Dependency can arise from many things and is difficult to break. It can cause great suffering for you as well as for those around you. Shame and silence are dependency’s best friends – so talking about your dependency can be your first step to a healthier life and better relationships.
Hazardous use is when you use substances, such as alcohol and drugs, in ways that harm your health and your relationships. If your hazardous use is allowed to continue for a long time, you may develop a dependency on the substance and find it difficult to live without it. If you increase the amount of a substance you use, or the occasions when you use it, you also risk developing a dependency.
If you have a dependency disorder, you have difficulty stopping or reducing your use of a substance and you lose control over how much you use it.
Your body and brain have become accustomed to the effect of being under the influence, and you may need increasingly larger doses to achieve the desired effect. When the substance isn’t used, this leads to physical and psychological symptoms such as anxiety and sleeping difficulties. These are known as withdrawal symptoms and can be caused by the hazardous use of alcohol, narcotics, sedatives and painkillers, as well as nicotine and coffee. You can also develop a dependency on, for example, gaming or gambling. The feeling is that the dependency is out of control and that your entire life revolves around it.
Dependency disorders are caused by a change in the brain’s reward system. The reward system is meant to motivate us to do things that are key to our survival. It does this by releasing dopamine when, for example, we eat good food, exercise or have sex. When we drink alcohol or use drugs, we trick the brain into releasing dopamine by artificial means. Instead of a sense of natural wellbeing, it can offer an intoxicating feeling, which many people want to experience over and over again. Different people have different genetic risks of developing a dependency.
Dependency can take over your entire life. Suddenly, nothing is more important than satisfying the craving for more. It’s common to think a great deal about alcohol or drugs, for example, and to start concealing your use. It can interfere with your work, your family relationships, your health – things that used to be enjoyable and important. Dependency can harm your physical and mental wellbeing. It can also harm the physical and mental wellbeing of those around you.
Hazardous use and dependency can make you feel like a failure and evoke feelings of guilt and shame. They can be difficult to talk about. However, keeping quiet and pretending the problem doesn’t exist benefits nothing but the dependency itself. It’s important to remember that it’s a disease and that treatment is available. Dependency affects your life as well as your relationships with the people around you. When you seek help, you get support to help you get better as well as the opportunity to improve your interpersonal relationships.
Having a dependency disorder can make it difficult to admit to yourself that you have a problem, and here family and friends can offer helpful and important support. Start by talking to someone you trust.
In the case of hazardous use or dependency, you can contact your healthcare centre or occupational health service. The first step will be a thorough assessment of your problems and whether any other mental illness is present. Following this you can receive treatment, such as talking therapy or medication.
There are also dependency clinics where relatives can ask for support. Methods that have shown good results are the twelve-step programme, relapse prevention, CRA and ACRA. Support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous are found all over the world as well as online.
Reviewed by: Agneta Björck, registered nurse, coach and public speaker.
Last edited 2024-01-29