The person gradually increases his usage of his drug of choice. He is then trapped. Whatever problem he was initially trying to solve by using drugs or alcohol fades from memory. At this point, all he can think about is getting and using drugs. He loses the ability to control his usage and disregards the horrible consequences of his addiction.

The addict will now attempt to withold the fact of his drug use from friends and family members. He will begin to suffer the effects of his own dishonesty and guilt. He may become withdrawn and difficult to reason with. He may behave strangely.

The more he drinks and uses drugs, the more guilty he will feel, and the more depressed he will become. He will sacrifice his personal integrity, possibly lying and stealing to finance his drinking or drug habit. His relationships with friends and family and his job performance will go drastically downhill.

Addiction and Tolerance

The drugs and alcohol are now the most important thing in his life. He has thrown away his job, his life-savings, his dreams and ambitions, all in an effort to maintain the painkilling and emotion killing effects he once obtained from the drugs. But ironically, his ability to get "high" from the alcohol or drugs gradually decreases as his body adapts to the presence of foreign chemicals. He must take more and more, and he now has to have them to be able to function at all.