Living with addiction is hard. When you struggle with addiction to multiple substances or unhealthy behaviors, it can feel almost impossible to find a better way forward.
Unfortunately, it’s common for addictions to go hand-in-hand. You might be dependent on multiple substances, such as alcohol, stimulants, or prescription pain medicines. You might be addicted to behaviors like gambling or online gaming. Or you might struggle with a combination of addictions to substances and behaviors.
“Multiple addictions are common, and they can significantly impact a person’s health, relationships, finances and overall well-being,” says Christine Reeves, LMSW, CAADC, a licensed therapist who specializes in treating patients with addiction at Henry Ford Health.
Yet addictions can be overcome, and treatments are available to help—even if you are dealing with more than one.
Understanding Multiple Addictions
Multiple addictions can look very different from person to person. Broadly speaking, multiple addictions fall into two broad categories, Reeves explains.
- Co-occurring addictions: When a person is addicted to two or more substances and/or behaviors at the same time, it’s known as co-occurring addictions. A person with alcohol use disorder, for instance, might also be addicted to marijuana or gambling. One form of co-occurring addiction is known as polysubstance addiction. In polysubstance use, a person uses two substances together or within a short period of time. Some people take a stimulant or “upper,” like methamphetamine, followed by a “downer” such as prescription opioids, in an attempt to balance the drugs’ effects or manage their mood. In fact, combining drugs increases the risk of overdose and other health problems.
- Cross addictions: When a person develops a new addiction to replace an old one, it’s known as a cross addiction. For instance, a person who quits using drugs or alcohol might replace the behavior with compulsive gaming or overeating.
Multiple Addiction Treatment: Where Should You Begin?
If you’re dealing with multiple addictions, it can be hard to know where to start. Should you detox from everything all at once? Or is it better to quit one at a time?
“If you’re dealing with addiction to multiple substances, you’ll usually have a greater chance of success if you try to abstain from everything,” Reeves says. When you quit one substance at a time, you run the risk of replacing one harmful habit with another. And when you focus on just one addiction, it doesn’t help you change the chemical imbalance in your brain that drives you to abuse substances. “Instead of replacing one addiction with another, you need to learn new ways to cope effectively with the triggers that lead you to engage in addictive behaviors,” Reeves says.
However, some people just don’t feel ready to quit everything at once. It’s common for people to want to quit drinking, but not be ready to give up marijuana or tackle their gaming habit, for example. If that describes you, you shouldn’t let your reluctance keep you from finding help. “A trained addiction specialist will meet you where you are so you can start making the changes you’re ready for,” Reeves says.
Quitting smoking is a good example. Many people who deal with other addictions also smoke or vape. Often, it makes sense to focus on quitting other substances before tackling a nicotine habit. “Nicotine can be trickier,” Reeves says. “If you’re picking your battles, quitting smoking isn’t the place I’d begin.”
In other words, there isn’t one right approach to addressing harmful habits. “Treatment is most successful when it’s tailored to each person and their individual addictions,” Reeves says.
See An Addiction Specialist At Henry Ford Health
Finding Addiction Treatment
If you’re considering getting help for your addiction, you probably have a lot of questions and more than a little uncertainty. That’s totally normal. “A lot of people aren’t sure what their readiness is for change, or where they should start,” Reeves says.
Addiction treatment isn’t one-size-fits-all. It can include a combination of approaches, including:
- Inpatient treatment
- Outpatient treatment
- Individual therapy or counseling
- Group therapy
- Peer support groups (like Alcoholics Anonymous, SMART Recovery or Narcotics Anonymous)
- Medications (including medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder as well as medications to treat co-occurring mental health disorders such as depression or post-traumatic stress disorder)
To begin, she recommends making an appointment for an outpatient evaluation at a treatment center or with a medical provider who specializes in addiction. “Start by reaching out, getting the information and learning about your options,” Reeves recommends. It can be scary to make that first move. But it’s a step toward the life you want to be living.
Reviewed by Christine Reeves, LMSW, CAADC, a licensed therapist who specializes in treating patients with addiction at Henry Ford Maplegrove Center.
