Effects of drug addiction to the skin

June 11, 2015

Effects of drug addiction to the skin: All illicit drugs are unhealthy for the skin

Effects of drug addiction to the skin are not just mere threats to beauty. They destroy the skin completely. Run away from drugs as you can if you want to have a healthy skin

The beauty of your skin is dependent on very many things including what you feed on, the quantity of water you drink, the environment you live in, the type of chemicals you apply on it and how well you take care of it by washing among other things. When the right things are done all rounds, this organ will be more appealing, healthy and radiant. Of course everybody needs to look good all the times and because the skin is our receptionist where all visitors first report to, we must give it the good care it deserve so that our image as the whole body can also be appreciated by those who look at us. Just like in an organization if the receptionist is rude, careless and arrogant, the organization will have a very bad image and loose it customers and partners. In the same way our skin particularly the face is the focal point that everybody will come into contact with first. For this reason we must prevent it from any harm that may come its way to keep that good looking image that we all desire. To do that effectively doctor Dalal Akoury is going to help us understand some of the effects of drug addiction to the skin and what we can do to contain them.

Drugs and especially the illicit ones are never good in whichever way you look at them. The history of drug addiction is full of painful memories, anarchy and sufferings. Doctor Akoury says that if this is to be allowed into the skin, then we will have succeeded in damaging the largest organ of the body and beauty will be very expensive to revive. Experts are in consensus that drug addiction is very harmful to the wellbeing of the health of your skin. We are therefore going to relay on the vast experience of doctor Akoury in matters addiction to understand the consequences and the magnitude of being lazy your skin. That may look very strong but it is important that way because all drugs of addiction are injurious to the health of your skin. Those illicit drugs may include heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine. All these and many more can take a severe toll on the health of your skin. Heroin for example is a central nervous system depressant that slows heart rate, blood circulation, respiration and metabolism

Skin popping as it is commonly known or the practice of injecting heroin under the top layer of the skin leaves distinctive round sores along the skin’s surface. These sores can easily become infected, resulting in permanent scars. For users who are anxious, restless or experiencing cravings, the scabs can become the focus of obsessive picking. Picking at the sores increases the risk of cellulitis, or the infection of the soft tissues underlying the dermis. Doctor Akoury acknowledges that skin lesions are common in heavy methamphetamine users. This central nervous system stimulant can cause a condition called delusional parasitosis, or the false believe that the user is infested with organisms that are crawling across her skin. This condition which is also known as “meth mites” or “cocaine bugs” can lead to severe self-mutilation if the user is acutely intoxicated. When you or anyone you know is experiencing things like this, timewasting can be very costly and treatment must be sought immediately. Consulting with doctor Akoury on the best treatment methods available for you should be prioritize so that more damage to the skin is prevented in good time.

Effects of drug addiction to the skin: Integrative Addiction Conference 2015

Before we continues into the discussion about the effects of drug addiction to the skin, we the professionals have even a bigger responsibility in ensuring that this enemy of addiction is eliminated. Over the years doctor Dalal Akoury through AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center a facility she established primarily to help in the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, has been in the front line in dealing with the menace of drug addiction not only by offering professional treatment to the addiction victims, but also equipping professionals with the requisite knowledge of dealing with this problem even as they attend to their patients. In line with that, AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center, one of the leading pioneers in natural and holistic addiction treatment, will be conducting the first ever Educational, Functional and Integrative Addiction conference for doctors, counselors, nurses and addiction therapists. The conference will be held in August 23-25 at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. This new frontier in addiction medicine will be conducted by the most influential group of leading visionaries specializing in the latest advances in natural and integrative addiction medicine, under the theme “The Future of Integrative Addiction”. It is a must attend conference for all professionals who really want to be on top of their career and to offer the very best of their best to their clients. The registration is currently in progress and for more information log in towww.integrativeaddiction2015.com or email sharon@integrativeaddiction2015.com. I will be revisiting that shortly but in the meantime let’s get back to our point of discussion about the effects of drug addiction to the skin.

Effects of drug addiction to the skin: Skin Picking and Heroin Withdrawal

From the illustration above, heroin addiction can be very damaging to the skin. And even as we approach this it is important noting that withdrawing from heroin which is a highly addictive opiate is an intensely uncomfortable experience. Restlessness, nervousness, severe cravings and goose bumps can trigger the urge to self-mutilate. Users in withdrawal often say that they feel like they’re crawling out of their skin and in this state, skin picking may provide a momentary sense of release.

Doctor Akoury says that heroin withdrawal affects the skin in several important ways. Goose bumps, along with chills, shivering and cold sweats, occur as the brain adjusts to the absence of this powerful opioid. These bumps are caused by tiny muscles that tighten at the base of the fine hairs that cover the skin. For the user in withdrawal, compulsively rubbing or tugging at the skin may counteract the sensations of cold and restlessness.

Skin picking and self-mutilation can also help the user cope with opiate cravings. The sensations of pleasure or pain are a temporary distraction from the desire to use heroin. Ritualistic picking can provide an outlet for the intense anxiety, nervous tension and restlessness that characterize withdrawal. Nonetheless it is important to note that in all these, skin picking provides only a temporary relief from the symptoms of opiate withdrawal. Once physical withdrawal symptoms begin, they can last for several days. The best way to avoid withdrawal symptoms like goose bumps, sweats and muscle pain is to enter a medically supervised detox program like AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center. At a detox center, you can receive the physical and moral support you need to minimize the symptoms of withdrawal and avoid a relapse. Remember that all this drug addiction has great effects on your skin and the sooner you seek professional advice from doctor Akoury the better for your situation.

Effects of drug addiction to the skin: All illicit drugs are unhealthy for the skin

Understanding of Addiction and Low Self Esteem

June 3, 2015

Understanding of Addiction and Low Self Esteem: What is self-Esteem?

Understanding of Addiction and Low Self Esteem. Young people who are suffering from rejection often seek for comfort and acceptance in the wrong company of alcoholics and drug addicts.

Self-esteem is a psychological term used to describe how humans evaluate themselves overall in relation to self-worth. Psychologically this can be described as the self-confidence and satisfaction that people have in their own life. On the other hand the terms self-esteem and self-worth tend to be used interchangeably even though feelings of self-esteem tend to be more fluid than self-worth. Ideally the issues surrounding self-esteem can be very complicated depending on the intensity or the nature of the effects. What is it that causes the individual to have a low self-esteem? Experts at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center have reported that the way people view themselves will have a great impact on how they experience or passive their own lives. Those who have low self-esteem will struggle to find success and happiness, mostly because they do not feel within themselves worthy of enjoying such things. Their lack of self-worth will affect every area of their life, and more so, their relationships with other people. It is regrettable that many of those who are struggling with low self-esteem often turn to substance abuse because it offers a temporary solution to their problems. While the truth is that using alcohol and drugs to escape with their feelings of low self-worth will only leads to further misery and addiction. That is why this article is going to be interrogating our understanding of addiction and low self-esteem so that we can put this to perspective.

Understanding of Addiction and Low Self Esteem: The Causes of Low Self-Esteem

Low self-esteem can be very traumatizing and if combined with substance abuse life can be very unbearable. It is therefore very important that we are not starved with the information about the causes of low self-esteem which may include the following:

Under normal circumstances when one in his or her childhood suffered some form of child abuse, the scar will remain with them for life even if treatment were done. This constant reminder of the yester year’s events can severely affect the way they view themselves. Children lack the knowledge and insight to understand the situation, and because of this they will keep blaming themselves for the abuse. This feeling of somehow being wrong stays with them into adulthood. And remember that physical, mental, or sexual abuse can all have lasting consequences on a child’s sense of self-worth due to the permanent scars that come with them.
In the event that parents fail to give all the necessary support to make their children feel valued and important, then this can later lead to poor self-esteem. It is important for parents to note that when it comes to children the value is in what the parent fails to say or do and not what they have done or said. Children are highly sensitive to their environment; therefore they need to be nurtured all the way. If young people feel that they have failed to live up to their parent’s standards, this may translate negatively on then to the point that they may find it difficult to value themselves.
Too much criticism when growing up is a very bad indicator and this when not corrected can leave behind mental scars. People who are always being told that they are a failure or stupid are likely to believe the negative impression implied on them.
The way people are treated by their peers is also important for self-esteem. One of the most compelling functions of a peer group is feedback on behavior. Consistent negative feedback can have a profound effect on a person.
Being the victim of racism or prejudice will usually change the way people view themselves and that is a key factor in understanding of addiction and low self-esteem.
Those individuals who have issues around their physical appearance can easily develop feelings of low self-worth. In the modern world, there is too much emphasis placed on physical beauty. The media is largely responsible for this obsession. Feelings of being unattractive will lead to low self-esteem.
When people feel that they do not really fit in anywhere it will change the way they view themselves. This lack of connectedness with other people is common among people who are dealing with esteem issues.

Understanding of Addiction and Low Self Esteem: The Effects of Low Self-Esteem

Those who are dealing with low self-esteem may experience many of the following problems:

Failure to value one-self leads to a failure to take care of oneself. The person may not see the point of putting much effort into their bodies and minds. This means that they will be far more likely to suffer from poor physical and mental health. Low self-esteem can lead to premature death as well.
Not believing in oneself will limit one’s potential. A person may not be willing to put in the necessary effort to achieve their dreams, because they not believe it will bring results. Such people may be convinced that mediocrity is all they deserve.
Individuals with low self-esteem are far more likely to turn to alcohol or drugs as a means of escaping their problems.
People with low self-esteem often end up in abusive relationships. This is because they can inwardly feel like such relationships are all they deserve.
When people do not value themselves highly they are more likely to bow to peer pressure. Many individuals who end up in dangerous cults suffer from low self-esteem.
It can be hard for such individuals to trust other people. They may believe that anyone who is trying to help them has a hidden agenda. They can also go to the other extreme where they trust unworthy individuals too much.
These individuals will be highly insecure in relationships. If they do not value themselves, then they will find it hard to believe that other people can value them.

Understanding of Addiction and Low Self Esteem: Addiction and Low Self-Esteem

Low self-esteem is one of the characteristics of the addictive personality. When people first begin using alcohol or drugs it will increase their self-confidence. They become less concerned with what other people think of them. The individual begins to rely on these substances in order to cope with life. Addiction means that the person’s life begins to all apart as their self-esteem hits an all-time low. In AA, they describe the situation as, alcohol gave me wings but then it took away the sky. Lack of self-worth can then keep people trapped in addiction.

Understanding of Addiction and Low Self Esteem: Underage Substance Abuse and Low Self-Esteem

Finally it has been established from various studies that children with low self-esteem are more likely to abuse alcohol or drugs as they grow up. Because of this they will not want to be left out more so when they are associating with mates who are already into drugs and alcohol. The peer pressure and sense of belonging will certainly carry them away all in the name of experimenting. And because of the temporary relief when under the influence of drugs and alcohol, the idea of escaping reality will be more appealing even if it is only for a little time. Doctor Dalal Akoury warns that unless something is done timely, those individuals who use alcohol or drugs at a younger age will have a greater risk of developing an addiction in the future. It is therefore very important that you start early by scheduling for an appointment with doctor Akoury for a more professional treatment approach.

Understanding of Addiction and Low Self Esteem: What is self-Esteem?

Overcoming Stress to solve Drug Addiction Problem

April 7, 2015

Overcoming Stress to solve Drug Addiction Problem: Learning healthy ways of coping with stress

Overcoming Stress to solve Drug Addiction Problem can be very devastating if not addressed in good time.

It is true that stress is in evitable in the current lifestyle we are living in however; we can bring stress to manageable levels so that its effects to human life are significantly reduced. Take the endless problem of addiction for example, if this is to be experienced and at the same time the victim is under some stressful situations, the magnitude of the complication may be overwhelming. Addiction on its own is very stressful not just to the victims but also the relatives caring for the addict. Treatment would be very ideal but even once treatment is done, the recovered addict will still have to face the problems that led to their addiction in the first place. This is so because in many instances people get into drugs in an attempt of trying to confuse certain painful emotions, calming themselves after an argument or just to forget that bad day or a problem they are going through. The most painful part of it is that when the effect of the drug is gone and you become sober, that which you were trying to escape from returns in double portions. It is because of this that overcoming stress to solve drug addiction problems become very necessary.

Doctor Dalal Akoury the MD and founder of AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center states that for one to be treated successfully and maintain sobriety for a long time we must individually and collectively resolve these underlying issues of stress and addiction. It is important to note that with the life situations we have today, conditions such as stress, loneliness, frustration, anger, shame, anxiety, and hopelessness will remain in your life even when you’re no longer using drugs to cover them up. Nonetheless, you will be in a healthier position only when you finally address these issues by seeking for help from the experts and professional like those at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center.

Overcoming Stress to solve Drug Addiction Problem: Reliving Stress without drugs

Drug abuse often shoots from ill-advised attempts to manage stress. In fact many people turn to alcohol or other drugs to unwind and relax after a stressful day, or to cover up painful memories and emotions that cause us to feel stressed and out of balance. This is what is commonly done by many people, but it is the wrong approach to stress solution. We have much more healthier ways to keep your stress level in check. Such steps may include exercising, meditating, using sensory strategies to relax, practicing simple breathing exercises, and challenging self-defeating thoughts says doctor Akoury.

Overcoming Stress to solve Drug Addiction Problem: Strategies of reliving stress without drugs

A time has come when we must do what it takes to ensure that we eliminate all the stressors out of our lives if we are to keep healthy. For instance you may feel like doing drugs is the only way to handle unpleasant feelings, that feeling is very common and you are not the only one feeling that way. The truth is doing drugs will only land you into being more stressed. Instead you can learn to get through such difficulties without falling back on your addiction. Different quick stress relief strategies work better for some people than others. The secret is to find the one that works best for you, and helps you calm down when you’re feeling stressed and overwhelmed. When you’re confident in your ability to quickly de-stress, facing strong feelings isn’t as intimidating or overwhelming. The following tips can be helpful to you in reducing stress:

Exercise releases endorphins, relieves stress, and promotes emotional well-being. Try running in place, jumping rope, or walking around the block.
Step outside and savor the warm sun and fresh air. Enjoy a beautiful view or landscape.
Yoga and meditation are excellent ways to bust stress and find balance.
Play with your dog or cat, enjoying the relaxing touch of your pet’s fur.
Put on some calming music.
Light a scented candle.
Breathe in the scent of fresh flowers or coffee beans, or savor a scent that reminds you of a favorite vacation, such as sunscreen or a seashell.
Close your eyes and picture a peaceful place, such as a sandy beach. Or think of a fond memory, such as your child’s first steps or time spent with friends.
Make yourself a steaming cup of tea.
Look at favorite family photos.
Give yourself a neck or shoulder massage.
Soak in a hot bath or shower.

Overcoming Stress to solve Drug Addiction Problem: Keep triggers and cravings in check

While getting sober from drugs is an important first step, it’s only the beginning of the recovery process. Once sober, the brain needs time to recover and rebuild connections that have changed while addicted. During this time, drug cravings can be intense. You can support your continued sobriety by making a conscious effort to avoid people, places, and situations that trigger the urge to use drugs like for instance:

Make a break from old drug buddies – be careful when choosing friends after healing from drug abuse. Desist from hanging out with old friends who are still doing drugs. Instead chose to surround yourself with people who support your new life of sobriety and not those who tempt you to slip back into old habits.

Avoid bars and clubs – keep distance from all social places like bars and clubs even if you don’t have a problem with alcohol. Remember that drinking lowers inhibitions and impairs judgment, which can easily lead to relapse. Drugs are often readily available and the temptation to use can be overpowering. Also avoid any other environments and situations that you could easily associate with drug use.

Use caution with prescription drugs – Stay away from prescription drugs with the potential for abuse or use only when necessary and with extreme caution. Drugs with a high abuse potential include painkillers, sleeping pills, and anti-anxiety medication.

Finally keep regular visits to your health provider for periodic assessment. This is very important because it help you know if there is any symptom of other infection that needs to be addressed before they escalate into chronic problems. Experts at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under the able leadership of doctor Dalal Akoury are very much available to helping you get the best no matter your situation. All you need to do is to schedule for an appointment with doctor Akoury today and you will live to tell the story of great recovery.

Overcoming Stress to solve Drug Addiction Problem: Learning healthy ways of coping with stress

The corresponding link between Cancer and Depression

March 10, 2015

The corresponding link between Cancer and Depression: How Stress may Cause Cancer

The corresponding link between Cancer and Depression are very clear in the common sense understanding even without scientific evidence

We may not like it but it is here with us. In one way or the other we have to be depressed. Things that are happening around us often make us to be stressed up to the extent that stress is seen as a part of our lives. We need to be care full in dealing with it because the way we handle stress can have an impact on our health. It goes without mention that stress is a common occurrence to everyone, no wonder we hear more and more about the harm it is causing to our minds and bodies from heart disease to anxiety attacks. Now researchers across the globe are trying to determine if stress is also a factor in the development of cancer and we at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under Doctor Akoury’s care are not left out. We are equally making effort to finding the corresponding link between cancer and depression to join in the fight of keeping our society free from cancer. It is true that currently there is no clear evidence that stress is a direct cause of cancer. However evidence is accumulating that shows the association between stress and development of certain kinds of cancer as well as how the disease progresses.

Several studies have measured how stress impacts on our immune systems and fights disease. At various higher learning institutions researchers have actually established that students under pressure have slower-healing wounds and they take longer to produce immune system cells that kill invading organisms. According to a renowned researcher Dr. Dean Ornish M.D. who has spent over two decades examining the effects of stress on the body, his findings indicated that stress-reduction techniques could actually help reverse heart disease. And Dr. Barry Spiegel, M.D., a leader in the field of psychosomatic medicine, found that metastatic breast cancer patients lived longer when they participated in support groups. In connection to that other studies have even gone as far as to show those women who experienced traumatic life events or losses in previous years had significantly higher rates of breast cancer.

Still, the National Cancer Institute reports that even though studies have shown that stress factors, such as death of a spouse, social isolation, and medical school examinations, alter the way the immune system functions, they have not provided scientific evidence of a direct cause-and-effect relationship between these immune system changes and the development of cancer. Nonetheless in the process of putting the corresponding link between cancer and depression into perspective, some medical experts have reported that the link between cancer and stress is that “if stress reduces the body’s ability to fight disease, then it is capable of losing the ability to kill cancer cells.”

The corresponding link between Cancer and Depression: Environmental Factors

Doctor Dalal Akoury says that every day, our bodies are exposed to cancer-causing agents in the air, food and water we’re exposed to. Typically, our immune system recognizes those abnormal cells and kills them before they produce a tumor. There are three important things that can happen to prevent cancer from developing and they include the following:

The immune system can prevent the agents from invading in the first place
DNA can repair the abnormal cells
The killer T-cells can kill off cancer cells.

It has become very clear from the research findings that stress can lower the body’s ability to do each of those things. This now leaves us wondering that does it therefore means that there’s a direct link between stress and the risk of developing cancer? It may appear to be so but the bottom line is that it is not true in any way. Nonetheless the part of the reason that stress may be linked to cancer is simply that when people are under pressure they make very dangerous and poor choices like beginning smoking, discontinuing exercises and eating unhealthy foods all factors that are also linked to cancer. That is what makes people think that there is some iota of relationship between cancer and depression.

She adds that even if that’s not the case, there are a lot of things that have to happen for cancer to develop. In her opinion she thinks it’s fair to say that stress could be one of the many components in lowering immune systems and therefore making us more vulnerable to cancer and a faster progression of the disease. But stress might just be one piece of the puzzle what percentage is the question. I fall back on the fact that regardless of what percentage it might be, it’s a percentage we’re more in control of. We can’t control genetics, but we can change how we respond to stress,” she said, adding that it’s not necessarily the stress itself as much as the way people handle stress that may be linked to disease. That’s why it’s important that the public understand the connection between stress and cancer, despite lack of hard scientific evidence, according to Dr. Dalal Akoury the M.D and founder of AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center. Ideally when you take the scientific information available and pool it together with the common sense evidence, then the link becomes obvious. The problem we have in Western medicine is what we consider acceptable evidence.

The corresponding link between Cancer and Depression: While waiting for Scientific Evidence

As we near the conclusion of this article, I want to make certain emphasis for the good of your health. Evidence is very good however I wonder whether we need concrete or cemented evidence as a clearance to encourage people to start moving in the direction of better health. Good health can and should not weight for evidence and so feeding well on good food, engagement in healthy physical activities and being composed and calm to defeat stress are things you can do without waiting for scientific evidence. It will take science some time to get the evidence they are looking for but while that is progressing this will be very helpful for you. Now with this information you’re aware that stress will impact negatively on your health if not addressed. You’re also aware that it may not be possible to completely eliminate stress. Therefore, the key isn’t in doing away with all of life’s pressures but in how you handle them as they come. I want to make few suggestions to help you get through life pressures. When you visit us at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center, doctor Akoury and her team of experts have developed a group stress reduction class for cancer patients and survivors where proper management of the two is professionally dealt with. This will be very good for you and your loved ones if only you can schedule for an appointment with the experts at this facility today. We will take you through various techniques of reducing stress and by extension cancer in a much more relaxed environment. Some of the methods may include the technique of deep breathing, careful meditation, imagery and mindfulness. We will be very glad to be part of your solution, call doctor Akoury today.

The corresponding link between Cancer and Depression: How Stress may Cause Cancer

None is immune to stress and addiction

April 3, 2014

None is immune to stress and addiction-All are at risk

Professionals work in very stressful environment and many of them are suffering from addiction secretly

It’s easy to think only the less privilege in the society is the possible candidates for stress and addiction. This school of thought is in the mind of the majority and everyone wants to believe it however this is not always the case. Everybody is at risk of being addicted to any substance or being stressful in any environment. If you go to health institutions you will find medical staff trying to offer treatment to addicts, you may be tempted to believe that they themselves aren’t suffering from the same. Some are, and some definitely aren’t. In fact one out of 10 physicians have problems with alcohol or drugs at some point during their careers.

Those who admit they have an addiction to alcohol or drugs, as well as those who slip up and get reported, usually have to go through an intense substance abuse program before they can practice medicine again. Such physician health programs are pretty effective, helping around 80% of doctors recover from their problems. But these programs raise some ethical questions and I ask.

None is immune to stress and addiction-Is your doctor impaired?

Given that drug- or alcohol-impaired doctors aren’t rare, it’s possible you may come across one someday that is if you haven’t. You might suspect a drug or alcohol problem from your doctor if you notice some of these signs:

slurs words
stumbles
lacks coordination
forgets beyond what is reasonable
looks unusually disheveled
is irritable or easily angered
becomes overly emotional

It must be noted that these aren’t specific to drug or alcohol abuse, but they could be the result of drug or alcohol use. They could also be due to many other issues, such as a personal problem (marital difficulty or death of a loved one, among others), a medical illness (such as diabetes or the onset of dementia), or another mental health problem. Keep in mind that doctors, like the rest of us, can be very good about hiding an addiction. This drug problem is not affecting only the medics but it cuts across all professions.

None is immune to stress and addiction-Reporting

What should you do if you think one of your doctors has a drug or alcohol addiction? For your own protection, it would make sense to find a new doctor, though this might be difficult if there aren’t many in your area. If the doctor you are concerned about works in a group practice or a hospital setting, talk with the practice administrator, clinic chief, division head, ombudsman, or other doctor in the practice in an objective and matter-of-fact way. They are obligated to ensure that their colleagues are safe to practice medicine.

If your suspicions are strong enough, and you don’t trust the doctor’s colleagues to take appropriate action, voice your concerns to the state board of medicine. Someone there will then be obliged to do some investigating.

Who is an addict? With addictive tragedies striking every community in the nation – with many millions of Americans addicted to alcohol and drugs alone – legions of scientists are asking: What aspects of psychological makeup contribute to addiction? Are there common threads that weave through all addictions, from hard drugs to cigarettes, from gambling to overeating?

It is part of a much broader effort that has already seen progress in understanding the chemistry of addiction, as biochemists isolate the chemicals and mechanisms by which the brain gives itself pleasure. And the whole panoply of addiction research has led to insights that buttress a profusion of therapies. Though some of them hold great promise, all would benefit from an increased understanding of the addictive personality.

Despite the wide gulf between an addiction to drugs and an addiction to gambling, some mental health experts find it useful to view addiction as including all self-destructive, compulsive behaviors. Some even go so far as to include the relatively benign activity of compulsive television-watching.

In bringing together much of the existing knowledge on the personality’s role in addictions, with an emphasis on drugs and alcohol, a new study prepared for the National Academy of Sciences concludes that there is no single set of psychological characteristics that embrace all addictions. But the study does see common elements from addiction to addiction.

None is immune to stress and addiction-Factors contributing to addiction

The report finds that there are several ”significant personality factors” that can contribute to addiction:

Impulsive behavior, difficulty in delaying gratification, an antisocial personality and a disposition toward sensation seeking.
A high value on nonconformity combined with a weak commitment to the goals for achievement valued by the society.
A sense of social alienation and a general tolerance for deviance.
A sense of heightened stress. This may help explain why adolescence and other stressful transition periods are often associated with the most severe drug and alcohol problems.

Professionals believes that the continuing search for the personality traits that play a part in the development of addictions is an essential part of the broader fight against addiction, an opinion shared by others familiar with the field. ”If we can better identify the personality factors, ”they (doctors) can help us devise better treatment and can open up new strategies to intervene and break the patterns of addiction.”

Moreover, it’s believes that the insights provided by this kind of research could lead to much more effective preventive programs than those available today, to be used ”before problems reach the critical stage.” Supplementing the personality factors listed in the academy’s report, other behavioral scientists who have studied addicts point to additional often-found features of personality or background – a lack of self-esteem, marked depression or anxiety, physical or sexual abuse in childhood, and sharply conflicting parental expectations.

The broad approach to addiction is taken by Lawrence J. Hatterer, an associate clinical professor of psychiatry at the Cornell University Medical College who wrote in his book, ”The Pleasure Addicts” (Barnes) that ”Addictive behavior has invaded every aspect of American life today. We all feel the cloud of concern about becoming addictive – preoccupation with weight, smoking, drinking too much, or being caught in an excess of spending, acquiring, gambling, sex or work.”

Among other activities which, done in excess, have been characterized as addictive behavior are caffeine consumption, eating of chocolates or other sugar-laden foods, television watching, playing video games and even running.

None of these activities are considered to be addictions by doctors unless they involve excessive, repetitive use of pleasurable activities to cope with unmanageable internal conflict, pressure and stress. While such activity may begin pleasurably in a person’s life, the process in the addict involves increasing activity to achieve the same effect and eventually results in injury to the person’s health or to his work, family and social relationships. The addicted person typically denies that his activity is detrimentally affecting him. If the addict is forced to stop, he finds he suffers physical or psychological withdrawal pains, and often feels compelled to resume his excessive pattern.

None is immune to stress and addiction-All are at risk

Tag Archives: Addiction and stress