What is Addiction?
Are you addicted to Quick and Dirty Tips? To Alcohol? To World of Warcraft? If so, this article is for you!
I have gotten some really nice notes from readers who enjoy these articles. It’s a real thrill to hear that kind of thing (although I do think they may need a medication adjustment). Some people have gone so far as to say that they are “addicted” to my articles. Addicted? Really? I certainly hope not.
To make sure I am not causing significant harm to those readers, I decided to cover the subject of addictions. It’s a subject people get confused about or sometimes ignore when they shouldn’t.
What is Chemical Dependency?
To understand the idea of addiction, I need to first define two terms: chemical dependency and addiction. The terms are often interchanged, and this creates a lot of confusion.
Chemical dependency is a physical phenomenon where the body reacts to the prolonged presence of a substance. Two things have to happen for chemical dependency to exist:
Your body has built a tolerance: Building tolerance is when your body grows less sensitive to something. To get the same effect from that substance, more of it needs to be taken in. You experience withdrawal when you stop using the substance: Withdrawal is a physical reaction that happens when the substance is abruptly stopped.
An Example of Chemical Dependency
Let me give two good examples of chemical dependency: coffee and nose spray. When I first started drinking coffee, I really felt the caffeine after only drinking a single cup. As the years have passed, however, it takes 2 or 3 (or 10) cups to get me going in the morning. That is tolerance. Now, if I miss my morning coffee, I not only get really grumpy, I get a bad headache. That is withdrawal.
Decongestant nasal sprays do the same. If you use sprays like Afrin for more than five consecutive days, you start to develop tolerance, and you get severe nasal congestion if you stop using it. That is actually a medical condition that has its very own Latin name: Rhinitis Medicamentosa. There is no Latin Term for caffeine withdrawal, but I think it should be called Headachus Starbuckatosis.
What is Addiction?
Addiction is a totally different thing. Addiction is a psychological condition where a person exhibits a behavior in a compulsive manner to such an extent that it causes physical, social, or psychological harm. It usually happens when someone wants to escape certain bad things in life; the addictive behavior briefly provides some escape and pleasure
It’s common knowledge that you can be addicted to the chemicals in cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs such as heroin, you also can be addicted to behaviors, such as gambling, food, spending money, and pornography.
Can Dependency Lead to Addiction?
There are some things that cause dependency that can also lead to addiction, including:
Alcohol – Withdrawal symptoms from alcohol range from mild agitation to a life threatening condition called delirium tremens.
Cigarettes – The withdrawal symptoms, known as “nicotine fits,” are uncomfortable, but the craving is more from addiction than dependency.
Prescription drugs – Prescription drugs of the following major classes often lead to dependency and addiction:
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Pain medications, such as oxycodone
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Anxiety medications, such as Xanax
Compulsive spending and gambling do not cause dependency; they can, however, be extremely addictive. Coffee and nasal spray, on the other hand, cause dependency, but not addiction. That’s why you don’t meet up with a guy saying, “Hey buddy, want to buy some Dristan?” I guess Starbucks is evidence that there may be some addictiveness to coffee.
Why do People Get Addicted?
Different people are susceptible to addiction to different degrees. The factors that make people prone to addiction are:
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Heredity
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History of significant anxiety or depression
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Significant abuse or trauma in the past.
How Does Addiction Work?
Addiction typically follows a cycle:
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A person is anxious and depressed, wanting to escape their situation.
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They go to their addictive behavior, getting momentary relief from the bad in their life.
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The addiction causes feelings of guilt or shame, or it causes significant disruption in the person’s life.
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The consequences of the addictive behavior cause the person to become more anxious or depressed.
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The person is drawn back to the addictive behavior.
It’s very much like the “moth being drawn to the flame.” So why doesn’t the addict stop what they are doing due to the consequences? Some people actually do. I have seen people quit smoking, drinking, and even doing hard drugs just by realizing certain hard facts. But most addicted people can’t pull out despite the consequences and persistent reminders of their bad behavior can actually drive them toward their addiction. These people need to get help.
Myths About Addiction
Before I move on to my tips on this subject, I want to dispel a few myths about addiction:
Only bad or dumb people get addicted. The behavior of the addict may be bad, but the thing that makes a person prone to addiction is their emotional state, not their moral character. Doctors and nurses, for example, have high rates of substance abuse. Nice people get addicted too, and their addictions are often overlooked.
The addict can’t control their behavior. A person does what they want to do, so each time an alcoholic drinks, he does so by choice. The root problem is what the addict wants, not what they do. They just want to indulge the addiction too much to quit.
The cure for addiction is willpower. Resisting an addiction by force of will is referred to by many as: “white knuckling.” Though this rids the person of the behavior that results from the addiction, it doesn’t address the root problem and often leads to other problems, such as excessive anger or less obvious addictions like workaholism or compulsive eating.
Quick and Dirty Tips for Dealing with Addiction
So now here are my Quick and Dirty Tips for dealing with addictions:
Tip 1: Don’t be Surprised
Everyone has behaviors they use to escape and many people have behaviors that cause some harm. The high rate of obesity in the U.S. is a good example. If you look in your own life, you will probably have an addiction of some sort. The consequences of the addiction are what determine how seriously to take it.
Tip 2: Face Reality
Addictions are real and very hard to break out of. The first necessary step needed to deal with them is to admit that they exist. Even if you don’t struggle with an addiction, chances are good that someone around you does.
Tip 3: Don’t Take Them Lightly
Serious addictions are very hard to deal with. Counseling and recovery groups make getting out of a destructive addiction much more likely. Getting counseling and taking part in a recovery group can be very hard, but doing so will make a huge difference.
Tip 4: Don’t Make Excuses
Excuses are the main roadblock that keeps people from overcoming destructive addictions. The first step to recovery is to accept responsibility for your actions. People with addictions are often surrounded by others who enable the addiction by making excuses for them. That doesn’t justify the addiction, but it certainly makes it harder to recover when others are not facing reality and are instead acting as enablers.
Tip 5: Seek Professional Help
The withdrawal from many substances like alcohol and drugs can be quite terrible and even life-threatening. If the addiction is bad, it may even merit hospitalization to deal with withdrawal.
There is a lot more to say on this subject. It’s a real hard one. I am still trying to overcome my addiction to playing Bejeweled. But there is hope, even for those whose lives seem to be falling apart.
If you have questions you want answered, send them to housecalldoctor@quickanddirtytips.comcreate new email. You can find me on Twitter as @housecalldoc and on Facebook under “House Call Doctor.”
Let me remind you that this podcast is for informational purposes only. My goal is to add to your medical knowledge and translate some of the weird medical stuff you hear, so when you do go to your doctor, your visits will be more fruitful. I don’t intend to replace your doctor; he or she is the one you should always consult about your own medical condition.
Catch you next time! Stay Healthy!
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