When someone uses a drug for the very first time, it may make them feel euphoric. After sometime, the person feels anxious and nauseous without the drug, so they go on using it. A pattern of craving and use emerges and then they can no longer resist using more of the drug though they may want to stop. These are classic stages of drug abuse.
STAGE 1 – INTOXICATION
When you first take a drug, you feel intoxication – that is stage one. You take the drug, feel euphoric and you want to experience that feeling over and over again.
STAGE 2 – WITHDRAWAL AND CHANGES
Intoxication starts changes in the brain. The brain figures out those drugs get you out of the stress you’re feeling and starts craving them. You get stuck in a vicious cycle of getting high, feeling euphoric, crashing, feeling horrible and going back for more.
STAGE 3 – ANTICIPATION
Stuck in this feedback loop, your brain undergoes further alterations. Changes in the prefrontal cortex decrease your ability objective thought and decisions. That is why even though you want to stop using drugs, you continue taking them.
These stages may overlap as the addiction develops. Once that happens, the only hope is to seek professional treatment at a good drug detox or a drug and alcohol rehab, such as Pacific Bay Recovery in San Diego, where a treatment plan will be customized for you by medical professionals.
To understand more about how you can benefit from drug detox and rehab, call Pacific Bay Recovery in San Diego at 858-263-9700 or visit pacificbayrecovery.com.
