Drug dependence is nothing more than, as its name suggests, the dependence that a person can create on a certain type of medicine . This can occur voluntarily, which can become drug addiction and take place in social settings , or it can occur in the private sphere due to a dependence that is created on a drug after being prescribed for a real ailment.

The first thing you should know about this topic is the real difference between dependence and addiction , since sometimes these terms are confused and are used as synonyms.

When we talk about addiction, we refer to the characteristics that include consumption by a person even knowing the negative consequences of the intake of said drug in high doses. Drug addicts cannot stop using it voluntarily , which even leads them to set aside other social obligations or responsibilities , such as work , personal and even family.

However, when we talk about dependence, and in this specific case of drug dependence, the most important characteristic is that with the passage of consumption, the drug stops working because a true tolerance to its effects develops , which leads to the person who consumes it, increase the recommended dose or consume it more frequently.

Causes, consequences of drug dependence

Drug dependence occurs mainly in mental health patients who need specific medications to deal with the treatment of emotional disorders such as anxiety or depression . Many people throughout life experience episodes of this type and are prescribed anxiolytics or antidepressants , very common in our society and that together with therapy make these difficult trances go through.

On some occasions and in more complicated cases in which the patient suffers a longer and even “chronic” process, drug dependence can develop to this type of medication. This drug dependence makes the patient believe that the dose of drugs prescribed by the specialist is not enough to cure the disorder , and make the personal decision to increase the dose or do it more frequently, without taking into account the side effects , creating so that dependency.

Although dependence on any type of medication can develop, the reality is that piscodrugs are the most sensitive to its occurrence, either by the environment, by society or by the very chemical composition that makes them up. Specifically, the most common are anxiolytics, widely used and which have been prescribed to society on a massive scale in recent years in any type of situation. They are very difficult psychological disorders to identify and treat, so many of the affected patients never see enough the dose of this medicine to be cured, creating dependency.

The main consequences that can come as a result of dependence on drugs are above all: tolerance , that is, there comes a point where this drug does not perform its functions correctly because the body is already used to consuming the components it contains. ; the withdrawal syndrome , also known in drug addicts and which can create quite violent situations due to having suspended the medication from one moment to the next; and addictive belief . A drug addict can become an addict at the moment when he thinks that he needs the consumption of a certain type of medicine to continue carrying out tasks of his daily life or to feel safe.

Treatment

When a person can suffer from drug dependence, the treatment they have to follow can become even more complicated . Keep in mind that it is very difficult for a person with drug dependence to assume that they have this problem, so it will be the people around them, family or friends who are aware of whether they are taking the recommended dose of a prescribed drug, or you are consuming excessively.

The aim for this type of patient is to be able to eliminate the consumption of this drug completely, but for this the worst decision you can make is to stop using it drastically. This also has severe side effects for your body and can lead to withdrawal symptoms .

The best option for the cure of drug dependence is to go to professionals who, in the case in which it is pertinent, may recommend admission to a center or disability program . It is important to surround yourself with people who really know how to treat these types of disorders, since it is a process that can become very long and need other alternative therapies, but above all and the most important thing is to want to end that dependence.