Self-medicating behavior involves taking unprescribed drugs or other substances to treat mental and medical conditions that have not been officially diagnosed or that have been diagnosed but are not being treated by an appropriate professional. It also refers to the irregular use of a prescribed drug to treat a current or chronic illness. The act […]

Some alcoholism signs and symptoms are subtle and some are not. The longer a person has been struggling with alcohol, the more severe the signs become. The effects of alcoholism are pervasive and touch all aspects of a person’s life. Here are some clues that indicate a person is having a problem with alcohol. Amount […]

Hallucinogen effects include a condition known as Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD). It occurs in some people who have used hallucinogen drugs. It can occur in people after one use of a hallucinogen drug but it generally appears and then gets worse with continued drug use. It is not possible to tell which hallucinogen users […]

Gaming addiction refers to the obsessive use of online and computer games. Similar to people with other psychological addictions, people with gaming addiction find it hard to stop the behavior. It interferes with their daily lives and causes them to neglect important responsibilities. Concern about the addictive and destructive aspects of excessive video game use […]

When a person is referred to as a “dry drunk” it means that the person is not drinking but is still displaying the attitudes and behaviors of his drinking days. Positive change and growth has not occurred in someone suffering from dry drunk syndrome. The dry drunk does not fully embrace recovery and resists doing […]

The damaging effects of alcohol on the body are not always obvious, especially in the early stages of addiction. Young people, too, often do not feel the effects of alcohol on the body because a young body is more adept at healing and recovering from the damage. Over time the damaging effects of alcohol on […]

Addictive personality is a phrase often used to refer to a person’s tendency towards addiction. People who struggle with addiction appear to have certain personality traits in common. That cluster of personality traits seems to make a person more susceptible to addiction. However, simply having a predisposition towards developing addictions will not cause an addiction […]

Denial acts as an obstacle to recovery from drug or alcohol addiction. It does not allow a person to see the addiction problem for what it really is. Denial is self-deception. It is a protective mechanism that a person uses unconsciously every day in reaction to events, emotions or thoughts that he is not ready […]

Liver damage from alcohol takes many forms. The damage is a direct result of drinking too much alcohol as in the case of alcoholism. When alcohol is processed in the body, it passes through the liver to be detoxified. When the liver is exposed to too much alcohol for too long a period of time […]

The effects of addiction on family of someone with a drug or alcohol problem can be damaging and long-term. Family often seeks to protect the person with the addiction. The family usually wants to hide the problem so people outside the family do not find out about it. Protecting and hiding the problem only serves […]