Drug addiction is a state chronic intoxication produced by the consumption of a drug repeatedly. Drug addiction is a complex brain disease. Characters of the drug addiction includes, an overpowering desire to continue taking the drug, seeking and using the drug, even though the drug shows many negative consequences on the health of the addict. There are mainly four stages of drug addiction which are given below:
Experimentation:
Generally people initiate the drug use as a means of experimentation. Drug experimentation may be done by an individual to cope up with stress, anxiety, physical pain, relationship problems in the family or with the friends.
Dependance:
Once an individual initiates the drug use, it causes him to take more amounts of the same drug. This leads to craving for the drug and may lead to increase in the dosage of the drug in an attempt to get the same experience which the individual has got in the initial use of the drug. By this, the tolerance to the drug increases. As the tolerance increases the user needs higher dosage of the drugs to satisfy himself.
Withdrawal:
If the person addicted to the drugs, decreases the dosage, he experiences a group of symptoms which are called as the withdrawal symptoms. The withdrawal symptoms depends on the type of the drug abused by the individual. General withdrawal symptoms includes shaking, sweating, fatigue, muscle pain, nausea and insomnia.
Relapse:
Relapse occurs in an addict who had undergone treatment in a rehab center. It is a very common phenomenon in the drug addicts. Reasons for the relapse in a drug addict include boredom, getting high on any drug, physical pain, a sudden excess of cash and complacency, etc. So there is a need for continuous treatment for the drug addict even after he has undergone treatment at the rehab center.
The above are the different stages of drug addiction.