Often when we hear about people who have a drug addiction we are left in shock since we didn’t see it coming. It can be hard to believe and accept that someone who we care about is abusing substances.
However, there are certain signs to look out for which you may not necessarily know about yet. By keeping an eye out for these signs and assessing whether you’ve gathered enough information to be able to determine whether this is the case or not, you’ll have a better idea of the bigger picture and feel more confident about how to move forward.
When it comes to some of the biggest warning signs that your loved one may be abusing drugs, here are the ones to look out for.
Trouble With The Law
Running into problems with the law is often a huge red flag that there are things going on behind closed doors which may be encouraging this behavior. If they’ve never had a record before and now are facing charges, it may be a good idea to explore what caused this sudden shift in behavior.
People who are under the influence of drugs often have a certain irreverent attitude which makes them feel they are above the law. This is a slippery slope if they continue to behave like this for an extended amount of time. Once it starts to feel like normality for them, then things start to snowball.
Mood Swings
Since drugs can make you feel a wide variety of emotions and moods, you may find that have huge dips in their behavior. One minute they may be elated and agreeable, and the next moment they’re antisocial and angry.
Try to identify what triggers these sudden dips. If you start to notice a pattern, then you may start to realize that there are deeper issues going on underneath the surface of just a bad mood.
Can’t Hold Down a Job
People who suffer from addiction tend to put their drug use first and their work and family second. As a result, they are rarely able to hold down a job for a long time.
If you notice that your loved one seems to be bouncing from job to job and doesn’t see anything wrong with it, then it may be time to sit them down and have an intervention about what the cause is.
Irregular Sleep Patterns
Depending on what kind of drug someone is taking it can affect a person’s sleep patterns in a variety of ways. Either staying up at odd hours or sleeping in the middle of the day.
If it gets to the point where their day is structured the complete opposite of the world around them, then this presents a major problem.