Addictions
Addiction
Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder. When a person makes it a habit to turn to a particular activity or substance irrespective of the harm it causes them, is when they are identified as addicts.
Signs of addiction are seen quite early on in life. Most addicts, while growing up, either have an unstable home environment that influences their emotional well-being or a baggage of childhood trauma that they carry forward in life. In an attempt to suppress these experiences, they fall prey to substance abuse or addictive behaviors. However, in reality, emotional instability needs to be dealt with in a healthy way, for which there is addiction treatment - reforming ways to deal with emotions.
Substance Addictions Substance addiction or dependence is when a person starts engaging in compulsive or continual usage of alcohol or drugs regardless of its adverse effects such as being diagnosed with drug abuse. Some of the substance addictions include-
Alcohol
Opioids
Sedative, hypnotic or anxiolytic (including benzodiazepine addiction)
Cocaine
Cannabis
Amphetamine
Hallucinogen
Inhalant
Polysubstance dependence
Phencyclidine
Nicotine
Behavioral Addiction Excessive behavioral compulsions that start having an impact on an individual’s mental, physical, or social health are defined as behavioral addiction. The most common types of behavioral addictions include activities such as shopping, sex, watching porn, eating, excercising, gambling, gaming or even pulling one’s hair (also known as trichotilomania).
Addiction Treatment Addiction treatment options vary on the basis of a person’s needs. Here are two options that are most commonly used for a successful recovery.
Psychodynamic Therapy Many addictions are ingrained and have an effect on people’s way of dealing with uneasy emotions early in life. Hence, in order to get to the root-cause of the addiction and help with systematic recovery, Psychodynamic Therapy is a recommended treatment option.
Cognitive Behavioral Treatment Cognitive Behavioral Treatment is used for people who want to reshape their behaviors and beliefs related to their addiction. This gives them a chance to develop constructive patterns and helps individuals to boost their quality of life.