that contribute to the development of addictions include:
Genetics: Studies indicate that between 40% and 60% of the susceptibility to Substance Use Disorders (SUD), is attributed to hereditary factors. You have a higher risk of developing a drug abuse disorder if you have a first-degree family (parent or biological sibling) who has one. Researchers are trying to identify particular genes that might be involved in this vulnerability.
Mental health conditions: Addiction and mental illnesses like depression, bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are closely related. Substance abuse disorders (SUDs) and mental health conditions are associated with each other in about 50% of cases.
Environmental factors: One very important environmental risk factor is access to drugs. It is more likely that you will be exposed to substances and have the chance to use them if you or a peer uses them, and if you are prescribed drugs that have the potential to be abused, like stimulants or opioids.
Adverse Childhood Experiences: Another factor is the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). ACEs are upsetting or traumatic childhood experiences. Addiction is among the many health issues that can arise in a person’s lifetime and is closely linked to ACEs.
Mental health conditions: Addiction and mental illnesses like depression, bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are closely related. Substance abuse disorders (SUDs) and mental health conditions are associated with each other in about 50% of cases.
Environmental factors: One very important environmental risk factor is access to drugs. It is more likely that you will be exposed to substances and have the chance to use them if you or a peer uses them, and if you are prescribed drugs that have the potential to be abused, like stimulants or opioids.
Adverse Childhood Experiences: Another factor is the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). ACEs are upsetting or traumatic childhood experiences. Addiction is among the many health issues that can arise in a person’s lifetime and is closely linked to ACEs.
Stages and Complications
What are the stages?
Addiction often presents itself in stages. Early on in an addiction, your body and brain respond differently than they do later in the disease.
The four stages of addiction are:
The four stages of addiction are:
- Experimentation: uses or engages out of curiosity
- Social or regular: uses or engages in social situations or for social reasons
- Problem or risk: uses or engages in an extreme way with disregard for consequences
- Dependency: uses or engages in a behavior on a daily basis, or several times per day, despite possible negative consequences.
What are the complications?
Addiction that’s left untreated can lead to long-term consequences. These consequences can be:
Different substances and behaviors have different effects on a person’s health. Serious complications can cause health concerns or social situations to result in the end of a life.
Treatment
How do you treat addiction?
Addictions of all kinds can be treated. Since addiction frequently affects many aspects of life, the greatest plans are all-inclusive. The goal of treatment will be to assist you or the person you know in giving up on seeking out and using their addiction.
Common therapies include:
Common therapies include:
The type of treatment a doctor recommends depends on the severity and stage of the addiction. With early stages of addiction, a doctor may recommend medication and therapy. Later stages may benefit from inpatient addiction treatment in a residential rehabilitation facility.
You can book an appointment with a primary care clinician here.
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