An addiction can take many forms, be it to drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and more recently, the internet. When a person becomes addicted, the pleasures they submit to become momentary, as they must then face an avalanche of guilt and remorse for what they have committed. This is a very difficult situation for that person and for others. And, when someone suffers from an addiction, not only is their physical and mental health deteriorated; but it also has consequences on the family environment and social relationships.
For this reason, it is expected that people close to a loved one who perceive that they may be at risk of falling into problematic consumption will want to take action on the matter. A wide range of scientific research has developed devices for the prevention of addictions in children and adolescents, several of them aiming at school or family intervention. However, many people are unaware of the existence of addiction prevention strategies in adults which we will develop throughout this article.
Before pointing out strategies to prevent addictions in adults, it is necessary that we consider what is meant by addiction and what its dynamics are. Well, in the first instance, all addiction is based on compulsive consumption. In many cases, those who consume can consider the consequences of that behavior, but end up losing control over what they eat or the behaviors they carry out.
A central characteristic of addictions is that they have a cyclical character First, the person experiences the pleasurable sensations of the substance or behavior to which he is addicted (for example, gambling or alcohol). The latter, for example, produces relaxation in social relationships, a partial euphoric state and reduces anxiety. By repeatedly activating the basal ganglia reward system (which, in a simplified way, means that feeling pleasure over and over again reinforces a tendency to repeat that behavior), the person will consolidate habits typical of an addiction.
In the second instance, when the substance is no longer available, either by one’s own decision or due to external circumstances, the person will experience a negative emotional state. If it is a sustained effort over time, it could present withdrawal symptoms, which oppose the pleasurable sensations of what was consumed. The sources of these feelings lie in a low activation of the reward systems, but also increased activation of the brain’s stress systems Eventually, faced with a stressful stimulus, the person who suffers from an addiction will look for alcohol again to alleviate the symptoms and will crave to consume again even though they may partially notice that it is not a favorable decision for their life or for the life of others. others. In this way, he re-enters the loop characteristic of all addiction.
Addiction prevention strategies in adults
Once we consider how addictions work in general terms, we can address possible strategies to prevent addictions. As we said, these usually target groups of children, but especially adolescents. The reason for this is that during adolescence there are various periods of risk for falling into consumption, such as parental divorce, the death of grandparents or changing schools. Also, at the level of brain development, the prefrontal cortex – where executive functions functionally reside, including decision making, which is extremely important for evaluating the consequences of consumption – has not finished developing, so the adolescent is more prone to falling into this type of behavior. Nevertheless, Adults also face situations of emotional fragility that could lead them to consume even having never fallen into these behaviors before. Therefore, let’s look at some preventive strategies to respond to this problem.
It is essential that prevention aims at knowledge about substance or drug consumption. The fact that a person who is at risk of falling into addiction knows about the consequences of these behaviors will not encourage consumption, but rather can be a highly preventive strategy. That way, know about the loop they could enter by overconsuming certain substances as well as the way in which it would affect their different areas of life – such as family, work or leisure – will be useful for the prevention of addictions in adults.
2. Promote healthy lifestyle habits
Different research has shed light on the correlation between some healthy lifestyle habits and low substance consumption. For example, certain findings indicated that the practice of physical activity is related to not consuming tobacco; others, that in a group of habitual drinkers, those who practiced little sport consumed more compared to those who exercised daily. Encouraging the implementation of healthy lifestyle habits also suggests being a great strategy for preventing addictions in general.
3. Development of Emotional Intelligence
Emotional Intelligence, understood as the ability to perceive and regulate emotional states of one’s own and others, is a capacity closely related to consumption. Many studies have been carried out on this. One of them found that there is a relationship between low Emotional Intelligence and a high level of perceived stress. What is more interesting is that it also showed that there are significant differences between those who had consumption problems and those who did not; the former presenting a higher level of perceived stress and lower Emotional Intelligence compared to non-consumers.
We know that emotional problems are those that prompt consumption in the first instance. Thus, addiction prevention strategies must target this element, since developing greater Emotional Intelligence will allow the person to recognize their own emotions and feelings and assign meaning to these states. The mere fact of recognizing them will reduce stress. That is, perceiving internal experiences would reduce the risk that the person resorts to the momentary gratification of consumption in order to suppress his or her emotions; That is, it would prevent the person from “acting as if nothing was happening” and becoming aware of what is happening to them.
Consult with a mental health professional
Although as a close person it is possible to accompany someone who is at risk of suffering from an addiction, it is at this point where we consider it extremely important to highlight the fact that The intervention of a psychotherapist will help the person to be in contact with what is happening to them safely In this way, psychotherapy is key to providing a space to develop Emotional Intelligence and the strategies previously developed for the prevention of addictions.
