Addiction

What is it?

Addictions can develop out of what initially seem to be everyday habits that many people indulge in, usually because they make them feel good in some way. e.g. smoking, drinking alcohol, drugs, sex, working all hours of the day and night, having a bet. But for some people these activities grow out of their control, until they become physically and mentally dependent upon them.

An addiction is a strong compulsion to use a certain substance or behaviour to make yourself feel good or to prevent yourself from feeling bad. Addictions affect people in different ways depending upon what the vice involves but they all involve developing a habit that comes to dominate your life and, in the case of drink, drugs and smoking, can produce physical cravings.

Signs and symptoms

The signs and symptoms of addiction will vary according to what you have become dependent upon.

Physical addiction:

This is when repeated use of a drug has changed your body chemistry e.g. alcohol, heroin, tranquillisers with the result that your body develops a craving for the substances that you are compelled to fulfil. Even sexual addiction can manifest and become physically addictive. Seratonin is released when we have sex and some may find this addictive in its sensation.

Psychological addiction:

This is when you repeatedly behave in a certain way, so that your mind comes to feel you can’t manage in any other way. Any activity that changes your mood can produce mental cravings, e.g the “buzz” from winning on a fruit machine makes you feel good, so you feel driven to go back and gamble again to get the same feeling.

For some people, they may manage these addictions or compulsions, however, if they start to have a negative impact on your life, family, friends, even your job, if your coping with your compulsion starts to not work for you, then this is when it may become a problem.

Have you developed an addicition?

It takes people a long time to face up to the fact that they may have a problem. It is something that creeps up on you over time. Your family and friends may be aware of the affect it is having on your life before you are prepared to admit its impact to yourself. There are a few basic questions you can ask yourself about your vice to see whether it has developed into an addiction.

Is it an important part of your life?
Do you spend much of the day thinking about it or doing it?
Do you indulge to chnage the way you're feeling?
Have you ever done it in secret?
Does the thought of giving it up worry you?
Do you react badly and become defensive when people suggest it's a problem?

If the answer to any of these is yes, you might need to start thinking about changes you need to make to reduce your dependency.

What causes addiction?

Family

The way you are brought up can have an influence on whether you develop an addiction. If a member of your family has an addiction, this may influence you into taking up the same or a different addiction. Some people also feel that some addictions such as alcoholism may have a genetic factor.

Environment

Living in a stressful or boring environment can lead to taking up activities that may become addictive, in order to have a “break” from the reality you’re living in.

Low self-esteem

Some people end up with an addiction because they are unable to face up to the problems they may have to deal with in life. They don’t feel they have the confidence to cope and so cover the pain they are feeling through their addiction.

What can you do about it?

If you think you might have an addiction, one of the most important steps you can take is to admit this to yourself. It might help to talk to someone you trust to see if they think you have become dependent on whatever your particular vice is.

There are some steps you can take to try and overcome the problems yourself:

Find examples from your past where you have coped with a situation without having to resort to the “support” of your addiction to get you through.
Monitor the current aspects of your behaviour that you would like to change by keeping a diary of when and how you perform the behaviour e.g. keeping a diary of every cigarette you smoke in a day.
Start to bring about change by replacing the behaviour you want to give up with something else e.g. replacing cigarettes with chewing gum
Praise yourself, or give yourself a reward when you behave in the way you want to.
Expect to have some set backs, they don’t mean you’re a failure.

Many addictions are too strong to overcome on your own without any support. There are many specialist groups around that can help. Please see the links under other websites at the top right of this page.