5 Problematic Addictive Behaviors
When you suffer from addiction, you tend to develop many problematic behaviors that can harm yourself as well as the people you love. In many cases, addiction directly interferes with the parts of the brain that manage areas like impulse control and rewires your brain to seek the drug no matter what it takes. From here, you can look out for these five problematic addictive behaviors to identify if you or a loved one have developed an addiction.
Five Problematic Addictive Behaviors Obsession
When someone is suffering from a drug addiction, taking the drug feels like the most important thing in the world. While they’re at work or with family, the thought of getting high will be continually nagging at them and making it impossible to stay in the moment. On its own, this behavior can cause someone’s grades to fall or jeopardize their work, but it can also become an even greater problem.
Getting High at All Costs
Addiction often leads to someone sacrificing anything else in their life in the name of getting high. When someone has a chance to abuse the drug they’re addicted to, it might lead them to cancel other commitments or avoid important responsibilities. If for any reason the person struggles to get access to the drug, then they’ll also go to great lengths to rectify that.
Theft
Stealing from friends, family, and businesses is a common resort for addicts who no longer have the money to pay for their drugs on their own. They might steal electronics, jewelry, and other valuables with the purpose of selling them at pawn shops or trading them for drugs directly. When someone is suffering from an addiction, it’s difficult to think in their right mind and fully grasp what they’re doing.
Social Withdrawal
Someone who’s developed an addiction becomes less interested in anything in their life that isn’t connected to the drug. This often manifests as social withdrawal, wherein a person will blow off their friends and decline to spend time with family. Not even to do drugs explicitly, but simply because socializing doesn’t strike them as more interesting than doing nothing. When an addict does go out with friends, it’s likely to take the form of engaging with friends who enable their addiction.
Loss of Impulse Control
Many addictive drugs, such as stimulants, can reduce the size of the brain even for months after the person expunges the substance from their system. This effect, combined with the way that addiction changes a person’s brain to seek the drug no matter what, can destroy a person’s sense of impulse control and make it impossible to shy away from risky behaviors such as continued drug addiction.
Get Help From California Rehab Campuses
At California Rehab Campuses, we’re dedicated to helping people overcome the pain and turmoil of addiction. If you or a loved one is currently struggling with addiction, reach out to us if you need help on what to do next.
