The Overview on Addiction
Trishelle Ames
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When you think of addiction, what is the first thing you think of? Do you think of someone you know who has an addiction, or do you think about the types of addictions there are. Maybe you even think about the actions people have taken because of an addiction. Everyone has their own thoughts and feelings on the topic of addiction, but there is some reasoning behind addiction.
Defining Addiction
The best definition for addiction is “A chronic relapsing disorder characterized by having a compulsive need or desire for a particular substance, thing, or activity.” Contrary to common belief, addiction is not just a person with a drinking or drug problem, but rather addiction can occur on a much broader scale. Addiction is hereditary meaning it can be passed on to a child from a parent through DNA. From a study done, scientists have estimated that 40-60 percent of a person's genetics account for their risk of having an addiction.
Physical Addictions
There are two groups that types of addictions can be categorized into. The first type is Physical Addictions, or also known as Substance Addiction, this is the most common type of addiction in the public eye as it consists of a person ingesting a liquid, or substance into their body based on a physical need. Some well known examples of this addiction are alcohol, tobacco, sleeping pills, or even coffee.
Behavioral Addiction
The second type of addiction is known as Behavioral Addiction, or Non-Substance Addictions. This is where a person begins to indulge in an object or an activity that results in brief feelings of pleasure or happiness. Some examples of these types of addiction are gambling, exercising, shopping, and working.
Fulfilling The Craving
All of these different types of addictions start off with the person having that need or desire to fill a void they have. This void will then begin to build and create cravings that the person will then need to fulfill. When the person fulfills their body's need or desire, the thoughts of the desire will lessen and the body will begin to relax because they don’t have that constant urge for it. When the desire is fulfilled, a center of the person's brain will then produce endorphins, which helps relax the body, and it will be sent throughout the body. The endorphins will last only a little while, and that is until the cravings happen again. When the person then fulfills them again, they will have created a cycle.
Brain Rewiring
Effects from having an addiction are long lasting. Having an addiction can rewire the brain, and it can have an impact on a person's physical health. How it can rewire the brain is that with the addiction, it will create a shift in a person's priorities and what they will choose to respond to first. It will shift the importance of the person's friends and family towards the back and put their addiction to the front. It also will make the person not think rationally. An example of this could be seen as a person not paying a bill they have for a house, a car, or even for a child. They will pay less attention to the environment around them and create this hyper focus on their needs and desires.
Changes From Addiction
When a person has an addiction, there are usually signs of a change within the person that friends or family members will start to notice. There will be psychological changes, behavioral/social changes, and physical changes that will not go unnoticed within the person.
Psychological Changes
Some psychological changes that will occur within the person are that they will begin to have mood swings. Mood swings are one of the most common changes within a person that suffers from an addictions. Another change that will occur is memory problems. In some situations, the addict could be in a conversation with a family member and completely forget they ever had the conversation. And lastly, a change that is seen quite often is defensiveness. The addict will begin to get defensive over almost anything. It's almost as if certain topics are like triggers to them. If an addict happens to be having a conversation with someone over a certain topic, and the trigger happens to be mentioned, the addict may feel threatened, as if being made fun of, and they will begin to argue with the other person. The other person may not have intended to make the addict feel that way, but trying to explain the intent behind the comment does not always make it better.
Behavioral Changes
Behavioral and social changes that can be seen from an addict include secretive and dishonest behavior. This can mean that the addict will begin to hide behaviors that are not approved by others or even lie about their own participation in these actions. Another behavioral and social change that can result from an addiction is poor performance or attendance at school or work. The addict may often begin to not hold themselves responsible for attending or completing tasks for school and work and will put themselves behind because of it. One other behavioral or social change that will be seen from an addict is they will begin to withdraw from socializing with others or attending events where they would need to be social to others. These reluctance to engage in social behavior can include events at work, school, grocery stores, or parties.
Physical Changes
Lastly, out of the physical changes that can be seen from an addict, the most obvious feature is the lack of concern for their physical appearance or personal hygiene. This person may begin to not take care of themselves because they may not feel the need to do so. Additionally, a person with an addiction will begin to have an irregular sleeping pattern. This will mean that they may only sleep for a few hours of the night, or long hours throughout the day. This symptom can also manifest as insomnia or a struggle to get to sleep.
Conclusion
With any person that has an addiction or has suffered from an addiction, they have experienced many of the things I have listed. There is so much that is happening to this person within their brain, in their body, and in their life. They as a person are taken over because of this disorder that they have.
Works Cited
Center, New Choices Treatment. “Different Types of Addiction: Physical and Behavioral.” New Choices Treatment Centers, 12 Sept. 2018, https://newchoicestc.com/blog/types-of-addiction
Cleveland Clinic. “Addiction.” Cleveland Clinic, 16 Mar. 2023, https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/6407-addiction
“Genes and Addiction.”
https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/addiction/genes
Recovery at the Crossroads. “Devastating Psychological Effects of Drug Addiction | Recovery.” Recovery at the Crossroads, 11 Jan. 2021, www.racnj.com/5-devastating-psychological-effects-of-drug-addiction/.
https://www.racnj.com/5-devastating-psychological-effects-of-drug-addiction/
Priory Group. “Common Signs & Symptoms of Addiction | Priory Group.” Priorygroup.com, 2019, https://www.priorygroup.com/addiction-treatment/signs-and-symptoms-of-addiction
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