Author: Charles Frank

Signs of Drug Use & Addiction: How To Tell if Someone Is On Drugs

You get defensive or belligerent with loved ones or colleagues who want to know what’s going on; they notice peculiarities about your behavior or appearance that you are not likely to recognize. You maintain a belief that you can stop any time you want—despite evidence to the contrary. While the best-known signs of addiction may be physical changes in a person—weight loss to the point of emaciation, the red face of problem drinkers—those occur late in the course of substance use. Experts identify at least five early warning signs of addiction. Addiction involves both the mind and the body—and every other facet of existence, because they all interact. There is no real distinction between physical addiction and psychological addiction.

Symptoms

  1. If you cannot reach a qualified professional by telephone to discuss the overdose, it would be prudent for you to take the overdosed person to the nearest hospital’s emergency department or medical facility.
  2. That said, one of the immediate effects caused by drug use is increased activity of the brain chemical dopamine, which is involved in feelings of motivation and reward.
  3. On the physical side, a sustained neglect of personal appearance, poor hygiene, and listlessness may be signs.
  4. This may mean you try a different type of therapy or a new medication.

Once you’ve been addicted to a drug, you’re at high risk of falling back into a pattern of addiction. If you do start using the drug, it’s likely you’ll lose control over its use again — even if you’ve had treatment and you haven’t used the drug for some time. Examples include methylenedioxymethamphetamine, also called MDMA, ecstasy or molly, and gamma-hydroxybutyric acid, known as GHB. Other examples include ketamine and flunitrazepam or Rohypnol — a brand used outside the U.S. — also called roofie. These drugs are not all in the same category, but they share some similar effects and dangers, including long-term harmful effects. The risk of addiction and how fast you become addicted varies by drug.

Understanding the Signs of Addiction

Accidental overdoses result from either a young child or an adult with impaired mental abilities swallowing a medication left within their grasp. An adult (especially seniors or people taking many medications) can mistakenly ingest the incorrect medication or take the wrong dose of a medication. Purposeful overdoses are for a desired effect, either to get high or to harm oneself. They occur when a person takes more than the medically recommended dose. There’s no cure, but treatment can help you stop using drugs and stay drug-free. Remember, it’s common for people to develop a tolerance to pain medication and to need higher doses to get the same level of pain relief.

If someone does not get help for their substance use disorder, they may risk extreme financial stress and could face bankruptcy. If someone misuses drugs or alcohol, they may exhibit numerous physical signs of drug abuse. Some of these signs may be readily apparent, while others are easily hidden or occur as gradual changes. Researchers have long demonstrated the role of the neurotransmitter dopamine in addiction and its effects on the brain’s reward center. As with other addictions, it plays a role in behavioral addictions like compulsive shopping or binge eating.

When you’re addicted to drugs, you can’t resist the urge to use them, no matter how much harm the drugs may cause. The earlier you get treatment for drug addiction (also called substance use disorder) the more likely you are to avoid some of the more dire consequences of the disease. Of the behavioral signs of drug abuse, secretive behavior may be one of the most common and telling.

Drug Overdose

The risk of substance use increases during times of stress and change. For an adult, a divorce, loss of a job or death of a loved one may increase the risk of substance use. For a teenager, moving, family divorce or changing schools can increase their risk. It’s important to turn to healthy coping mechanisms during these times of change, like exercising, meditating or learning a new hobby.

One of the more common and most deadly complications of substance use disorder is overdose. Seeking medical care as soon as you have signs of substance use disorder is essential. If drug use is suspected, early invention is essential to ensure the most robust chances of successful recovery. Alcohol is one of the most widely abused substances in the US.

When should I see a healthcare provider?

When someone begins using drugs of any kind, they may start feeling as if they need larger and more frequent doses to get the same effects, even with something that started as social experimentation. Treatment for behavioral addictions may involve one or more of the following. Plastic surgery addiction can happen to anyone, but it’s much more typical in people with body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), a disorder listed in the DSM-5. People with BDD obsess over perceived flaws to the point of it negatively impacting their life. Some studies find exercise addiction linked with purging and other eating disorder behavior. It’s also been linked with financial, social, or medical problems in people experiencing it.

You may want to reach out to a friend or loved one for support as you start your treatment journey. Their encouragement could be the motivation you need to talk to a healthcare provider. Substance use disorder (SUD) is a complex mental health condition.

Social Media and the Link to Drug Addiction

Use may become addiction when users continue to seek and use drugs or alcohol despite the negative impacts of using the substance. Physical addiction appears to occur when repeated use of a drug changes the way your brain feels pleasure. The addicting drug causes physical changes to some nerve cells (neurons) in your brain. Neurons use chemicals called neurotransmitters to communicate.

Illegal drugs pose special risks of toxic contamination and/or accidental overdose as a result of substitution with underground agents of unknown potency. The recent rise in opioid deaths, for example, is attributable to a shift from prescription painkillers to the cheaper and often more readily available street drug heroin. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fentanyl is the drug most often involved in fatal overdoses in the U.S. When someone misuses drugs or alcohol, they may look and act in uncharacteristic ways. They may also think and feel differently than they normally do.