What Is Substance Use Disorder?

What Is Substance Use Disorder?

Substance use disorder can be difficult to understand, especially when you are trying to determine whether your own substance use or the behavior of someone you love has crossed the line from occasional use into a serious problem.

Substance use disorder (SUD) is a treatable condition in which a person's use of alcohol or drugs becomes difficult to control and continues despite harmful consequences. It can range from mild to severe and can involve alcohol, meth, opioids, stimulants, cannabis, sedatives, and other substances.

And it can look different for everyone. There is no specific amount a person has to drink or use before they have a problem. Someone may use substances every day, while someone else may go days or weeks without using and still struggle to control what happens once they start.

What Are the Signs of Substance Use Disorder?

The signs of substance use disorder are not always obvious. Addiction can become severe before the people around someone fully understand what is happening. In other cases, family members recognize that something is wrong long before the person struggling with substance use is willing to admit it.

Some of the most common signs and symptoms of substance use disorder include using more drugs or alcohol than intended, being unable to consistently cut back or stop, experiencing cravings, and continuing to use despite problems it is causing.

You may also notice changes in other areas of life. Work becomes less consistent. Bills stop getting paid. Relationships become strained. Someone who was once dependable becomes increasingly unreliable. They may begin hiding their substance use or lying about where they have been and how much they have used.

As substance use progresses, people often give up activities and relationships that used to matter to them. Their world can gradually become smaller as more of their time and energy go toward using, finding substances, recovering from using, or dealing with the consequences.

Tolerance and withdrawal can also be signs of a developing substance use disorder. Tolerance happens when someone needs more of a substance to experience the same effects. Withdrawal occurs when the body has adapted to a substance and reacts when the person reduces or stops using it.

Not everyone with a substance use disorder will experience every symptom.

How Is Substance Use Disorder Diagnosed?

Not everyone with a substance use disorder will experience every symptom, which is why SUD is diagnosed based on the number of symptoms a person experiences and how substance use is affecting their life. According to the criteria used by mental health professionals, there are 11 symptoms used to diagnose a substance use disorder. Experiencing two or three symptoms within a 12-month period is considered a mild substance use disorder, four or five is considered moderate, and six or more is considered severe.

These symptoms include using more of a substance than intended, wanting to cut back but being unable to do so, spending a significant amount of time getting or using drugs or alcohol, experiencing cravings, and allowing substance use to interfere with responsibilities at work, school, or home. They also include continuing to use despite problems in relationships, giving up important activities, using in dangerous situations, and continuing even when substance use is making a physical or mental health problem worse. Tolerance and withdrawal are also included in the diagnostic criteria, although there are some exceptions when certain medications are being taken as prescribed.

A person does not have to lose their job, become homeless, get arrested, or use drugs every day to have a substance use disorder. Those things can happen, but they are not what determines whether someone has SUD.

What matters is the overall pattern and the amount of control a person has over their substance use.

What Causes Substance Use Disorder?

There is no single reason someone develops a substance use disorder. Genetics can play a role, but so can environment, stress, trauma, mental health, relationships, and a person's history with drugs or alcohol. In most cases, it is a combination of factors rather than one specific cause.

Substance use can also begin in very different ways. One person may start drinking socially and gradually begin drinking more often. Another may be introduced to drugs through friends. Someone else may first take an opioid after an injury or surgery and later develop a problem with it.

How Is Substance Use Disorder Treated?

Treatment for substance use disorder depends on the person, the substance being used, the severity of the disorder, and whether there are other medical or mental health needs involved. Some people need medically supervised detox before beginning treatment, particularly when stopping a substance could cause serious withdrawal symptoms. From there, treatment may include residential care, outpatient treatment, counseling, behavioral therapies, medications for certain substance use disorders, or a combination of these services.

There is no set timeline for this process. Some people need more structure and support than others, and recovery can change over time. What someone needs during their first few weeks of sobriety may look very different from what they need a year later.

What Is the Difference Between Treatment and Recovery?

Treatment and recovery are closely connected, but they are not the same thing. Treatment is often a specific level of care provided for a period of time. Recovery is the longer process of maintaining sobriety and building a healthier life.

Completing treatment does not mean someone is finished with recovery. In many ways, it means they are just getting started.

During treatment, a person may have a structured schedule and limited access to drugs or alcohol. Once that structure is gone, they have to make those same decisions in an environment where substances may be available and where the pressures of everyday life have returned.

Having continued support during that transition can make a significant difference. Recovery meetings, peer support, sober living, counseling, employment, and healthy relationships can all provide structure while someone begins establishing a new way of life.

At The Healing Center, this is an important part of how we think about recovery. Getting sober is important, but people also need a place to continue growing once they are sober. They need community and accountability, but they also need opportunities to become more stable and independent.

Click here to learn more about a Christ-centered alternative to traditional rehab!

When Should You Get Help for Substance Use Disorder?

You do not have to wait until substance use has taken everything from you before getting help.

If you have tried to cut back or stop and have not been able to maintain it, if drugs or alcohol are affecting your relationships or responsibilities, or if you are spending more of your life dealing with substance use and its consequences, it may be time to talk with someone about what is happening.

The same is true if you are concerned about a family member. You may not know whether they meet the criteria for a substance use disorder or what type of treatment they need. You do not have to figure all of that out before asking for help.

The next step may be treatment. It may be detox, sober living, peer support, or another recovery resource. What matters is finding the level of support that makes sense for where the person is right now.

At The Healing Center, we help people in recovery find community, support, and practical resources as they work toward a more stable life. Whether you are looking for help for yourself or trying to figure out what to do for someone you love, reaching out can help you understand what options are available and what the next step could look like.

What Families Should Know About The Healing Center

If you're considering The Healing Center for someone you love, it's important to understand that we aren't trying to replace detox, medical care, or professional addiction treatment when those services are needed.

Every situation is different, and The Healing Center won't necessarily be the right first step for every person struggling with a substance use disorder. But if your loved one is ready to continue working on his recovery and would benefit from a faith-based community, The Healing Center is worth considering. Click here to learn more about faith-based recovery and see if it’s right for your situation!

You don't have to know exactly what kind of help he needs before you contact us. That's one of the reasons we're here. We can talk with you about what's going on, answer questions about The Healing Center, and help you better understand whether our program makes sense for where your loved one is right now.

Contact The Healing Center today to learn more about our one-of-a-kind addiction recovery program and take the first step toward healing. Call 1-844-346-7366 or click here.