Drug Addiction

For a drug addict, life is more fun and joyful with a little help from the magic of chemicals. Taken in the beginning for testing new sensations, from simple curiosity or for fitting in, the powders, pills or drinks became the best friends of a drug addict. The old friends are seen as the ones that can’t understand the drug addict anymore and the life itself is so gray without the drug. The family doesn’t know how to help and the drug addict is not thinking even for a moment leaving the “happy” substances.

This is the real picture when it comes to a drug addiction. And because the drug addiction has become over the last years a real phenomenon, more and more people and institutions are willing to help its victims. But although helping a drug addict is a very hard thing to do, it is not impossible. The first steps imply finding out what the drug addict deals with: the “stuffs” he/she takes and their effects.

The drug addiction is not a product of the modern lifestyle. There are numerous cases of drug addicts throughout recorded history, but the difference is that presently the drugs are more powerful and more elaborated. A drug addict is not only the person who uses higher and higher dose of heroin, but also the person who is dependent of depressants like alcohol and benzodiazepines, morphine and methadone or stimulants like amphetamines, nicotine and cocaine. The depressants are also called "downers" and they are typically facilitating relaxation and pain-relief. The stimulants are the "uppers" that typically cause heightened alertness and energy.

Usually a drug addiction starts with the person taking a weaker drug and a smaller dose. In the beginning, most of the times there are preferred the legal substances such as: alcohol, nicotine in the form of tobacco (particularly cigarettes) and caffeine in the form of tea, coffee and caffeinated sodas. Sometimes prescription or over the counter drugs can also become addictive if abused. But many drug addicts step forward in this unstable land and ask for more powerful doses. This happens because of the tolerance, the body's physical adaptation to a drug. In order to achieve the initial effect after the body "gets used to" and adapts to the intake, a drug addict needs a greater amounts of the drug or a stronger one.

The drug addiction itself differs from substance to substance and from a drug addict to another. The codeine and alcohol are among the drugs that typically require many more exposures to addict their users, while drugs like heroin or cocaine need less time to transform a casual consumer into a drug addict. In the same time there are persons psychologically or genetically predisposed to addiction and they are more likely to suffer from it.

The drug addiction has two components: the physical dependency and psychological one. Generally, a drug addict experiences both of them. The physical dependency is determined by the habitual use of drug, making the body to become accustomed to its effects. In order to feel normal, the drug addict must continue to use the substance or to suffer the unwanted symptoms of withdrawal. The psychological dependency is related with the habitual drug use, making the mind become emotionally reliant on its effects (like elicit pleasure or pain relief). The drug addict just can’t feel capable of functioning without drugs, because its absence produces intense cravings, often magnified by stress.

Both physical and psychological dependency can be treated. The methods used for the recovery of a drug addiction vary according to the types of drugs involved, the used amount, the period of the drug addiction, the social needs of the drug addict and the medical complications.

The type of recovery program for a drug addiction depends on personality, drug(s) of addiction, mental or physical illness, concept of spirituality or religion and local availability of programs. The substance-abuse rehabilitation (or "rehab") centers offer a residential treatment program, isolating the drug addict from drugs and interactions with other users and dealers. There are also outpatient clinics treated through a combination of individual counseling and group counseling.

So, for those who think that there is no chance of living a normal life again without drugs, the constant recovery of drug addict patients is proof that with a strong will, drugs can be defeated.