If you are worried that you are struggling with addictive behavior or a member of your family might be showing behavioral signs of addiction, you can get help. Professional rehab centers can give you the tools you need to overcome withdrawal symptoms and change your thoughts and actions toward a happier, healthier life.
What Causes Addiction?
The behavioral signs of addiction are many, and they can all be traced back to a handful of different addiction causes, such as:
Genetics
Genetics play an important role in addiction behavior. Genetic traits might leave someone at a much higher risk for addiction in adulthood.
Trauma/PTSD
Unresolved trauma or PTSD, especially from childhood, can cause addiction. Addiction behavior is more likely in children who experience adverse trauma at an early age. PTSD or childhood experiences like any type of abuse, neglect, having an incarcerated family member, parents who divorce or separate, stress from military family life like deployments, witnessing violence, or struggling with family members who have mental illness can lead to higher risks of addiction behavior.
Environment
Different environmental factors like parental drug use, the presence of drugs at home or in school, poor academic achievement, an unstable home environment, poverty, and peer pressure can all lead toward behavioral signs of addiction. For younger individuals, peer pressure is one of the biggest influencers. Peers who expose younger children or teenagers to drugs and alcohol at an early age might result in later signs of drug use.
Mental Health
Signs of drug use might be brought about by mental health problems. Many people who use drugs and alcohol do so to self-medicate undiagnosed mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, mood disorders, or bipolar disorders. Things like trauma or genetics can also impact addiction and mental health.
Over 7.7 million people in the United States suffer from color coloring mental health issues and substance abuse. For some people, the brain changes because of substance abuse, leading to mental health issues, while for others, existing mental health disorders can lead to substance abuse and addiction.
What are the Signs of a Substance Abuse Disorder?
There are many signs of drug use, and some of them will vary depending on the substance that is being abused. Signs of substance abuse disorders might include things like poor concentration, dizziness, confusion, increased pain sensitivity, drowsiness, insomnia, changes to appetite or mood, increased anxiety, and paranoia.
What are the Behavioral Signs of Addiction?
Behavioral signs of addiction are more likely to be similar no matter what type of substance is being abused.
One of the biggest behavioral signs of addiction is a change in personality. This is usually a noticeably big change, something dramatic and uncharacteristic, and one that doesn’t have any other reasonable explanation.
Other signs include change not just in attitude and personality, but in action. A student in high school who was top of their class and actively engaged in multiple sports and school activities who suddenly shows no desire to engage in any of those activities anymore and whose academic performance has dropped dramatically may be struggling with addiction.
Social signs are part of the behavioral signs of addiction, and these might extend to individuals who no longer want to engage in activities or hobbies they once loved. Individuals will decide not to hang out with friends and family anymore, give excuses more, and avoid work responsibilities or school responsibilities.
Other signs of addiction include financial changes. He might see someone who is no longer physically caring for themselves and doesn’t do the work they’re supposed to, and they are constantly in need of money. Someone with an addiction might struggle financially because all their money is going toward more drugs. This might lead to things like stealing, petty theft, and even criminal charges.
How to Get Help with an Addiction Disorder
If you notice any of these signs of drug use in yourself or in someone close to you, you can get help with an addiction disorder from Marina Harbor Detox. Our facility is designed to help treat multiple substance abuse disorders as well as coexisting mental health problems in a safe and supportive environment. We offer a range of inpatient and outpatient care programs, each of which are customized to the individual so that each person gets the therapies, evidence-based practices, and holistic treatments that give them the highest chance of success. Reach out to Marina Harbor Detox to get help with your addiction behavior and substance abuse.
