Drug addiction is a progressive disease that is prevalent today. People usually take drugs for fun but later become severely addicted to them, which can even lead to death. Not everyone who takes drugs becomes addicted, but many do. It is because they do not know how to stop using drugs. Over time, the person's drug addiction increases, and the individual is unwilling to stop, no matter how hard they try.
As a result, the addicted person gradually withdraws from all social ties and begins to live alone, and gets depressed. This depression may cause them to die, or they may develop severe chronic diseases. Moreover, in this article, we will discuss the phases of drug addiction and the best drug and alcohol detox centers.
Phases of Drug addiction
Drug addiction may be divided into four stages. If drug abuse is detected early in the process, there is a possibility that this individual will be able to separate themselves from all of this by using alternative therapies. Now let's discuss the different stages of drug addiction and how a person can recognize it.
The experimentation stage is the stage where people start to experiment with taking drugs for fun and just want to experience the pleasure, they receive from taking drugs. When people consume drugs, dopamine is released in the brain, resulting in a desire to consume those drugs or substances over and over again.
A person consuming drugs might experience a brief sense of relaxation if they suffer from anxiety or depression. This relaxation, however, will only last for a few moments. While drugs do not cure the underlying cause of anxiety or depression, they can create other problems for people either mentally or physically.
In the initial stages of addiction, a person may experience different signs like a desire to consume the substance over and over again. In addition, unable to stop the consumption of drugs, conflicts in relationships, and other personal issues. Certain factors can lead one to experience drugs, such as relieving mental tension, alleviating anxiety issues, and releasing stress. If they can detect themselves at this stage of drug addiction, then there are various rehabilitation centers for drug addiction where they can get treated.
In addition, many people stop at this stage, and those who fail to do so get to the next stage, which is regular usage.
- Stage of regular or consistent usage
The next stage of drug addiction is the stage where a person is prone to using drugs regularly. Here, however, the consumption of drugs is not just for fun, it becomes boredom, but people cannot stop themselves. Drugs become a part of life and they are no longer temporary or recreational. People start relating every aspect of their life to drugs and feel that any of the events in their life are not complete without drugs.
This stage occurs in such a way that it reduces the brain's function severely and distorts its reward system. As a result, the whole biological system malfunctions and disrupts the brain. As they become more prone to experiencing negative feelings, they consume more drugs to alleviate them.
This stage can be associated with signs like disconnecting from social ties, engaging in high-risk activities, anxiety, depression, and many more. At this stage, a person can even get treatment at the best drug and alcohol detox centers and come out of the whole thing.
- Total dependency and compulsion
This stage involves the person becoming physically and emotionally dependent by taking drugs. Everything in their life becomes secondary and their only focus remains on drug consumption. It disrupts the wires in the brain and makes it believe it needs the drugs to survive. A person can engage in any activity, legal or illegal, just to get drugs.
At this point, the person may also experience withdrawal symptoms like extreme anxiety and fatigue, irritability, and other physical and psychological cravings. This stage of drug addiction requires one to be treated only at the best rehabilitation centers for drug addiction and may require consistent efforts and care for the person to alleviate the pain that they receive.
At this point, the person has been labeled a true drug addict. Drugs become their life and they develop all the symptoms of drug addicts. Different diseases can negatively affect the mental and physical health of many people.
This is an extreme case, and the person in the stage has suicidal thoughts, a lack of sleep, and an urge to search for drugs. In addition, he neglects basic needs like food, hygiene, meals, etc. If you notice that a person is in the final stages, you should contact the best drug and alcohol detox centers.
Conclusion
Therefore, all stages of drug addiction are interconnected, and if a person is stopped at an early stage, they will be able to get treated well. Depending on the severity of the drug abuse, the different phases may last for a few weeks or several months. As a result, drug addiction should be treated at rehabilitation centers for drug addiction as soon as possible. Moreover, you can know about the best drug and alcohol detox centers at www.sanctumwellness.org
Sources
- 1. The four stages of drug addiction (based on clinical experience with 5000 drug addicts) from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7994578/
- 2. Exercise as a novel treatment for drug addiction: a neurobiological and stage-dependent hypothesis from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23806439/
- 3. Drug-Drug interactions in patients with acute coronary syndrome across phases of treatment from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30483990/