Alcohol and drug abuse is a serious problem that can cost you your health and your family, and negatively impact your finances. The thing is, do you know if you have a problem or not? The old saw, “If you’ve asked yourself if you have a problem you probably do” isn’t really the whole answer, though it is a good place to start.
What you’re really looking for is how your alcohol and drug abuse is affecting your life and relationships. Sure, you can go online and take a quiz to get the answers, but the principles are so simple, all you really have to do is sit down and give it some thought. While this article doesn’t pretend to be a medical or psychological diagnosis, the answers you get here will be a really clear indicator.
First, you want to look at how you personally react to your alcohol and drug abuse. Do you ever feel guilty? Do you find your alcohol and drug abuse is interfering with your sleep? Do you find you want a drink or to take a drug to forget about personal problems or worries? A “yes” to any of these is certainly indicative of a problem. But take it outside yourself? Is alcohol or drug abuse causing money problems? Do you find that you’re not as careful about the welfare of people you love when you’re using? What about your job? Are you losing time from work, finding yourself less ambitious or wanting a drink in the morning to get going? If you find yourself nodding and saying “yes” to any of these, you might need some help.