Addiction can exist in multiple forms. The most common is drug addiction in which the person is dependent upon a psychoactive substance such as: alcohol, opioids, cannabis, sedatives, cocaine, hallucinogens, nicotine, marijuana, volatile solvents and prescription medicines.

Also, there are people who do not use drugs but have a strong addiction for a drug substitute such as: food, work, sexuality, internet, exercise or success. The addicted person spends most of the time seeking and using the drug or the substitute. Addiction becomes a top priority for them and their whole life begins revolving around it. Due to drug addiction or substitute addiction there is a progressive neglect of all other activities and relationships.

The commonly used treatment for drug addiction is admitting the person in a hospital or rehabilitation home where they are gradually weaned of the drugs. This treatment is usually ineffective and as soon as the drug addict is discharged from the center they go back to the drug.

This happens because drugs help the addict in dealing with underlying psychological disturbances and therefore it is hard for them to give it up.

The prominent cause of drug addiction is that the person experiences intense emotional states of panic, rage, shame, dread and loneliness and the effect of drug or the substitute is that it numbs these feelings. Without the addiction some of these people may have a psychological breakdown and for them addiction is a kind of self-treatment. Quite a few addicted people have a subconscious unmet need for a highly dependent and reliable human relationship and drugs fill this vacuum. Other drug addicts have intense anger and rage which they direct towards their own self and use the drug as a form of self-punishment.

A drug addict can never be healed by criticism, control or manipulation. A successful treatment of addiction requires empathy and understanding. Once the addict develops psychological resources to deal with intense painful emotions, lack of reliable and dependable relationships and narcissistic vulnerabilities they do not need drugs.