 Drug Addiction Follows A
Cycle Like This:
The
life cycle of addiction begins with a problem, discomfort
or some form of emotional or physical pain a person is experiencing.
They find this very difficult to deal with.
We start off with an individual who is basically good. This
person encounters a problem or discomfort that they do not
know how to resolve or cannot confront. This could include
problems such as difficulty “fitting in” as a
child or teenager, anxiety due to peer pressure or work
expectations, identity problems or divorce as an adult.
It can also include physical discomfort, such as an injury
or chronic pain. The person experiencing the discomfort
has a real problem. He feels his present situation is unendurable,
yet sees no good solution to the problem.
Everyone has experienced this in life to
some degree. The difference between an addict and the non-addict
is that the addict chooses drugs or alcohol as a solution
to the unwanted problem or discomfort.
Drugs
And Problems
This
person tries drugs or alcohol. The drugs APPEAR to solve
his problem. He feels better. Because he now SEEMS better
able to deal with life, the drugs become valuable to him.
The painkilling effects of drugs or alcohol become a solution
to their discomfort. Inadvertently, the drug or alcohol
now becomes valuable because it helped them feel better.
This release is the main reason a person uses drugs or drinks
a second or third time. It is just a matter of time before
he becomes fully addicted and loses the ability to control
his drug use. Drug addiction, then, results from excessive
or continued use of physiologically habit-forming drugs
in an attempt to resolve the underlying symptoms of discomfort
or unhappiness.
 The Addiction
Progresses…
The
use of drugs or alcohol becomes obsessive. The addicted
person is trapped. Whatever problem he was initially trying
to solve by using drugs or alcohol fades from memory. At
this point, all he can think about is getting and using
drugs. He loses the ability to control his usage and disregards
the horrible consequences of his actions.
How Drugs Affect Behaviour
 The addict will now attempt
to withhold the fact of his drug use from friends and family
members. He will begin to suffer the effects of his own
dishonesty and guilt. He may become withdrawn and difficult
to reason with. He may behave strangely.
The
more he uses drugs and alcohol, the guiltier he will feel,
and the more depressed he will become. He will sacrifice
his personal integrity, his relationships with friends and
family, his job, his savings, and anything else he may have
in an attempt to get more drugs. The drugs are now the most
important things in his life. His relationships and job
performance will go drastically downhill.
Alcohol And Drug Tolerance
In
addition to the mental stress created by his unethical behavior,
the addict’s body has also adapted to the presence
of the drugs. He will experience an overwhelming obsession
with getting and using his drugs, and will do anything to
avoid the pain of withdrawing from them. This is when the
newly-created addict begins to experience drug cravings.
He
now seeks drugs both for the reward of the “pleasure”
they give him, and also to avoid the mental and physical
horrors of withdrawal. Ironically, the addict’s ability
to get “high” from the alcohol or drug gradually
decreases as his body adapts to the presence of foreign
chemicals. He must take more and more, not just to get an
effect but often just to function at all.
At
this point, the addict is stuck in a vicious downward spiral.
The drugs he abuses have changed him both physically and
mentally. He has crossed an invisible and intangible line.
He is now a drug addict or alcoholic.
Drugs And Personalit y
Change
The drug personality includes
such characteristics as:
» Mood swings, unreliable.
» Unable to finish projects.
» Unexpressed resentment
and secret hatreds.
» Dishonesty.
Lies to family, friends, employers.
» Withdraws from those
who love him. Isolates self.
» May
appear chronically depressed.
» May
begin stealing from family and friends.
Next: Biochemical Aspects
of Addiction
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