Drug Abuse and Low Self Esteem

Drug Abuse and Low Self Esteem

Drug Abuse and Low Self Esteem

Individuals suffering from low self esteem beset as they are with crippling self doubt and depression are often loath to seek help for their problems. There is still a great stigma in our society associated with mental health issues and sufferers often fear seeking assistance for their illness. Even today when the physical, neurological and environmental factors that cause these psychological problems are well understood and documented, the consensus in society at large seems to be that people should "just get on with things" and "pull themselves together". There is still very little sympathy for people beset with low self esteem or sufferers of depression and this fact can often severely compound the problem.

If an individual is reluctant to seek assistance from health care professionals or support from family and their social group due to a perceived lack of understanding about their problems, there is always the danger that the person may seek to alleviate the symptoms of their problems themselves. This self treatment can manifest itself in a variety of destructive and dangerous ways. The individual may self harm for example. Be driven to overeating as a means of seeking comfort, this in turn may lead to an eating disorder.

A common method of self treatment is substance abuse. This can take the form of overusing drugs legitimately prescribed (not necessarily to the person taking them) abusing alcohol, or any number of illicit and dangerous street drugs. Drugs can often alleviate the symptoms of depression and low self esteem in the short term. The person suffering from crippling shyness can find themselves the life and soul of the party after a couple of drinks and a line of cocaine. The individual crippled by a childhood of abuse can gain temporary release from their pain by seeking solace in heroin addiction. And a harassed and stressed employee can lose himself in drink every evening.

The initial honeymoon period when whatever chemical the individual chooses to medicate themselves with will never last long. Far from solving the problem the drug use becomes a larger issue overshadowing whatever condition that originally beset the sufferer. The abuse will soon begin to effect relationships with family and friends; addiction, it will often lead to issues with law enforcement, and the cost of funding the addiction will eventually lead to financial difficulties. After a short period of initial relief the individual that self medicates will find themselves with a whole new set of problems that will exacerbate the original condition severely.

There are several obvious symptoms that can be looked for if you suspect an individual is abusing illicit substances. The person may for example undergo a sudden change in personality, they may start suffering from violent mood swings, happy and hyper one minute and irritable and angry the next. They may suffer a lack of motivation and lethargy. The sufferer can also appear anxious and paranoid. Additionally there may be a change in social relationships and work. The person may have new friends and start being very secretive about their new relationships, they may start missing work. There are also physical signs that an individual is engaging in self medication. There appearance may begin to deteriorate, they may have slurred speech and depending on which type of drug is being used the pupils of their eyes may be larger or smaller than normal.

The sufferer needs to be encouraged to get professional help for their addiction at the earliest opportunity. The intervention of family and friends is often crucial to secure the addicts participation in whatever treatment programme is appropriate. However in the long term to ensure real and lasting change the individual must address whatever issues caused them to begin self medicating in the first place. There are methods available that can help people make real and lasting changes and improve their self esteem, tackle depression and end cycles of emotional destruction. See the link below for more information.

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