Addiction & Detox

The Partnership for a Drug-Free America suggests that unexplained changes in a person's appearance or behavior could be a sign of addiction. Some common symptoms include changes in sleeping patterns, frequent injuries or accidents, dramatic weight gain or loss and a neglected appearance. Behavioral indicators include lying, desperate behavior, loss of interest in hobbies, emotional instability, changes in friends and avoiding eye contact.

What is Addiction?

Addiction is a chronic, yet treatable, condition that affects a person's ability to control his need for certain substances or situations that create some kind of positive impact. People can become addicted to almost anything, but the most common addictions that can be harmful and cause danger to a person's well-being include drug and alcohol dependence, food addiction and sexual addiction. The National Institutes of Health indicates in an article about addiction published on HBO.com that "the brains of addicted people have been modified by the drug in such a way that absence of the drug makes a signal to their brain that is equivalent to the signal of when you are starving."

Detoxification

Detox is a process that a patient goes through to rid her body of a substance to which she's addicted. According to Treatment Now, an organization that provides information about drug and alcohol addiction, detoxification is the first step in the treatment of addiction. Known as withdrawal, a patient will go through a process of gradually lowering her exposure to a particular substance or behavior.
Depending on the addiction, detox may need to be done under medical supervision. Withdrawing from certain drugs too abruptly can cause dangerous side effects from pain to flu-like symptoms and even seizures. Withdrawal from addictive behaviors like shopping and pornography can cause a person to feel anxious, angry and depressed to the point that it interferes with everyday activities like attending work or school.

Addiction as a Disease

Addiction is a chronic disease. It causes changes in the brain's chemistry that drive a person to continue abusing the substance or committing the behavior on which he's hooked. In fact, addiction can actually be mapped using brain images. Scanning equipment can capture blood-flow information that identifies brain-based disorders and addictions. These tests are able to scientifically document the success of treatment and recovery.

When to Detox

Not everyone who uses drugs and alcohol or has a dependence on food, sugar or sex needs to detox. But to gauge whether someone's addiction is severe enough to warrant detoxification, Above The Influence, a popular anti-drug campaign geared toward young adults, suggests these signs. If a person needs more of the same substance to achieve the same level of high, she likely is addicted. Addiction is accompanied by withdrawal symptoms if the person does not take enough of the substance. These will include nausea, insomnia, anxiety, sweating or trembling. Using more of the substance than intended points to a dependence problem. The persistent desire to use or unsuccessful attempts to quit indicate an addiction. Giving up important hobbies, activities or friends in order to use and continuing to use despite the consequences also points to a level of addiction that warrants detoxification.

What to Do

It's not safe to detox from a substance without first consulting a physician or therapist. When the body is dependent on certain substances, abruptly stopping can cause major mood swings at the least and dangerous health consequences at worst. It's important to tell an addiction specialist how much of the substance a person takes on a daily basis and for how long he has been taking it.
For some people, detoxing at home while under the supervision of a professional by day or several days a week is possible. The chance of relapsing, however, is higher. Also, detoxification is only the first step in battling addiction. Continuing to see an addiction specialist, coupled with attending a program for addicts, greatly improves the chances of a person staying clean and sober.
Depending on the type of addiction a person has, detox can take from five to seven days.