Am I an Addict

Am I an Addict? What is Addiction?

This is a compicated question with no easy answers. Here are some good quidelines

Social User:

One who uses alcohol and/or drugs simply to enhance the pleasure of normally pleasurable situations. The social user experiences the following:

No negative consequences
No surprises or unpredictability
No loss of control
No complaints
No thoughts of or need for limit setting

Substance Abuser:

One who uses to enhance pleasure and/or compensate for something negative, such as physical or emotional pain, insecurity, fear, anger, etc. The substance abuser experiences some or all of the following:

Occasional negative consequences that are not repeated
Limit setting that is adhered to
Promises that are made and kept
Complaints are heard and dealt with

Addict:

One who uses to celebrate, compensate, or for any other reason, legitimate or not. The addict experiences some or all of the following:

Negative consequences are recycled
Limit setting & promises to self or others are broken
Complaints are denied and/or not heard

Reliable symptoms of addictive disease become more evident. Reliable symptoms include those listed under the DSM IV definition of addiction and others, expressed as follows:

Continued use despite negative consequences
Loss of control, as in more use than planned (broken limits)
Unpredictability, as in use despite plan not to use (broken promises)
Compulsivity/preoccupation in thinking
Denial; Use of defenses to maintain denial
Build up of (or “break” in) tolerance
Remorse & guilt about use or behavior when using
Memory loss, mental confusion, irrational thinking
Family history of addictive behavior
Withdrawal discomfort (physical, mental, emotional, and/or psychological)

*The DSM-IV TR is published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and covers all categories of mental health disorders for both adults and children. The manual is non-theoretical and focused mostly on describing symptoms as well as statistics concerning which gender is most affected by the illness, the typical age of onset, the effects of treatment, and common treatment approaches. The DSM-IV is the current edition of the manual and was first published in 1994. This edition presents nearly 400 disorders. In June 2000, a text revision was published bringing it up to date with current statistics as well as the latest findings in research.