When we think of addiction, we almost always think of drugs, alcohol and cigarettes. However, addictions don’t end there, they just begin. In theory, humans could be addicted to practically anything, so it’s not surprising that today we also talk about addiction to sex, the Internet, exercise, shopping or junk food.
In reality, anything that brings great pleasure has addictive potential. However, it should be noted that there is nothing negative about experiencing pleasure and joy. In fact, the key to happiness also lies in actively seeking out experiences that fill us with satisfaction. However, the line between actively seeking happiness and seeking pleasure is very thin and can lead to addiction.
Addiction is something that no one is safe from. We should keep our behaviors continuously monitored because stopping in time is the key to preventing the problem from becoming a full-blown disorder.
When addiction knocks at the door
1. Degree of importance conferred. How important has that object or situation become for you? Analyze how much time of your day you dedicate to that activity or how much time you spend thinking about it. Have you noticed that your hierarchy of needs has changed and that that activity has come to occupy the first place, to the detriment of other things that were previously important to you? When we are on the verge of an addiction, one of the main warning signs is the change in our needs because that object or action comes to occupy an increasingly important place in our life. The problem is that it is a gradual process so it is not always easy to realize.
2. Sense of control that it generates. Does this behavior make you feel safe, in control of the situation? It is normal that when we do the things we like we feel good, but addiction begins when these behaviors become the main source of satisfaction, the only way we have to feel complete and in control of the situation. In this case, addiction becomes a patch that tries to hide a much more serious underlying problem, which may be insecurity or low self-esteem.
3. Prevalence of the behavior. Do you often find yourself doing that activity for longer than you had planned? If you tell yourself, “just a little longer,” it is because you are facing a compulsion. Addiction traps people in a vicious circle because it takes up more and more space, displacing other activities that are also important for our physical and mental health. How often has that behavior become an impediment in your daily life or in your interpersonal relationships?
4. Feelings about stopping the behavior. Do you feel anxious or distressed when you can’t carry out that behavior? It’s likely that you didn’t even care much about it before, but now that behavior has become an important part of you and if you even imagine that you won’t be able to carry it out, you panic. This deep displeasure, which goes beyond what is rational, is a sign that an addiction exists or is being established. The next step will be a withdrawal syndrome, in the most literal sense of the term. In fact, it has been shown that even people who suffer from cell phone or Internet addiction have all the symptoms of this syndrome.
5. Inability to stop. Have you ever said to yourself “this will be the last time” or “I won’t do it again until next week” only to find yourself doing the same thing again? One of the main problems with addiction is that it drives us to repeat the same behaviors over and over again, it makes us lose control and, even if we want to, we can’t stop. Sometimes these behaviors become a habit and we do them almost mechanically, but it is important to recognize them in order to ask for help later.
What to do?
All these signs do not necessarily indicate that an addiction already exists, but they do predict that it will soon be knocking on your door. They indicate that all the mechanisms that will make you lose control of your impulses, plunging you into a loop of negativity, have already been activated in your brain.
Therefore, if you are one step away from falling into addiction, that is the time to stop. The first step is to detect what is causing this behavior. Addictions are usually based on a deficiency; addictive behavior is usually nothing more than a skirmish of our mind that prevents us from focusing on what really bothers and hurts us. In fact, it is not unusual for addictions to appear or become worse after a breakup, the loss of a job or a failed project.
The best way to stop addiction in time is to feel comfortable with yourself and accept yourself. When we have nothing to prove to others or to ourselves, when we have settled accounts with our past and can look confidently to the future, addiction has no place.
