Client: I am stressed easily between work and personal life. I find using drugs helpful because it calms me down. I smoke a joint on regular basis and occasionally use harder drugs as needed. I feel like I am becoming more and more reliant on them than anything else.
Therapist: Thank you for your question. Normal use transforms into dependence and addiction when it becomes pathology. Something is considered ‘pathology’ when it deviates from a healthy norm and negatively impacts one’s’ life.
Our typically benign behaviors (having a drink with dinner, catching up with friends on social media or having sex with our partner) is perfectly fine until it becomes a drive to indulge beyond the norm and causes problems in life.
When a substance or behavior becomes a primary focus and other important parts of life are disregarded, it has transformed into addiction. Pay attention to the frequency, duration and intensity of your behavior.
Dependency and addiction include an element of obsessiveness and urgency. Being “able to quit” for a short time doesn’t mean you are in the clear. Do Involve a therapist or professional addiction counselor to help you process the thoughts and feelings that emerge.
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