By : M. Lieberman
An addiction is a state in which the body relies on an act or
substance for normal functioning and develops physical dependence. When
this act or substance is suddenly removed, it will cause withdrawal, a
characteristic set of signs and symptoms.
Addictions will, over time, cause changes in your
life and you will eventually need to admit that you need professional
help. The recovery from an addiction will usually happen at the point
you hit rock bottom and you realize you require help from any of the
numerous outside resources so you can become free of your addiction and a
lead a normal life.
There are numerous types of addictions and any of
them, individually or a combination can have a very serious affect on
your life and affect the members of your family. To recover from an
addiction will require you to actively seek professional help. You might
start with talking to your family or friends, your doctor or someone
who specializes in addictions counseling. It is imperative to access
your addiction and how your emotional and your physical behavior are
affected, because of the addiction.
With the help of your doctor, it will be decided
what will work best for you so that you can begin your road to recover
and become addiction free.
There are several different types of addictions that you may or may not already be aware of. Addictions include:
- gambling addictions: you spend money that is supposed to be for
necessities. Every time you lose, you feel compelled to go back and try
to win back what you lost.
- sex addictions: you think of nothing else. You spend large amounts of money on adult related items.
- food addictions: you feel compelled to eat all of the time, without regard to the cost.
- alcohol abuse: you drink all the time. You spend money on
alcohol and it does not matter the time of day, you always have to
drink.
- relationship addictions: you are obsessed with being with someone all of the time.
- Drugs: opiates, barbiturates, narcotics, heroin, cocaine, and
amphetamines. You will do anything to get the money to buy this stuff.
- marijuana abuse: it is a cheap high.
There are many type of substances that individuals
can become addicted to. It is a fact that some of the substances are
much more addictive than the others. For example, the drug heroin is
very addictive and it is possible to become addicted after only using it
once or twice.
Someone who gets addicted to cocaine has become so
dependent on it that they really feel they are unable to live and
function without it. An addiction can be both physical and
psychological.
A physical addiction means the individual has become emotionally and physically dependent on a particular substance or act.
Over some time frame, a person will actually build
up some type of a tolerance to a substance and require a larger amount
to achieve the same results. If the addict suddenly quits using a
substance, there is a strong likely hood they will go through symptoms
of withdrawal.
During the Withdrawal period, the person may have
symptoms that are flu like: the shakes, diarrhea and weakness. The
person must be convinced and believe that a recovery is really possible.
So how can you overcome your addiction permanently?
The absolute best way to overcome an addiction is
through firm practice of abstaining. This simply means to completely
stop the use of whatever you were taking or doing and refuse to take or
do anymore. An alcoholic must not have another drink. The gambling
addict must never go to a casino or any type of place where gambling
takes place.
Abstinence will not work with any type of food
addictions, simply because we must eat. You may Want to stop your
addiction, but to successfully follow through with it, you might find it
to be most challenging. Many people who are addicts really believe they
can continue with their actual addiction but only use their chosen drug
or perform the act in moderation. For those people with actual
addictions, this is simply a dream and wishful thinking on their part. A
full recovery from any addiction will require abstinence for the rest
of their lives.
For the type of addiction that can be controlled
either by limiting the substance or act of choice, there is the chance
of overcoming the addiction permanently. These addictions would include:
addictions to food, compulsive shopping addictions, gambling addictions
and sexual addictions. The addict must evaluate and decide the amount
of moderation they must exercise to cope with their addictions and what
needs to be done to prevent addictive behavior from reoccurring again.
This is the path the addict must take for recovery from the addiction.
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