How to Overcome Drug Addiction

Set a goal to give up drugs. To overcome addiction, you need to have a goal to give up drugs. You won’t be able to stop using drugs completely in just a short period of time, but goal setting will help you plan your next step. ^[1]

Make a list of the harm that drug addiction does to you. Writing down a specific list of the negative effects of addiction on your life can give you the jump-start you need to change your behavior. Instead of thinking about the effects of drug addiction in the usual negative terms (“It’s ruining my life” or “I’m not doing my best”), write about changes in your life since you fell into an addiction. Reading things that you have written down on paper can be frustrating for you, but building a concrete list will help you overcome difficulties later. ^[2]

Write about how your body feels. You know you are addicted if you experience withdrawal symptoms when you try to stop using drugs. ^[3] Withdrawal symptoms are often the exact opposite of how drugs make you feel when you are under its effects. If you feel energetic when you’re “high” on the drug, you’ll likely feel tired and moody when you quit. If you feel relaxed and happy when you are drunk, you will experience extreme anxiety and agitation when you quit smoking. You can even get sick when you stop using drugs, and you will need to keep taking them in order to feel normal.

• Take note of how you feel and the effects of addiction on your body. Depending on the type of stimulant you use, you can cause skin damage, organ damage, dental problems, and other physical problems. Even if the symptom you experience isn’t too severe, like you’ve lost a few pounds or your face is aging faster, take notes.

Assess whether you are neglecting your responsibilities. An addict may neglect their life responsibilities such as school, work, family, and other tasks such as laundry, housework, car maintenance, payments, etc. paying bills, etc. When someone is addicted to drugs, their world revolves around drug use, recovery after the drug wears off, and then more use of the drug. ^[4] Addiction is not recreational or experimental drug use. It is a compulsion that only interventions can help you put an end to.

• Record how often you have been to work or school lately. Consider how much you care about the responsibility you have to take on.
• Think about whether your addiction is affecting your finances. Write about how much money you used to satisfy your addiction every day, every week, every month, and every year.

Think about whether you’ve been seeing friends or family recently. Avoiding family and friends because you are under the influence of drugs or smoking cessation makes you not want to see anyone. This act can be baffling to your friends and family, who wonder where you are and why you’re acting so weird.

• Others may complain about how often you drink and use drugs. All of these are signs of addiction. ^[5]

Admit if you steal or lie to others. Stealing and lying to others, especially if they are close to you such as family and friends. Addicted people will often steal money or valuable items to buy drugs. Addiction not only affects the body but also causes the addict to think so distorted that they can steal.

• Lying often accompanies the nature of the addiction as well as with the sense of shame the addict feels for his or her actions.

Determine when you last focused on your personal interests. You may have to give up your hobby or hobby because drugs are becoming your top priority. Imagine equal division of time between drug use and personal hobbies and interests (e.g., rock climbing, dancing, stamp collecting, photography, playing musical instruments, learning a foreign language , etc).

• Any person who is able to focus on his or her own hobby will not succumb to the habit of spending full time on addictive chemicals.

Be honest about the effects of drugs on your life. Continuing to use drugs even if it brings problems with school, work, the legal system, family life and romantic relationships, and health would not be wise. For many people, being sent to prison will be such a terrifying experience that it will force them to rethink their way of life. But for people addicted to drugs or alcohol, they often forget these things or their memories quickly fade once the addiction begins.

• You could be arrested for DUI (driving under the influence) or drug possession.
• Your relationships may be in trouble or they will be completely ruined. When you fall into an addiction, your friends and family will alienate you.

Write about the positive changes you get when you stop using drugs. Once you’ve made a note of the negatives, focus on the positives once you’ve worked through your addiction. How has your life changed? You will certainly be able to narrow down or eliminate the negative, and you will be able to make positive changes.