• Question: What are the physical signs of drugs addiction?

    Asked by viktoria lediakhova to katy, Anais, Lauren, Richard, Stuart on 13 Mar 2016. This question was also asked by mimitilly919.
    • Photo: Katy Kellett

      Katy Kellett answered on 13 Mar 2016:

      It often depends on the drug that someone is addicted too. But on the whole the main signs are:

      Bloodshot eyes, pupils larger or smaller than usual.
      Changes in appetite or sleep patterns.
      Sudden weight loss or weight gain.
      Deterioration of physical appearance, personal grooming habits.
      Unusual smells on breath, body, or clothing.
      Tremors, slurred speech, or impaired coordination.

      But obviously they change per person and get worse the more someone abuses the drugs.

    • Photo: Lauren Laing

      Lauren Laing answered on 14 Mar 2016:

      There are many signs of drug addiction, and this will depend both on the person and the drug they have taken.

      Some signs include:
      • The person is neglecting their responsibilities at school, work, or home because of your drug use.
      • The person is using drugs under dangerous conditions or taking risks
      • The person’s drug use is getting them into legal trouble or causing problems with their friendships and relationship
      • The person has built up a drug tolerance.
      • The person is taking drugs to avoid or relieve withdrawal symptoms
      • The person has lost control over their drug use.

      As Katy has mentioned, some physical signs include: bloodshot eyes, Changes in appetite or sleep patterns, changes to the person’s body weight, deterioration of physical appearance and tremors.

    • Photo: Anais Kahve

      Anais Kahve answered on 14 Mar 2016:

      Like Katy has said, it depends on the drug. For example, for alcohol, the physical signs are: nausea, vomiting, body aches, seizures, changes to pulse rate, changes to blood pressure, noticeable shaking or body tremors, headaches, sweating, high temperature, changes to respiratory rate and diarrhoea. Lauren has listed the signs of psychological addiction.

    • Photo: Stuart Atkinson

      Stuart Atkinson answered on 14 Mar 2016:

      Like Katy and Lauren say, there will be typical signs that we would all recognise such as loss of coordination, changes in physical appearance (skin, teeth, weight loss) lack of care in appearance. But as with all addictions, drug addiction alienates the person from their normal, life so they tend to start to break ties with friends, family, work, and become increasingly unable to keep to their responsibilities. This is not something specific to substance misuse – the same could be said of someone with a gambling addiction. Addiction destroys the person and makes them a slave to whatever the habit is, and it takes a lot of effort to get out of that psychological state.

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