But don’t wait to be asked before you voice your concerns. A person addicted to opioids — or any substance — is much more likely to recover if the family doesn’t ignore the issue. If you think your loved one may be addicted to opioids, talk with their healthcare professional right away. While the terms “drug abuse” and “drug addiction” are often used interchangeably, they’re different.
What Are the Behavioral Signs of Drug Abuse?
To get started with comprehensive substance use disorder treatment, contact The Recovery Village today. Drug addictions can be extremely costly, depending on the substance used. A person may repeatedly ask to borrow money from friends or family members or sell their possessions to maintain their drug addiction.
Warning signs of commonly abused recreational drugs
Someone who struggles with addiction may become increasingly withdrawn from loved ones and often seeks privacy to obtain or use drugs. They may feel they need to keep their drug or alcohol use a secret and may lie about their whereabouts or activities. Not everyone who uses drugs or alcohol has a substance abuse problem. However, about 10% of Americans struggle with substance abuse.
Vaping and Edible Marijuana Use Is on the Rise
Irritability and mood swings, problems recalling information, and shifts in sleep-wake patterns are other common accompaniments of substance use. Also among the warning signs is a tendency for those experiencing signs of drug use problems to deny or get highly defensive about observed changes in behavior. That point differs from one person to the next, due to many biological and situational variables influencing response to a substance.
Cocaine Can Be Fatal With First Use
If not treated quickly, your breathing slows or stops completely, leading to death. Seeking medical care as soon as you have signs of substance use disorder is essential. It’s common to have more than one SUD at a time, like alcohol use disorder and tobacco use disorder. At The Summit Wellness Group, our dedicated team of experts and recovery professionals are committed to helping you and your loved one take that first step towards a new way of life.
Understanding the Signs of Addiction
The most common hallucinogens are lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and phencyclidine (PCP). Club drugs are commonly used at clubs, concerts and parties. 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. Despite the name, these are not bath products such as Epsom salts.
Similarly, unemployment is a significant independent risk factor for substance use and for relapse after treatment. Researchers have long observed that alcohol use increases during recessions. While https://ecosoberhouse.com/ 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.
Misuse of these drugs or taking someone else’s medication can have dangerous—even deadly—consequences. These warning signs do not necessarily mean a teen is using drugs. Other health problems like allergies, sinus infections, hormone imbalances, or mental disorders can also cause these symptoms in teens.
Where can my teen and I find help for substance abuse?
- Seeking medical care as soon as you have signs of substance use disorder is essential.
- A relapse is returning to a substance after stopping it for a period of time.
- They could be indicators of a deeper problem, as addiction begins to take precedence over responsibilities.
- As drugs become the primary focus of someone’s life, they often spend more and more time using and obtaining drugs.
- Increased anxiety or paranoia can be red flags waving frantically in the breeze.