What’s the link between stress and addiction? Stress is a normal part of living, something we all feel at one time or another. You’re taking a test, in a quarrel with a friend, driving on a busy street; stress is a way for your body to signal danger. But how and why does it lead people down the road to addiction? At Crossroads Maine, we can help you with our women’s health services if you are dealing with stress and addiction.
The connection has been studied long and hard, and it all has to do with our state of mind. When stress becomes chronic, what matters is how you react or respond. Without appropriate coping techniques, you can find yourself drawn to drugs or alcohol to turn down the panic. And that leads in all the wrong directions. Contact Crossroads Maine today by calling 877.978.1667 to learn about our treatment options.
Stress and Addiction
We’ve all felt stress at one time or another. For many of us, the stress increases based on a situation we’re facing and then goes away. But others among us don’t have it quite so easy. Stress and worry become part of our identity. Some of the signs of stress include:
- Tense or aching muscles
- Difficulty in sleeping
- Stomach upset
- Heart palpitations or high blood pressure
- Agitation or frustration with others
- Weight gain
And as stress rises, the urgency to disperse it grows significantly. Without appropriate coping activities or techniques, you may find yourself turning to less healthy actions. Drugs and alcohol are a common one.
The thing is, the relaxation you might feel from drugs or alcohol never lasts. And as it wears off the stress returns. It’s easy to fall into a habit of wanting to take the edge off. But do that enough, and you can find yourself struggling through the elements of a substance use disorder. Your challenges have now doubled, and you may need to seek women’s addiction recovery services.
Co-Occurring Disorders
A mood disorder such as anxiety, coupled with substance abuse, is not uncommon. Science has a name for it: It’s a dual-diagnosis or co-occurring condition. They frequently go together. The data suggest that people with mood disorders have about a significantly higher greater risk of substance abuse problems, while the opposite can also occur.
Co-occurring conditions can happen in any sequence, starting with the mood disorder and leading to substance abuse, or starting with substance abuse and leading to anxiety or depression.
It’s essential to accurately assess your treatment options when it comes to the dual diagnosis, as your treatment options are a little different. Researchers have found that the best outcome for people with co-occurring disorders is integrated treatment. You want to address both the substance abuse and mood disorder at the same time — starting with the substance abuse.
At Crossroads Maine, we specialize in addressing the full emotional and substance abuse treatment needs of our clients.
Substance Abuse Treatment
If stress and addiction have brought you to this point, it’s time to seek the professional support that our women’s addiction treatment center can provide. But treatment can be a scary word. People want to know what they can expect. While everyone’s situation is a little different, there are some common elements. The typical stages of treatment include:
- Assessment — a full medical and psychological evaluation
- Treatment planning — mapping out the scope of your recovery journey
- Counseling — individual and group therapy aimed at helping develop coping skills
- Aftercare — support services aimed at lowering the risk of relapsing
Should you experience a relapse, do not consider it a failure in any way. The process of curbing physical dependence, especially when brought on by stress and addiction, is challenging. Relapse is unfortunately common, even after a rehab aftercare program.
Contact Crossroads Maine
We all live with stress. But sometimes stress and addiction team up to take our lives in an unanticipated direction. If you or a loved one struggles with substance abuse, it’s time to contact us at Crossroads Maine. Our specialists are authorities in holistic drug and alcohol treatment. Furthermore, we offer a specialized treatment program for mothers, as well as other residential treatment programs. We offer a range of addiction treatment options, including:
- Alcohol addiction treatment
- Heroin addiction treatment
- Cocaine addiction treatment
- Meth addiction treatment
- Opioid addiction treatment
At Crossroads Maine, we focus on much more than addiction, substance abuse, and dependency, as we treat the whole person. Our center offers a range of treatment options for women’s addiction treatment. Call Crossroads Maine today at 877.978.1667 for a confidential consultation.
