What is the difference between substance abuse and dependency?

What is the difference between substance abuse and dependency?

Substance use may not be a problem or lead to abuse or dependency in some people. Abuse: Substance abuse is when someone continues to use drugs or alcohol even when it causes problems, such as trouble with work, family, or their health. For instance, continuing to use drugs knowing you’ll be fired if you fail a drug test is a sign of abuse.

Can a drug addiction be the same as drug abuse?

Both can produce the same effects on a person but may present differently based on the substances used and the frequency of use. Signs of drug abuse also present themselves in a person struggling with addiction making it imperative to intervene at the earliest indication.

Which is a sign of substance abuse and dependence?

For instance, continuing to use drugs knowing you’ll be fired if you fail a drug test is a sign of abuse. Dependence: Substance dependence is an addiction to alcohol or drugs. You may be unable to stop drinking or using drugs, and have physical withdrawal symptoms when you try to quit.

When to use use, abuse and dependence?

Understanding the definitions can help you, or a loved one, make an informed decision about your relationship with substances and when it may be time to seek help. The terms use, abuse and dependence (or sometimes addiction) are used frequently – and sometimes interchangeably – when talking about alcohol and drugs. But what do they really mean?

What causes substance abuse and dependence?

Substance abuse and dependence are caused by multiple factors, including genetic vulnerability, environmental stressors, social pressures, individual personality characteristics, and psychiatric problems.

What does it mean to have a physical dependence on a drug?

Physical dependence is a physical condition caused by chronic use of a tolerance forming drug, in which abrupt or gradual drug withdrawal causes unpleasant physical symptoms.

What are the negative effects of drug addiction?

Drug addiction can cause many long-term negative consequences, including physical health problems like liver damage and heart disease as well as mental illnesses like depression and anxiety disorders. Drug abuse also causes long-term changes to the brain that make quitting so difficult and that take years to change back to normal.

Is addiction the same as dependence?

Addiction is not the same as dependence. Yet politicians and many in the media use the two words interchangeably. Physical dependence represents an adaptation to the drug such that abrupt cessation or tapering off too rapidly can precipitate a withdrawal syndrome, which in some cases can be life-threatening.