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Addiction is the most tragic of concepts — and one you’ve taught yourself to observe. Treatment can only occur when symptoms have been noted, when worries have been addressed. Rehabilitation can succeed only when a problem has been admitted. You understand therefore the necessity of watching those you love: trying to distinguish their moods, trying to decipher any little sign.
Such signs can be deceiving, however, if a prescription has been issued.
Too often is the need for prescription medication (such as Codeine) thought to be a form of substance abuse. Individuals requiring daily relief are assumed to be suffering from deeper complications, and their families often try to intervene.
An intervention isn’t always needed, though — if a pseudo-addiction is occurring.
Defined simply: a pseudo-addiction is when the symptoms of abuse are present (such as fickle temperaments, physical changes, demanding more of a prescription, etc.) but do not actually prove abuse. These symptoms are instead indicative of pain being under-treated.
Individuals not receiving the appropriate amounts of medication — often a result of physicians wanting to tame the possibilities of dependency — can suffer from immense discomfort. This causes them to seek out the drugs they’ve been recommended, hoping to find support. This can make them appear to be reliant on their prescriptions, however, and cause family members to become concerned: with accusations of an addiction then tossed out.
Those accusations can be damaging — sparking feelings of anger, embarrassment or even shame. Medication may be refused in the aftermath, and pain will only deepen.
It’s imperative therefore that individuals recognize the difference between seeking treatment and developing dependence.
