Overview of drug and alcohol addictions
What exactly is addiction? Addiction is defined as a physiological dependence on something and its effects are both psychological and physical. An addicted person really needs to constantly feed their addiction. Most people who are addicted to something don’t realize they have a problem. Addiction has taken hold of them and caught them off guard. They think that the problem belongs to others.
Addiction and abuse are two different things. A person can abuse a substance like alcohol, but never become addicted to it. The two determinants of addiction are tolerance and physical dependence. Any addiction is highly destructive, both for the person with the addiction and for those around them. Substance addictions are difficult to overcome. However, once the addict truly sees and admits a problem, there are many avenues of treatment for both alcohol and drug addictions.
The glorious image that many teens see in movies and on television involves other teens drinking and doing drugs to add to the fun they are apparently already having. It makes it seem like just the thing to do for fun. Hollywood does a bit of trying to show the other side of addiction with certain movies and shows. But the addicted character is still glamorous in the end, which overshadows the very dark side of drug and alcohol addiction. Movies are made to entertain us, so we need to look at the whole picture with a critical eye. The harsh reality of addiction is not entertaining on any level. Addiction itself is a nightmare, and post-rehab is no picnic either.
Regardless of what you hear or read, alcohol and illegal drugs are addictive. In fact, the younger a person starts experimenting with these things, the more likely they are to become addicted to them later in life. Many times, addictions affect several members of the family. While trying any drug or alcohol is dangerous, it’s much more of a gamble if you know you have close family members who have struggled with the same things. What you stand to lose in this gamble is your personality, your future, maybe even your life.
Most people who are addicted to alcohol will try to hide their drinking and openly deny any problem. If friends or those around you on a daily basis show concern, you probably have a problem. If their comments and suggestions irritate you, you probably have a problem. Similarly, if you feel guilty about the amount of alcohol you consume or think maybe you should control it but can’t, or if you find yourself drinking in the morning to stop shakiness or help ease a hangover, these are big signs of alert.
Drug addiction most often begins as abuse of prescription medications or inhalants. Inhalants are legal substances that are used illegally to get a person high. Inhalants include spray cleaners, gasoline, cleaning fluids, butane, and acetone. You can legally buy or sell these things. They are not considered controlled substances and are much cheaper to purchase than illegal drugs or even prescription drugs.
Having the support of family and loved ones is essential to the addict’s recovery. Some people are able to kick their addictions on their own with that support. However, willpower is usually not enough. Most true addicts will need the assistance of a drug or alcohol rehabilitation program. These programs offer medically supervised and assisted detoxification methods to avoid life-threatening symptoms, such as seizures or seizures, while abstaining from the substance. Once the person’s physical well-being is established, he or she will need even more help in finding and resolving the psychological problems associated with his or her addictions.