No matter what type of drug you use, they all have a damaging impact on your mind, body, and soul. Individuals dealing with drug addictions deal with an array of side effects mentally. In order to understand why drug abuse has such a dramatic control over an addict, it is important to realize how addiction works.
A lot of addicts begin using drugs as a coping mechanism for an underlying mental condition.
Drug use often has an immediate effect on users. When a person uses a substance, they often feel a dramatic sense of euphoria. This rapid increase of happiness causes them to lose their fears, anxieties, and depressed thoughts. They rapidly develop a false sense of importance or a feeling of being on top of the world.
Although this enlightened sense of well-being may seem like a positive thing, it comes with a damaging array of negative side effects that addicts often experience. Some short-term side effects drug users experience are:
- Happiness mixed with anger and/or irritability
- Paranoia
- Hallucination
- Extreme sensitivity to sound, sight, and tough
- Muscle weakness or paralysis
- Memory loss
- Insomnia
- Loss of appetite
- Failed nervous system functions
These side effects can last for several minutes to hours and can have a different level of severity from user to user. In addition to short-term side effects, addicts risk experiencing long-term side effects that can be serious and/or life-threatening. Some long-term side effects are:
- Headaches
- Heart issues that lead to heart attacks of disease
- Strokes and/or seizures
- Lung damage/collapse
- Digestive problems
- Severe mood disorders
Not only does drug use cause a person to experience negative side-effects, but it also increases the risk of them experiencing withdrawal symptoms if they are unable to use drugs routinely. Drug withdrawal symptoms can appear in a few hours or take several days to begin. Some of the most common symptoms of drug withdrawal are:
- Depression and/or anxiety
- Extreme headaches and body aching
- Nausea and vomiting
- Increased blood pressure and heartbeat
- Irregular breathing
- Seizures
- Hallucinations
- Insomnia
Once an addiction begins, it has an all-around negative impact on users. Individuals suffer as they use substances, they suffer after using substances, and they suffer as a lack of using substances. This vicious cycle can be truly devastating and very uncomfortable to deal with. Addicts feel displeasure at not using, which often forces them to continue using.
Although withdrawal symptoms may seem terrible, they generally do not last long. An addict may experience withdrawal symptoms for up to a week after stopping, but the negative side-effects of using continue as long as an addict is active. For this reason, it is important to take the first step toward stopping the substance use so you can be healthier and feel better.
At Asana Recovery, we have a team of professionals available around the clock to help individuals dealing with the negative impacts of drug addiction. We have a monitored detox process and an exceptional inpatient treatment program that can help you overcome your addiction. Call us at (949)438-4504 to see how we can help you become addiction free.
