Addiction and dependence on tranquilizers
| Many drugs are habit-forming (or tolerant), meaning that you are constantly forced to increase the dose to achieve the desired effect. Increasing the dose also increases the risks and side-effects. What's more, certain substances such as psychotropic drugs (e.g. benzodiazepines) induce a physical dependence, like a drug, which the body cannot do without. This dependence can appear very quickly, and withdrawal becomes very difficult because of the physiological reactions to withdrawal which are sometimes very painful, even unbearable (sharp pain, tremors, convulsions, etc.). Another form of dependence, which can be very intense, is psychological dependence or craving. It sets in very quickly and lasts much longer than physical dependence, sometimes a lifetime. Why is this? You've noticed that a particular drug brings relief from a particular suffering, and you get into the habit of turning to it every time you find yourself in a similar situation. Soon, you come to feel a strong craving, an irrepressible need for that pill you can't live without, sometimes even when the pain isn't there yet ! |
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updated on 4/25/24
