Loneliness is a common emotion, noted by addicts. Once excessive consumption of drugs and alcohol take priority, feeling worlds apart from your old self, from old relationships, from old responsibilities is normal.
Yet, here’s where the dangers of addiction and loneliness show themselves, where isolation can aggravate a diagnosis, where mental health issues can develop through being trapped in our own minds.
Unfortunately, loneliness can also act as the causation of addiction. Some will abuse drugs or alcohol as escapism from isolation or seclusion. Others will turn to addictive substances to block out the only voice they hear, in their heads. While for others, loneliness can add fuel to the fire, making addiction side effects worse, and even the influence of relapse risks.
It’s easy to see why so many addicts feel alone. Relationships do break down when drugs and alcohol take priority. Many individuals will aim to disassociate themselves from the negativity of addiction. Yet, by doing so, the loneliest condition of addiction can make it even harder to flee the grasp of substance abuse.
If you’re struggling through the link between addiction and loneliness, or if you’re worried about making your loved one feel isolated, here’s all you need to know about dealing with loneliness.
Support is available throughout addiction recovery and beyond to tackle the dangers of loneliness. At Cassiobury Court, we can help you with this, offering the company, the care and the support you need to overcome addiction.
Loneliness as a Causation
Unfortunately, some people in our world can feel lonely, isolated and secluded. This will usually be for a number of reasons, from personal choice to the result of a serious issue. It’s also important to note that further illnesses, that mental health issues and that personal worries can influence the desire to feel alone.
Yet, through experiencing loneliness, it can act as organic causation of addiction. Those who do spend a lot of time alone, especially for negative reasons, do have a tendency to rely on drugs or alcohol as an escape, as a crutch or as a support system.
They may even associate themselves with others who abuse drugs and alcohol, again to tackle loneliness. However, through this consumption, through the positive replacement that drugs and alcohol provide, addiction can easily materialise.
This is exactly how loneliness can cause addiction for the long-term, making it even harder to speak out. Once loneliness does become the norm, there is a strong likelihood that professional support will be avoided, detrimental to the future quality of life.
Addiction and Loneliness – The Dangers of Isolation
For those who already suffer from addiction, loneliness is a common experience. As outlined above, normality does flip once addiction takes over. Although in the ideal world, addicts will be supported by loved ones, by peers or by employers, in some cases, typical support networks will flee.
This is down to worries linked to addiction, down to common negatives experienced through addiction, and down to the difficulties of supporting someone through addiction. As there is a risk that support systems will diminish, the dangers of isolation can creep in.
Loneliness can influence greater substance abuse, it can intensify negative thoughts or feelings, and it can motivate many personal critics, turning into low self-worth or awareness.
Once the link between addiction and loneliness develops, it can be challenging to overcome this. Support will be difficult to accept, as will addiction recovery efforts. This is where dealing with an addiction, alone, feels like the safest option. When in fact, it is far from safe.
Recovering from addiction, while experiencing loneliness can also be very challenging. Unfortunately, this can contribute to relapse risks and heighten mental health issues. In order to overcome the already difficult challenges of addiction recovery, overcoming loneliness will be encouraged.
Addiction and Loneliness on Mental Health
One of the greatest concerns when focusing on addiction and loneliness is the influence they can have on mental health. Unfortunately, many individuals, suffering from an addiction diagnosis will be at greater risk of mental health issues. This is down to the weaknesses that drug and alcohol abuse cause on the brain.
Through these weaknesses, the side effects of depression, paranoia, of anxiety can develop. Yet, add in the impacts of loneliness, and mental health can take a severe turn. Once mental health issues have developed, it can be challenging to overcome them without support and treatment.
Those who experience negative thoughts or outlooks will continue to do so until intervention is experienced. Yet through loneliness, spotting the signs for help will be impossible.
Through dual suffering, the idea of reaching out will feel miles away. This is one of the key driving forces linked to overdose and suicide rates. The only way out from feeling alone, from suffering mentally, from experiencing addiction is sadly linked to the irreversible escapism of substance abuse. You can however avoid this if you’re suffering, by understanding exactly how to deal with addiction and loneliness.
How to Deal With Addiction and Loneliness
Whether you’re in the midst of addiction or addiction recovery, understanding how to deal with loneliness will be beneficial. There are some easy steps to take to reduce the vulnerability of addiction, loneliness and the negative impacts they carry.
Here are some tips on dealing with addiction and loneliness:
- Remove yourself from toxic relationships which are only fuelled to avoid loneliness.
- Reconnect with family members and friends. Reaching out will likely influence the rebuild of relationships.
- Learn to fill the gap that addiction once held. This can be achieved through taking part in a new hobby, through education or through work.
- Connect with likeminded people, commonly those also experiencing addiction recovery. There are many support groups, available post-rehab to reduce the risk of loneliness.
- Keep aware of your feelings and share them with others. At first, this may be difficult, yet reaching out for support is the safest way to avoid relapse.
- Set yourself some healthy boundaries, which also includes the amount of time you spend alone. If loneliness contributed to addiction, it’s best to avoid exposure to isolation.
If you are struggling through addiction or the recovery phase, at Cassiobury Court, we can support you. Reach out today to avoid feeling alone. We understand the detriment of loneliness. Avoid it by seeing the value of a community-driven, professional approach to addiction recovery.
