Recognize Drug Addiction
We talked about how addiction is formed in our brain. So how do you know that intoxicants are becoming a problem. How do you recognize your own or a loved one’s drug addiction. Substance addiction is a disease defined by the icd-10 disease classification, the criteria for addiction have been set to aid identification. In order to talk about substance addiction, at least three or more symptoms must occur regularly for at least 1 month in the last year. The criteria for addiction are the same regardless of whether alcohol, drugs, or drugs that depress or intoxicate the central nervous system are used.
A person addicted to intoxicants feels great affection towards the intoxicant they are using. It’s hard to resist the idea. The control is disappointing. It is difficult for a substance addict to control the initiation of substance use, the dosage amounts they set for themselves, or the cessation of use. Substances are used more and more often than originally intended. Withdrawal symptoms. In substance addiction, withdrawal symptoms occur if you don’t use the substance or try to stop or reduce its use. Withdrawal symptoms vary depending on the substance, but common withdrawal symptoms are, for example, anxiety, upset stomach and insomnia.
We talk about the increase in tolerance, i.e. The increase in tolerance, when the dosage amounts of the intoxicant used have to be increased in order to achieve an intoxicating effect. After all, even toxic amounts of alcohol or drugs may be needed to get drunk and have the desired effects.
Use becomes an important thing in life
The life of a drug addict largely revolves around the drug: when do i get to use? Where can i get money for the next dose? When intoxicants become an unnecessarily important thing in life, we are often already in trouble. The use continues despite the inconvenience or the concern of a loved one. Addictive use of substances is always accompanied by disadvantages: the state of health deteriorates, accidents happen when intoxicated, loved ones worry, school or work suffers, finances go to waste. A substance addict is not able to stop using, even if he notices the harm from using substances or someone close to him is worried about the use.
Substance addiction is not always visible on the outside, and problems with substance use are often only noticed when the addiction has existed for years and the problem has become chronic. Denial of addiction is part of substance abuse and makes seeking treatment difficult. By recognizing the symptoms of addiction in yourself or someone close to you, you speed up seeking treatment and improve the chances of recovering from the disease of addiction. It is always easier to make changes to substance use before the use becomes a problem, than to treat substance addiction that has already arisen.
