Drug-seeking behavior and use that is compulsive, or difficult to control despite adverse effects characterize addiction as a chronic condition.
Most people voluntarily choose to use illegal drugs at first, but repeated drug use can result in brain changes that make it difficult for an addict to maintain self-control and interfere with their ability to withstand strong urges to use illegal substances.
What is Drug addiction?
Drug addiction is considered a “relapsing” disease because people in recovery from drug use disorders are more likely to relapse even after years without using the drug. These brain modifications can be long-lasting. It is helpful to consider addiction as both a memory problem and a learning problem in order to fully understand it. Addiction alters how the brain processes experience-based learning and how it retains knowledge that has already been gained.
Relapses are frequent, but that doesn’t mean the treatment is ineffective. Similar to other chronic health illnesses, treatment must be ongoing and modified to the patient’s responses. To accommodate the patient’s changing needs, treatment plans must be often evaluated and adjusted.
What drugs lead to addiction?
Drugs that are commonly misused include:
- Alcohol
- Prescription medicines and cold medicines
- Opioid pain killers such as heroin, fentanyl, oxycodone, hydrocodone, codeine, and morphine
- Tobacco/nicotine and electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes or vaping)
- Recreational drugs such as analgesics, depressants, stimulants, and hallucinogens. Analgesics include narcotic drugs like heroin, morphine, fentanyl, and codeine
- Synthetic cannabinoids (K2 or Spice)
- Sedatives, hypnotics, and anxiolytics (anti-anxiety medications)
Despite the fact that these substances are very different from one another, they all strongly stimulate the brain regions that activate the addiction center. Due to the toxic nature of these substances, users may develop brain damage or sudden death. These chemicals are addictive whilst others are not because of this.
Why do some people become addicted to drugs while others don’t?
None of these factors can predict if a person will become addicted to drugs. A number of variables influence the risk for addiction. The more risk factors a person has, the greater the chance that taking drugs can lead to addiction. For instance:
Biology
About half of a person’s risk for addiction is determined by their inherited DNA. Risk factors for drug use and addiction may also be influenced by gender and ethnicity. Other times, the addiction triggers or worsens a mental health disorder.
Environment
The environment a person lives in can have a variety of effects, from family and friends to financial stability and overall quality of life. Peer pressure, physical and sexual abuse, early drug exposure, stress, and parental supervision are just a few examples of environmental factors that can significantly impact someone’s likelihood of using drugs and becoming addicted.
Development
Environmental and genetic factors interact with critical developmental stages in a person’s life to affect addiction risk. Although using drugs at any age can result in addiction, addiction is more likely to develop the sooner drug usage begins. Teenagers in particular find this to be problematic. Teenagers may be particularly prone to risky activities, such as attempting drugs, since parts of their brains that regulate decision-making, judgment, and self-control are still growing.
Who is at risk for drug addiction?
It’s true that some people have a higher risk of abusing and becoming addicted to drugs.
Some of these things are things you can’t control, like your genetics or family history. Others are things that you do have some control over, like the environment you grew up in or the people you surround yourself with. You might have started misusing prescription drugs to relieve pain, cope with panic attacks, or improve concentration at school or work.
Most often, substance abuse disorder is usually developed due to many social, personal, and environmental causes. Knowing your risk factors can help you to be proactive in avoiding triggers and other situations that may make drug use more likely.
Having a mental illness, taking highly addictive drugs, lack of family involvement, and even being a man are all risk factors that may increase a person’s chances of becoming addicted to drugs.
Signs of Addiction
Although different drugs have different physical effects, the symptoms of addiction are similar. Signs that someone has a drug problem include:
- Eating more or eating less than usual
- Being in a bad mood
- Spending more time alone
- Sleeping at strange hours
- Sudden weight gain/ loss
- Deterioration of physical appearance (ex. tooth decay)
- Reduced perception of reality
- Slowed reaction time
- Having problems in personal or family relationships
- Always having the drug with you and buying it even if you can’t afford it
- Being very energetic, talking fast, or saying things that don’t make sense
- Losing interest in favorite things
- An urge to use the drug every day, or many times a day
- Feeling sick when you try to quit
Can drug addiction be cured or prevented?
Drug addiction is a chronic illness, just like diabetes or heart disease. It’s not curable, but it can be successfully managed. People who are recovering from an addiction will be at risk for relapse for years and possibly for their whole lives. Research shows that combining addiction treatment medicines with behavioral therapy ensures the best chance of success for most patients.
Treatment approaches tailored to each patient’s drug use patterns and any co-occurring medical, mental, and social problems can lead to continued drug addiction recovery. Drug use and addiction are preventable. You can help stop the problem before it starts by educating yourself and others. Studies have shown that prevention programs involving families, schools, communities, and the media are effective at preventing or reducing drug use and addiction.
Personal events and cultural factors affect drug use trends, but when young people view drug use as harmful, they tend to decrease their drug taking. Therefore, education and outreach are key in helping people understand the possible risks of drug use. Teachers, parents, and health care providers have crucial roles in educating young people and preventing drug use and addiction.
What are the treatments for drug addiction?
If you or your loved one is struggling with drug addiction, you may be thinking about what treatment options are right for you or them. The good news is that there are many different types of drug addiction treatments available today. Research shows that combining medication-assisted treatment with counseling gives most people the best chance of success.
The counseling may be individual, family, and/or group therapy. It can help you:
- Recognize the causes of your addiction.
- Learn to stay away from people, places, and situations that could make you feel tempted to use drugs.
- Learn coping mechanisms to prevent relapse to drug use.
- Learn how to deal with your problems so you won’t go back to using drugs.
- Analyze how using drugs affected your behavior.
It is known as a dual diagnosis if you have a mental disorder along with addiction. It is important to treat both problems. This will increase your chance of success.
You’ve probably heard that quitting drugs or alcohol is hard, but you may not know that there are medication-assisted treatments that can help with withdrawal symptoms. For addiction to certain drugs, there are also medicines that can help you re-establish normal brain function and decrease your cravings.
It’s also important to have a support system in place when you begin withdrawal. This could be family, friends, self-help groups, or a support group of people who have gone through what you’re experiencing. Each of them has a major role in your recovery as they will be able to help encourage and motivate you as well as give advice on how best to handle certain situations that may arise.
If you have a severe addiction, you may need hospital-based or residential treatment at drug treatment centers. Residential treatment programs combine housing and integrated treatment services.
Don’t Wait; Get Help Now at Milestone
If you think your drug use is out of control or causing problems, talk to a health professional.
It’s important to remember that there is no cure for addiction. But treatment can help you stop using drugs and stay drug-free. Your treatment may include addiction therapy, counseling, and medicine. Talk to your doctor to figure out the best plan for you.
At Milestone Health and Wellness, we believe that substance addiction is a disease that needs to be addressed at its root cause. Milestone offers treatment for substance dependence, outpatient rehabs, inpatient rehabs, customized wellness retreats, 12-step programs, and more.