Some addiction has been around for as long as we can remember such as smoking and drinking. Others are more modern such as technology driven and designer lifestyles mirroring changes in society, technology and leisure.
Old addictions
Long recognised addictions involving substances or activities with clear heavily researched and documented physical and psychological dependency.
Alcohol
Consumed for centuries one of the most common addictions worldwide.
Nicotine/tobacco
Addictive substances are found in cigarettes, cigars and chewing tobacco.
Opioids/Narcotics
Heroine, morphine and opium have histories dating over a century.
Cocaine
A potent, established stimulant.
Gambling
Recognised as a pathological or compulsive behaviour, the only behavioural addiction with clear long established diagnostic criteria in psychiatric manuals.
Prescription drugs
Misuse of benzodiazepines (Valium, Xanax) and barbiturates for anxiety and sleep disorders.
Modern addictions
Internet/Social Media
Obsessive checking of socials, often from waking up.
Video gaming
Classified by the WHO in 2018 as a mental health condition - internet gaming disorder.
Online gambling/sports betting
Accessible digital platforms allowing for constant high-speed betting.
Online shopping
Compulsive buying behaviour driven by accessibility of internet shopping. I call it the Amazon effect as sites such as this track our spending habits and make persuasive suggestions to compound this addiction.
New psychoactive substances NPS
Previously known as legal highs including Spice/synthetic cannabis, mephedrone, GBL/GHB and Monkey Dust, designed to mimic traditional stimulants or hallucinogens.
Vaping E Cigarettes
A new form of nicotine addiction.
Why addiction is so prevalent
As well as being part of our environment - other’s behaviour, availability, marketing – we have mental factors such as using addiction to help cope with stress and boredom and other emotional states. Many addictions start young when we are vulnerable and making changes difficult.
Addiction is common as it is a complex chronic condition resulting from the interaction of biological, psychological, and environmental factors. It often functions as a deeply entrenched habit that highjacks the brain’s natural reward system. It is a disease that alters brain circuitry making it difficult to control impulses despite harmful consequences.
Addictive substances and behaviours such as alcohol, drugs and gambling, trigger large surges of dopamine - up to ten times more than natural rewards. Intense pleasure reinforces the behaviour and teaches the brain to seek it out again. Plus, we are wired to pursue pleasure including sugary foods. For a time of abstinence - typically thirty to ninety days – the brain experiences unpleasant physical and mental symptoms that may depend on the level of addiction.
Genetics can account for over half of an individual’s risk for addiction. High levels of stress, childhood trauma, poverty and lack of social support can lead to abusing substances to cope. People with untreated mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and ADHD, may self medicate which can lead to an addiction cycle. What follows in this blog is for those interested in self awareness and self mastery. It is not for those who have tried self help for many years and have an addiction spiralling out of control. I would advise that if you need professional help that you visit your GP in the first instance.
Stages of Change
The stages of change model describes behaviour as a cyclical process of five key stages.
1. Pre-contemplation or denial
2. Contemplation or thing that I need to change something but may be ambivalent
3. Preparing to change for example gathering information and setting a date
4. Action or making changes such as altering habits and environment
5. Maintenance or sustaining change typically six months will do it.
6. Termination where one is no longer tempted by the behaviour.
7. Relapse is often included to describe cycle setbacks.
How to stop addiction
1. Stop negotiating with urges or rationalising the behaviour for example ‘just once’ or ‘I deserve it’.
2. Remove the triggers not just the habit. For example, fill boredom with a worthwhile goal such as daily evening walking or decluttering your home. If stress is a trigger look to reduce stress in a healthy way with a walk to talk through your day with your partner or light reading or meditating. If you associate a place with an addiction you may need to avoid that place for a few months if possible. A trigger for me to remove alcohol from being an addiction was my health. Finding a burning platform to change can be helpful.
3. Your subconscious emotional mind does not respond well to denial of its urges. So do not fight it head on. The emotional mind will always win as it’s been around a lot longer than the rational mind and is nine times as big! Delay it. Tell yourself and others if present ‘later’ then again and again like a broken record if required. The shift is not resisting, which is futile, it is outlasting. Urges are sudden and powerful but peak like a wave then collapse if you do not act. Just like a child will give up pushing if you do not act.
4. Replace the ritual not just the reward. Addiction is a process as well as an outcome such as hand movements, timing, and routine. To remove it without replacing, your system panics. Swap the ritual keeping your hands, time and focus occupied. For example, find something to routinely do instead. For me what works best is a walk in the park followed by watching television with a glass in hand of my favourite sugar free mixer – elderflower tonic and raspberry kombucha, ice, with a vitamin c effervescent. Then I am tired and it is bedtime. My later is a weekend day when I have an afternoon film to watch or book to read or out with friends.
5. Make it hard to fail. For example, do not buy the addictive stuff. Delete the media. Convenience feeds addiction. The easier it is to access the weaker the resistance for many.
6. Track your patterns. Write down when and where it happens, what you felt before you did it. This data can help you to address these things in healthy ways. For example, replacing an addiction with something that is not addictive for you.
7. Accept discomfort as part of the process. Expect restlessness and irritation. Discomfort is withdrawal not failure.
8. Say ‘no’ to reset yourself. If you are looking to cut down on something it is best to go cold turkey for one to three months for a reset. This will allow you to track the impact and for your brain’s Nat reward system to reset and function as it should.
9. Rebuild your identity. ‘I am not someone trying to quit. I am someone who does not like the effect of this anymore, so I behave differently and everything goes better for me’.
10. Protect your energy like your life depends on it. For me, having fun with my new partner we would drink to chill out, and a cycle of addiction started creeping in. Months on I started working through the change cycle and not without setbacks, but the general trend was change. Gradual reduction worked for me followed by boundaries. This stabilisation of my life meant focusing on what I did want- good sleep, good mental and physical health, and self-respect.
Addiction is a habit. It is also a loop that requires the brain to seek relief at our expense. Breaking the habit feels uncomfortable, even painful. You are not losing or giving up anything. You are tearing out something that grew inside you. It is your decision your choice based on the impact to you and your life. For me it was not working for me. It was making me sleep deprived and so less energy in the day meant I was not doing what I wanted to. If you would like my help on your change journey, please contact me through this website.