Most of the people who get addicted to drugs start facing mental health issues. It happens because drug addiction takes complete control of the mind and body over the years. For an addict, it later becomes more and more challenging to act and think like a normal person.

Drug addiction is also known as substance abuse disorder, which causes mental distress for the addicts and their family members. Mostly, mental health issues and substance abuse happens at the same time. Some illicit drugs cause an addiction problem in people who later experience an underlying mental health problem.

On the other hand, some people start misusing drugs to “self-medicate” themselves. Even if a person gets exposed to prolonged stress or unforgettable trauma, they can get addicted and developmental health issues.

A specific term for illegal drugs to consume, process, or sell is “illicit drugs.” These drugs can be synthetic or completely natural. The list of illicit drugs goes on and on, like cocaine, marijuana, heroin, ecstasy, meth, LSD, etc. Their side effects usually categorize them:

● Narcotics
● Stimulants
● Hallucinogens
● Depressants

If you are suffering from an addiction disorder, know that there is always a way out. There are many addiction treatment facilities like the Palm Beach Institute that provide effective drug addiction treatment. By enrolling in this facility, you are giving yourself a chance to recover fully and live a normal life.

Now, the main question is how this drug addiction deteriorates your mental wellness. Let’s keep reading and find the answer.

Drug Addiction

Mental Side Effects Of Illicit Drugs:

Changes start happening in the brain when an individual frequently uses illicit drugs. Drug addiction can disrupt normal brain functioning, like the exchange of messages between neurotransmitters and chemical messengers. A typical illicit drug creates feelings of euphoria, which happens because of a dopamine rush. When an imbalance like this occurs, the brain makes amends to decrease dopamine levels.

With the long-term use of drugs, dopamine deficiency happens as the brain tries its best to maintain balance. It frustrates individuals who start consuming higher doses to feel the same way they first had a dopamine rush. Later, they become highly addicted to drugs, which causes long-term changes to their mental health. Therefore, chronic use of illicit drugs is prohibited as it causes mental health problems.

Conversely, it is difficult to understand how a particular drug reacts inside your brain. Mostly, a drug starts deteriorating your mental health if it is:

● an illegal one
● taken in a high quantity
● mixed with other drugs
● consumed frequently
● and how you felt when you consumed it

Moreover, people who have had mental health issues are at a higher risk of experiencing adverse side effects of drugs. However, a perfectly healthy individual can also develop mental health problems after getting addicted.
Some of the harmful impacts of drug addiction on mental health are as follows:

● Having severe panic attacks after consuming a high dosage.
● Developing a drug-induced anxiety disorder over time.
● Losing your sense of purpose in life and feeling disconnected from yourself.
● Going through a drug-induced neurosis where a person hears or sees things that are not real.
● Facing delusions becomes common.

Another mental health risk an addict develops is the “drug-induced mood disorder.” Over here, an addict starts feeling emotions at an extreme level. For instance, they are either incredibly anxious, restless, agitated, or sad.

Some drugs that cause this mood disorder and impulsiveness are amphetamines, cocaine, methadone, heroin, and more.

Drugs like ecstasy, alcohol, heroin, and cannabis are also known as psychoactive drugs as they disrupt the mind the most. Some people might feel positive after taking these drugs, whereas others may feel the opposite.

However, the positive feelings vanish after some time, but the adverse effects remain forever. Later, an addict is at a higher risk of feeling depressed mostly.

Take ecstasy as an example, which plays with the serotonin levels of your brain. Serotonin is a “feel-good” chemical found in the brain, which helps in stabilizing a person’s mood and keeps them happy.

However, an overdose of ecstasy starts draining the natural serotonin levels from the brain. When the serotonin levels drop, the brain ends up with a lower range of serotonin than it had initially. With this decrease in serotonin, the addict starts feeling sad and might suffer from depression.

The Bottom Line:

When the brain starts struggling to balance the naturally released chemicals like serotonin and dopamine, the overall mental health gets affected. It is an alarming sign as illicit drugs start controlling the entire human being. Some common side effects of drug addiction are anxiety, depression, and paranoia.

If an addict stays addicted to drugs for a long time, their mental health will deteriorate further. Illicit drugs are potent and can cause severe destruction to the mind and body.

Therefore, everyone must understand how drug addiction worsens their mental well-being before it gets too late. Managing drug addiction and underlying mental disorders is difficult but not impossible. So do your part and get your drug addiction treated right away.