Do you know that both mental health disorders and substance abuse are linked together? This might not mean something to the victim, but a professional knows the co-relation very well. The only difference here might be the kind of mental disorder the victim is suffering from. The rest is the same. Various studies suggest that the number of patients suffering from mental health is more likely involved in drug and alcohol usage.
Are you looking for someone to help you control your substance abuse? Do you think someone near you is leading towards addiction? Maybe this blog can help you understand mental health and substance abuse. Stay tuned to our page to know more.
What Leads To Mental Health Disorders And Substance Abuse?
What is mental health? It is when the person is in a sober state. No indulgence with brain activity! What does the drug do? It hampers the activity of the brain and slowly leads to destroying it. Mental disease is any condition where the person’s ability to think or behave is altered. Following is the list of different types of mental health:
- Depression
- Eating disorders
- Dissociation
- Schizophrenia
- Anxiety
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- Tourette Syndrome
- Bipolar Disorder
- Moodiness
- Phobias
Often, the situation arises when a patient takes a certain medicine for a prolonged time and maybe in higher doses than prescribed. This may be because he/she might be receiving a certain feeling and are quite addicted to it and do not want it to go. They might not know that it can lead to a huge side-effect. There are certain who might go for substance abuse only for recreational activities. There are certain elements present which once started, cannot be controlled, and without knowing, one can be addicted to it.
Do you want to know the list of abused substances? Following is the list:
- Pain killer medicines
- Sleeping pills
- Marijuana
- Alcohol
- Cocaine
- Heroin
- Meth
- Ecstasy
- Crack
A mentally ill person is aware of their illness, and to feel better, they might have this craving feeling of the substance they are addicted to. They would like to overpower their illness with the substance. When they take the substance, they don’t think of the adverse effect it can have. They only think that it is the cure and they can go with it as long as they want.
Self-Medication Issues
- Marijuana is easy to access for people who feel depressed frequently. They would want to escape their sad life by consuming marijuana. They would likely feel more euphoric or relaxed. Since marijuana is said to have relaxing properties, this un-nerves their brain and helps them relax for a while.
- Alcohol is said to introduce a different level of confidence in people. For all the socially- awkward people, it is the best way to escape a gathering. It helps their nerve relax and thus be the party-animal they wish to be.
- Benzodiazepines such as Xanax and Valium might help patients with anxiety attacks calm their symptoms of anxiety attacks. Once such patients become addicted to these medicines, they can’t go without them.
- Stimulants like Adderall, crystal meth, or cocaine might help increase the motivation a patient might be lacking.
- All the insomniacs will want to sleep and therefore look for means which would help them. Thus they get addicted to sleeping pills to enhance their sleep cycle.
Someone with no self-control might fall badly into the pit of addiction. A place from where dragging them out might be difficult. All these might help temporarily, but only a professional can cure the deep root cause. Therefore, one must avoid self-medication and seek immediate professional help. Sometimes, taking the substances might lead to many kinds of illness, which might affect more in the long term. The deeper a patient sinks into the pit of addiction, the more likely it gets difficult for him to bring out.
What are the other cases where substance abuse cases might be triggered?
Mental illness is not just caused by substance abuse; in fact, there are other factors, including genetics. Following is the list of triggers that might lead to mental illness:
- Stress
- Abuse
- A disturbing event of life
- Family history
Certain events likely to be paid attention to are as follows:
- When someone is into more alcohol consumption, he/she might also develop eating disorders. This is way more harmful than the alcohol itself.
- Drunk patients might experience difficulty in making a decision and thus lead to panic attacks when they are incapable of making one.
- Many substances might induce sexual desire. This could lead to unprotected sexual activity or needle sharing. This results in sexually transmitted diseases such as AIDS or Hepatitis. This is more harmful since it can be transferred from one patient to another.
- It is more important to identify such people and help them diagnose their problems. Try pushing them away in the later stages indirectly. Make their mind divert to different things. Let them attend classes of confidence. Let them attend classes on personality development. Let them know that drug abuse is a short and temporary solution. Know that if any symptom or ailment is left untreated, it might likely induce them to take more drugs or, in severe cases, death. Certain people use CBD oil, and it is said to be helpful in many areas.
- There are certain patients who are bipolar. They might abuse alcohol to calm their central nervous system, whereas there might be another patient with the same disorder who might indulge in cocaine abuse. Cocaine has different effects.
Know the abuser around you. Help them to be treated for a better society. This drug might induce an adrenaline rush which would make the person feel powerful. Instead, they keep eating the body and brain from inside and make the person hollow.
Final Words:
Substance abuse is much common these days due to its easy access. Also, it induces an adrenaline rush into the person, making them feel more powerful. Help identify yourself whether you are a victim of substance abuse or not.
