Are you an Addict?
By Dr Faisal Alzahrani (guest author)
In his guest blog for Great Minds United, Dr Faisal Alzahrani explores the question if we are (potential) “addicts”. He challenges our common image of what an addict is and looks like by exploring the concept and definition by applying the concept not only to substances but also to other forms of addiction in our today’s world.
So the question is, “Are you an addict?“.
🚩 Are you addicted to work?
🚩 Are you addicted to success?
🚩 Are you addicted to social media?
🚩 Are you addicted to video games, Netflix & Co.?
🚩 Are you addicted to coffee or energy drinks?
Cigarettes, alcohol and drugs are what probably comes to mind when you hear the word “addict”. This is mainly because the overuse of those substances and addiction, both share a negative touch and potentially lead to bad consequences. Also, the correlation between their use and the level of addiction has been well established previously, and most, if not all of us, are well aware of it. The question now is, even if you are not a smoker, drug user or an excessive alcohol consumer, can you still be an addict?
Addictive triggers come in different shapes and forms. Some of which are harmful such as that mentioned above, whereas others can be harmless in nature such as exercising, computer gaming and chocolate eating to mention a few. In fact, people can become addicted to all kinds of things, including those that will probably not even cross your mind when we talk about addiction, such as social media, love, work or sex! Clearly, when you develop an addiction to a harmful trigger, the end result will be harmful. But what if your addiction was towards a harmless trigger? Interestingly enough, the end result will also be harmful, as the good old say goes; “too much of a good thing is a bad thing!”.
Addiction is bad because it leads to unwanted outcomes such as health deterioration, social isolation, family breakdown, inability to maintain financial commitments and failure to progress in life. In simple terms, you can spend countless money, waste a lot of time and lose your job or loved ones because of your addiction. But how can one find out if they have an addiction? The definition of addiction is universal across all disciplines, despite the slight variations in wording. And if you research the topic, you will come across different criteria by which the addiction is identified. However, I am going to make it simple for you! But first, let us look at why and how does addiction develop.
There are 3 main pathways of addiction development: mental, physical and habitual. In our brains, we have reward centres that produce Dopamine, the happy hormone, in response to pleasant or pleasurable experiences. For example, winning, while playing computer games, results in a happy and rewarding feeling, hence Dopamine is released to temporarily magnify that joy and happiness! And thus, the more games you win, the more Dopamine is released, and the happier you become! This explains why some people spend hours and hours playing computer games while losing track of time. On the other hand, physical addiction develops by repetitive direct stimulation of certain receptors in the body. A perfect example of that is the up-regulation of natural body Nicotine receptors by the Nicotine found in tobacco cigarettes. The more you smoke cigarettes and expose yourself to its Nicotine, the more you modify and increased your natural body Nicotine receptors. The end result is that now your body is used to excessive Nicotine, and will keep demanding it by causing you headaches, muscle aches and irritability until you administer another dose of Nicotine via another cigarettes. Finally, we are creatures of habit. We like to have routines and tend to do the same thing over and over again. This in itself is not necessarily a problem. But when you make it a habit to do something that constantly gives you a pleasant and happy feelings, such as shopping or exercise, you are on your way to developing addiction!
Once addiction develops, it can be hard to fight! This is mainly because the addictive can trigger more than one pathway as described above. Smokers for instance, will have all mental, physical and habitual pathways triggered by cigarette smoking. Mentally, they are constantly and subconsciously thinking of when and where to have the next cigarette in order to gain relief and avoid negative withdrawal symptoms. Physically, their bodies are constantly demanding that extra dose of nicotine, and until they receives it, they will communicate that demand in a form of unwanted physical symptoms. Habitually, most if not all smokers would develop a smoking habit such as smoking after meals, smoking in certain places at certain times of the day or smoking while on coffee breaks. Hence, it is difficult to quit addiction, and if the addict attempted to fight it, they will more likely to encounter withdrawal symptoms that vary according to the addictive substance or activity. These symptoms can be mental disturbances such as irritability, loss of concentration and depression that may develop after cessation of gaming or exercise addiction, or physical signs such as those that develop soon after quitting excessive alcohol, illegal drugs or tobacco cigarettes.
Now that we have a better understanding on how addiction develops and what it can lead to, we can define it by simply saying that addiction is: 1. the repetitive use or exposure to an activity or a substance that temporarily causes pleasure or symptomatic relief mentally or physically, 2. which significantly impacts life 3. and causes withdrawal symptoms upon cessation. Thus, if you apply this definition to anything and everything you do, you might discover that you have an addiction, or on your way to developing one!
In conclusion, the topic of addiction is complex and difficult to cover in one page, however one must be aware of the fact that it can naturally develop even towards healthy substances or harmless activities. We can also write pages on how to fight and defeat addiction, but I personally believe that prevention is better than the cure! And hence, early recognition of one’s addiction can be the dim light that may guide them to safety, away from all the darkness that addiction will bring upon them. Therefore, and simply put; whenever you find yourself progressively spending more time and money towards something that gives you pleasure or relief, while neglecting other aspects of your life, stop! And ask yourself if you are becoming an addict.