Alcoholism and drug addiction are globally, two of the biggest problems that society faces today. Alcohol and drugs are not singled out for just one person, it affects everyone around them.
This article aims to discuss alcoholism and drug addiction consequences.
Alcoholism can be described as having a physical dependence for alcohol and feeling withdrawal symptoms when you do not get it. Alcoholism affects your whole life, and its consequences can be divided into 3 categories:
- physical,
- psychological
- and social
The physical consequences that alcoholism bear ranges from loss of appetite to death.
Because your body has become dependent on alcohol, drinking exorbitant amounts of it can lead to various types of cancers (stomach, liver and kidney), cirrhosis and gastritis. Movement of the body can also be compromised as long term alcohol usage damages the body’s neurons used for this function.
Psychologically, alcoholism can cause mental health problems such as depression, anxiety, denial and behavioural changes.
From a social point of view, alcoholism creates family tensions, as the person can become violent and aggressive, which hampers the individuals personal relationships.
Alcoholism may also affect the addicts as well as his or her colleague’s performance at work, which could eventually lead to unemployment. Crime can also be linked to alcoholism as excessive drinking can make the person do just about anything to satisfy their need for alcohol.
See the complete guide to alcohol addiction here.
The effects of drug addiction are very similar to that of alcoholism.
Drug addiction can be defined as having a dependence on an illegal drug or a medication. Drug addiction affects everything important in your life, your personal well being, your family, friends and loved ones. In general, it affects society as a whole.
The consequences of drug addiction can also be split into the same categories as discussed in alcoholism, namely:
- physical,
- psychological and
- social effects.
The physical effects are noticeable, as the addicts body can change over time and excessive drug use. Overdose of the drug and death are some of the major consequences that drug addiction poses.
The addict will also be at risk of numerous life threatening illnesses such as heart attacks and strokes.
Psychologically, drug addiction also comes with various mental health problems.
Similar to alcoholism, the person may face depression and anxiety, as well as mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and psychosis.
Socially, the family and friends of the addicted person is affected in the most profound way as the personalities of drug addicts are severely distorted around their addictions.
Families can inadvertently assist the addict’s addiction by denying that the person has a problem or cover it up out of shame and fear of embarrassment in society.
It also affects your career and how you perform in it, as your addiction leads to inefficiency at work or absence which could eventually result in unemployment.
Crime can also be associated with it, as the only thing that matters for the person is when, how and where they will be able to get their next ‘hit’ from.
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