When you see a person with repeated drug or alcohol use, you can say that the person is suffering from a substance use disorder. This might include skipping out on work or school or consuming the drug while doing something risky, like driving. Problems with the law may follow, or prolonged drug abuse may strain social ties at home and work. This includes the use of illicit drugs like marijuana, heroin, cocaine, or methamphetamine and is referred to as substance use disorder, a medically-recognized brain illness. Substance abuse disorders are linked mostly to alcohol, the most widely available legal drug. Here we have gathered a guide for you on the root causes of substance abuse and the treatment options available.
Family Relationships
Addiction typically has its roots in unhealthy patterns of interpersonal interaction and responsibilities within the family. One or both of your parents may have shown unhealthy emotional involvement, ambivalence, or avoidance levels in their interactions with you. The people you spend the most time with as a child may profoundly affect your personality and how you react to others as an adult. This leads to the initiation of one of the stages of teen substance abuse, which results in children reacting weirdly, underexpression, or over-expressing emotions and avoiding usual conversations. Drug and alcohol use is prevalent as people try to calm their nerves and alter their behavior.
Environmental Factors
The use of drugs by a household member or a peer and the prescription of prescriptions that may be abused, such as opioids or stimulants, increases the degree of exposure and the possibility of substance use. Negative experiences as a kid also contribute. Adverse childhood experiences are painful or stressful events that occurred while a person was a youngster. Adverse childhood experiences are closely linked to the onset of various health issues throughout the lifetime, including addiction and depression.
Stress Caused by Real-World Issues
Another major factor in male drug abuse is stress and worry from daily life. Extreme pressure to achieve at work, coupled with a lack of support from family and close friends, can be a major source of stress for many men.
Substance abuse and excessive drinking are possible responses to prolonged exposure to stressful conditions. Drug and alcohol use may become addictive because their euphoric effects provide a short reprieve from stressful conditions.
Disobedient Actions
As a kind of defiance against their parents and their parents’ attitudes toward substance misuse and alcoholism, some teenagers and young adults choose to experiment with these behaviors themselves. Since the brain is not completely matured until age 25, heavy drug or alcohol use by teenagers and young adults, unfortunately, increases the chances of developing an addiction.
Lack of Confidence
A lack of confidence often accompanies the teenage years. Among females, this is true much more so. High school females who care about appearance and social standing frequently prioritize these concerns. They believe that losing weight will make them more attractive and popular. They think that drug usage, alcohol use, and smoking are all signs of sexual and cultural maturity. They think drugs would solve all their issues.
Drug use is reported by teenage females twice as often when they lack confidence compared to when they do. Girls in high school are more than twice as likely as boys to use drugs or alcohol as a means of weight management, and they are also more likely to diet and participate in other hazardous weight-related activities.
Options for Treatment
You or a loved one may need one or more levels of care to become sober for good. This depends on the intensity of the addiction. The following rehabilitation settings will make use of therapeutic programs:
Drug Withdrawal Treatment
Detoxification (sometimes known as “detox” or withdrawal treatment) is designed to help you safely and swiftly wean off an addictive substance. Some persons may be able to undertake outpatient withdrawal treatment safely. For some people, hospitalization or residential therapy is the only option.
Depressants, stimulants, and opioids are all medicines with distinct withdrawal symptoms and treatment modalities. Buprenorphine, or a combination of buprenorphine and naloxone, may be substituted for the opioid temporarily during detox.
Treatment and Recovery Plans
Long-term therapy for substance abuse and addiction is often quite successful, with a primary emphasis on maintaining abstinence and returning to normal life with friends, school, and family.
Residential care facilities that meet all regulatory requirements may organize a program of care, house residents in a secure setting, and offer any required medical treatments and care.
Assistance From Peers
The message conveyed by self-help support groups is that addiction is a chronic disease fraught with the risk of relapse. The feelings of guilt and loneliness that might contribute to relapse can be mitigated via participation in a self-help support group.
A certified counselor or therapist may point you toward a local self-help support group. You may also look for support groups locally or online.
Communities
After completing an intense treatment program like inpatient treatment, many people choose to move into a sober living community. You share a sober, drug-free home with others going through the same process. If you don’t have somewhere else to go or are concerned about relapsing after returning home, a sober living facility may be a good option.
