Recognizing the Signs of Addiction: Does Someone You Know Need Help?

If you are a parent, you probably know exactly what I am about to talk about below…

Sometimes, small children will become enraged when they are hungry. They begin to scream, cry, and throw a major fit. They become incredibly irritable and short-tempered. They might know they are hungry or they might not, but either way they just can’t stop acting that way…

This is their way of crying out for help – literally. They are attempting to let you know they need food with their actions – even if they might not really realize it.

Even if you aren’t a parent, you might have felt that way yourself. This scenario does not just apply to children; however, adults are more likely to skip the screaming, crying, and throwing a fit part and just skip right to the irritability and short-tempered mannerisms.

This is relatable to an addict – sometimes they will act a certain way as a means of crying out for help and sometimes they might not even realize it.

This is most often seen in suicide cases, people will typically cry out for help even in very discrete ways just to see if anyone will answer…

If you think someone near you might be struggling with addiction or if you know they are, they might be crying out to you for help and it is important that you can adequately recognize the signs…

 

  1. They will become withdrawn.Addicts don’t like the attention on them because they don’t want people to see or know about their addiction. They will spend the majority of their time alone and don’t care to engage in big group activities. It is similar to an introvert, but to a much higher extreme.
  2. Their mood will fluctuate.You will probably notice they are a lot more irritable. They will be short-tempered and frustrated the majority of the time.
  3. They will drop subtle hints.You might actually notice they start dropping hints such as talking about what life would be like if they weren’t an addict or other things that might relate to them being clean.While this might sound like they will make the effort to make a change, they are actually also trying to let you know they are ready for some help.

Part of addiction recovery is having a support system – friends and family there to help you, guide you, and support you. If someone you know and love is suffering from addiction, keep an eye out for signs they are crying for help…

Your push and your support might be just what they need to make that jump.

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