Addiction – regardless of what form it takes – permeates you. Not just your mind or your body, but your person. It changes people, it changes their priorities and thoughts. And worst of all, it’s incredibly hard for someone with an addiction to realize and acknowledge that they have a major problem. Here are some of the key signs to look out for that indicate you need help with addiction.
You Can’t Stop Thinking About It
You’re reminded constantly of your cravings, and you want to satisfy them, to the point that if you’re not thinking directly about the high itself, then you’re thinking of ways to get to that moment. And if that’s not the case, then you’re in the middle of executing those thoughts. It’s even worse when you decide to limit yourself to a certain amount (only gambling with a set budget, or cutting down your alcohol use to a specific amount of alcohol) but then end up completely blowing that limit apart.
The pattern is clear – those who have an addiction will first be able to notice it by how:
- They’re often preoccupied with their addiction, even when they should be doing something else.
- They avoid making plans with family, friends or other loved ones.
- They appear anxious, sad, or irritable if they don’t get their fix.
- Their previous activities and enjoyments are less enjoyable or take a total backseat to their addiction.
If you no longer devote any time to the things you used to enjoy doing and deliberately go out of your way to lie to friends and family about your compulsive behavior, get caught and still can’t stop, then you have a severe problem. It’s then time to get help with addiction.
You Exhibit the Physical Symptoms
The trouble with physical symptoms are that they are numerous, and depend highly on a person’s drug or behavior of choice. There are a few common threads indicating you need help with addiction, however these could be signs of pure overwork or stress, as well. For example:
- Being physically exhausted, and getting little sleep.
- Massive weight loss/weight gain.
- Bloodshot eyes.
- Signs of malnutrition.
- Frequent nausea and/or headaches without a fix.
- Bad breath.
While these symptoms are not always indicative of addiction, exhibiting one or more of these symptoms should be a cause for alarm, and can be a sign of other problems. you may consider seeking help with addiction if these symptoms are common for you.
You’ve Tried to Stop Yourself, But Need Help with Addiction
Emphasis on “tried” – an addiction can be characterized as a type of compulsive illness, wherein you’re either constantly returning to your old habit (a chronic symptom) or you’re unable to break away to begin with (relying on the addiction in moments of stress or discomfort, including withdrawal). In those cases you might need help with addiction recovery to make it stick for the long term.
The basic concept behind an addiction is that a certain behavior elicits a powerful reward, powerful enough to motivate continuous use. If you try to stop, withdrawal sets in, putting you in a situation wherein eventually, your brain is desensitized to any sort of pleasure aside from escalating behavior/drug use, and stopping the behavior completely puts you under extreme amounts of physical and emotional stress (further encouraging a relapse). Seeking help with addiction can put you in an environment better suited to dealing with the process of recovery, such as a Houston sober living community .
Even for people who make it through the initial stage of recovery, cravings can be powerful enough that they preoccupy a person’s mind for months and even years to come.
It’s important to think of addiction not as something you need to eliminate day one, but rather as a compulsion within your brain that first must be suppressed, with much effort, for months and months before things start to truly revert to normal. Don’t beat yourself up for “failing” (relapsing) now and again – the idea is to get back on the horse and keep pushing towards your first long-term sobriety, even if you require help with addiction.
You’re Struggling with Mental Illness
No one wants to paint a picture of mental illness immediately condemning someone towards addiction, especially as it is an inaccurate picture. But the correlation cannot be denied. Among those struggling with drugs, an overwhelming 40% tend to have a mental illness of some sort.
Self-medication – the act of using prescription drugs or illicit substances to cope with the symptoms of a mental illness – is a common initiator and contributor to the growth in addiction. A poor focus on mental health care and a lack of public understanding regarding the nature of common mental illnesses contributes to this, as it creates a hostile environment for people who struggle with a mental illness.
If you’re prone to episodes of severe depression, anxiety, have panic attacks, or have been diagnosed with a mental illness, then consider whether any of the other signs apply to you as well. Some people struggle to keep their depression in check without medication – that does not constitute an addiction. But being emotionally dependent on antidepressants after months of use, to the point that they become your only way to be happy not only constitutes as an addiction, but hinders your progress towards coping with depression without meds.
These drugs are prescribed as a temporary solution, not a life-long crutch – an addiction could be the result of a lack of alternative therapies, highlighting the need to treat mental illnesses and addictions with a more comprehensive treatment that covers both issues.
If you have numerous symptoms of either addiction or mental illness, visit a therapist or doctor to see if you need a diagnosis.