By: Bertil Hjert
Experts believe that addiction & depression take place simultaneously. Most often the addict may feel depressed when he starts using alcohol or drugs. This initial depression often results in adverse stage as the addiction progresses.
Depression can be termed as a terrible feeling where the addict is surrounded by a lot of thought or a farrago of different emotions. Here, the addict feels low & it lasts for about two weeks. This feeling is entirely different from feeling stressed out or sad about a specific thing or situation.
This sort of a feeling exists even when there is no reason to feel depressed. The person under depression may not have the idea of when he is feeling low. In most cases, activities that used to capture his interest do not perk him up anymore. Some people even find it difficult to get out of bed.
Here are some of the common symptoms of depression:
• One tends to feel depressed almost most of the drug & this becomes a matter of daily routine.
• The patient loses interest in activities that used to excite him in the past.
• One gains a lot of weight or loses a considerable amount of weight.
• Finding trouble in sleeping.
• Sleeping most of the time.
• Feeling tired almost every day without any reason.
• Feeling worthless or guilty for no reason at all.
• Finding it difficult to concentrate or thinking rationally.
• Moving more slowly than usual.
• Speaking more slowly than usual.
• Getting thoughts of suicide or death.
Depression can ultimately lead to addiction. Some people use alcohol or drugs to fight depression they are suffering from. This stage is termed as self meditating by doctors. The effect of alcohol or drugs can provide temporary relief to the person.
The individual feels relieved from the feeling of sadness, guilty or worthlessness. However, the sad part is that as soon as the effect of the alcohol or drug is over, the bad feeling returns.
The consequences of depression are bad. Most people suffering from depression often withdraw from social contacts. The even find it difficult to handle jobs or sticking to a particular job for a long time.
People with depression often find it difficult to stay away from alcohol and drugs. They are also unable to pursue healthy relationships as the social expectations are lower.
Sometimes addiction to drugs or alcohol can also lead to depression. Several psychiatric problems are directly related to cocaine. The cocaine abuse can even lead to anxiety, hallucinations, sleep problems, sexual dysfunction & a type of mood disorder.
There is indeed a treatment for depression and addiction. Here, the doctor needs to look at the history of patient. Here, it becomes extremely necessary to keep the patient away from drug & alcohol.
The combination of addiction & depression becomes really challenging to recover. Experts provide special care to the patients in order to get rid of the problem. However, the professional first tries to find out the relationship between addiction & depression.
The best thing to do is to understand the symptoms of addiction & depression & visit a professional as soon as possible. This will provide you expert medical aid on time.
Take a full treatment course as there are chances for the problem to relapse.
