Information taken from Action on Addiction - www.aona.co.uk
One in three people suffer from an addiction. It is something that touches us all at some point in our lives. Despite this fact there are still many misconceptions about addiction - what it is and who it affects. Addiction is a complex illness that affects different people in different ways. Just because someone takes drugs or drinks alcohol does not mean that they have an addiction - an addiction is a loss of control over substance use. For example, someone may have problems controlling how much or how often they use a substance or they may need to take more of it to achieve the desired effect. It is characterised by a compulsion to use a substance to feel good, or to avoid feeling bad. An addiction can be a physical dependency - caused when repeated use of a substance changes your body's chemistry. And/or a psychological dependency - caused when you repeat certain behaviour, such as drug use, until your mind is hooked on that pattern of behaviour, causing mental cravings.
Information taken from Mind - www.mind.org.uk
It's nothing to do with either lack of willpower or intelligence. For many, their habit started as a way of coping with unbearable feelings they couldn’t deal with in any other way. Through a mixture, perhaps, of life experiences, social pressures and genetic inheritance, they have lost control over their behaviour, their drinking or their drug-taking, and suffer cravings or withdrawal symptoms if they go without. Unfortunately, addiction tends to get worse and worse. Often, people don't recognise they have a problem for a long time, so they don’t ask for the help they need. By then, addiction may have taken a terrible toll on the quality of life at home, school or work, and to relationships. Unless tackled, it could even be fatal. What happens when people become dependent? Some people can only find their way out from unbearable pressure by turning to mood-altering substances and behaviours. They discover substances or behaviour that solve their immediate problems by giving them a 'high' and changing or masking what they see as shameful emotions, such as pain, grief or fear. It's the start of a downward spiral that may, typically, take the following course. The dependency becomes the source of more shame. The person then seeks refuge from the pain of dependency by moving further into the addictive process. They deal with future problems, such as the loss of a partner or of their job (which may be a consequence of dependency) the same way, accelerating the descent. Soon, all the person needs to do is to think about their drug of choice for their mood to change. They may begin to play down the effects of their behaviour ("It's not that bad") or try to forget about it with "the hair of the dog". They distance themselves from anyone who tries to come between them and their dependency. Their behaviour worsens. They arrange their lives and relationships around their habit. They may start to lie about their dependency, no matter how honest they are in other areas of their lives. The alcoholic sneaks in a few drinks; the gambler opens a secret bank account; the sex-addict goes to prostitutes or is unfaithful.
