What is an Addiction?
Addiction is a complex condition that impacts all aspects of a person’s life. Often the world views addictions as a failure on the part of the addict. Addiction is not a character flaw, but rather a disease. Addiction is characterised by the compulsive need to use one or more substances, despite the harmful effects that are associated with using them.
Addiction – also known as severe substance use disorder – impacts the way the human brain is wired. Over time the connections in an addict’s brain re-wire, to create deep cravings for the substance or substances they use, thus making it very difficult to stop using them. An addiction can lead people to fall in with the wrong crowd, make risky decisions, resort to crime to fund their addiction, destroy relationships, impact their professional and personal lives while having grave consequences for their physical health.
Over time, an addict builds up their tolerance to the substance and requires more to achieve the same sensation, effect, or ‘high’. Using more and more worsens the addiction and the negative consequences of using, as well as making it much harder to quit.
People can be addicted to
- Alcohol
- Tobacco
- Marijuana
- Hallucinogens such as LSD
- Opioids such as pain killers and heroin
- Cocaine and other stimulants
- Sedatives such as sleeping pills
- Gambling
- Porn
- Methamphetamemes
When to Get Help
The simple answer is when the addict understands that they have a problem, and needs to get help. Though help from families, such as an intervention can be beneficial, research shows that unless an individual is ready to get clean and sober, they are unlikely to be open to change. Sobriety and recovery are difficult and takes hard work. The client must be ready and willing to make the changes suggested and put in the work. Recovery is possible and you deserve to get better.