Many things can lead to an addiction. Lack of education about healthy coping skills is one factor. Peer pressure and the societal acceptance and encouragement of causal substance use are others. However, one of the most common causes of addiction is self-medication. Self-medicating is not just dangerous because it can lead to an addiction. It’s also dangerous because it can cause an overdose, which may sometimes result in death.
Learning how to recognize when you or a loved one is engaging in self-medicating behaviors is important for addiction prevention, treatment, and recovery. The more we understand why people self-medicate, the better we can help those who are struggling with addiction. To understand how to prevent people from engaging in a behavior that can lead to an addiction, we must first understand what self-medicating is.
What Is Self-Medicating?
Self-medicating is when someone uses a drug or substance without the oversight of a doctor to soothe a negative symptom, real or perceived. For example, it’s common for a doctor to prescribe an opiate to someone recovering from major surgery for pain relief. Taking medications as prescribed by a doctor is not self-medicating. However, abusing opiates to make yourself feel better because you want to relax when stressed is an example of self-medicating. People will self-medicate for many reasons, but the common factor is that they want to feel relief from something that hurts them or makes them feel bad.
Sometimes a person may not realize they are self-medicating, even if it does lead to an addiction. It’s commonly pushed in society for people to “relax” with alcohol or “let loose” with party drugs like cocaine. Substance use has become normalized in the U.S., with alcohol and tobacco being the most accessible. Coupled with societal pressure to solve your problems yourself instead of asking for help, it’s no wonder why self-medicating is so common. According to one article examining comorbidity statistics, 21.9% to 24.1% of those with a mood or anxiety disorder self-medicated with alcohol.
Why Does Self-Medicating Lead to an Addiction?
Self-medicating can lead to an addiction because it involves the use of addictive substances or behaviors to temporarily provide relief to an ongoing problem. Chemical substances, such as stimulants and alcohol, alter a person’s brain chemistry. This causes the brain to crave these substances. Over time, people become tolerant of these substances, causing them to need more and more to experience the same effect. This becomes a chemical dependency, which then will lead to an addiction.
There is also a behavioral aspect to addiction as well. Some behaviors, such as gambling, can cause a dopamine rush that is just as addictive as a drug or substance. Behavioral addictions are serious enough to require specialized treatment and can be just as serious as a chemical addiction. Sometimes people will self-medicate by engaging in these behaviors, even if it risks their lives or causes distress to their loved ones.
People also tend to develop a psychological dependence on both chemical and behavioral addictions. They may want to simply numb the negative feelings and pretend they don’t exist. It’s hard for a person to face things like trauma, grief, and chronic pain. Sometimes people become so afraid to remember or face painful memories or sensations that they try to forget or mask them through self-medicating. It can be hard to stop once engaged in self-medicating behavior, but there is assistance available to help those who want to break the cycle.
Where and How to Get Help for Self-Medication
Anyone can get help for self-medication, even before it can lead to an addiction. It requires putting your trust in a mental health care professional to help you. Addressing the underlying causes of addiction, such as trauma, is a core part of addiction treatment. For example, Painted Desert Recovery has a trauma therapy program that is a regular part of most individual treatment plans. It can be hard to acknowledge the things that hurt us, but it’s easier when you are helped by a compassionate and qualified professional.
Self-medicating is also the result of someone not knowing how to effectively cope with what hurts them. Learning healthy coping skills is another important part of addiction treatment at Painted Desert Recovery. Addiction treatment facilities focus on teaching clients how to cope with their hurts without turning to substances or harmful behaviors. This way, clients have the tools they need to succeed once they are in recovery.
Education is also important in preventing and finding help for addiction. If you have questions about addiction and self-medication, it’s always okay to call your local addiction treatment center for help. No mental health care professional will be annoyed or angry to be asked a question. Addiction awareness and education protect not just yourself, but also the people you love and society as a whole. It’s never too late to get help, and the cycle of self-medicating can be broken. It just takes time, help, and support.
When people are in pain, they will seek to soothe it the best way they can. Sometimes, this desire to eliminate pain, both physical and mental, is done in an unhealthy way through substance abuse. This is known as self-medicating – when someone uses substances to “treat” their pain without a doctor’s oversight. Self-medicating will often lead to addiction. That’s why at Painted Desert Recovery, in New Harmony, Utah, clients find the support and treatment they need to break the cycle of self-medicating. Nobody has to recover alone, especially when they are in most need of help. If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, don’t delay. Start your recovery journey today by calling (844) 540-0353.