How are behavioral addictions treated?

The world of addictions has been studied for decades from psychology and health sciences in general, since it is a set of very harmful pathologies that can affect both psychologically and physically up to levels in which the life of the person is endangered affected.

To this we must add that addictive disorders do not always involve drug use, and that there are behavioral addictions, which can be more difficult to identify as a health problem.

In this article we will see how the latter are treated in therapy; that is to say, how behavioral addictions are treated from different spheres of intervention.

• Related article: "Behavioral addictions: what they are, and characteristics"

What are behavioral addictions?

Behavioral addictions are those that are not based on the consumption of any chemical substance or drug, such as It happens in classic chemical addictions, but what generates addiction in the person is a certain behavior. More specifically, behavioral or behavioral addictions can be defined as the exacerbated dependence on a type of behavior that is rewarding and over which the person completely loses control and the ability to inhibit.

There are many types of behavioral addictions, but in order to be considered as such, it is It is essential that the person perform said behavior compulsively and repetitively to obtain pleasure instant.

This type of addictions have been conceived as an independent and proper group, separate from addictions classical chemicals from 2013, which is why it is a relatively new.

However, most behavioral addictions have been studied by professionals in psychology and mental health, that is why we know that they work in a very similar way to toxic addictions and that they present characteristics common.

Some of these shared phenomena between chemical and behavioral addictions are: the development tolerance, withdrawal, neurological reward systems, and response to treatment.

In this group we can highlight addiction to mobile phones or new technologies, addiction to videogames, compulsive gambling or addiction to gambling, addiction to shopping, sex, pornography and eating disorders feeding.

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Treatment of behavioral addictions

Although there is no single treatment to professionally treat this type of addiction, Below we present the most common process that is followed to treat addictions behavioral

1. Diagnosis

As with any mental health disorder, the first step in treating behavioral addictions consists of making an accurate diagnosis adapted to the reality of each customer.

The diagnosis should always be made by a professional in psychology or medicine. and it must be based on a diagnostic manual of proven scientific evidence, such as the DSM and with therapists must identify each of the symptoms presented by the client who comes to their consultation.

Once the type of addictive disorder that the person has has been identified, it is also crucial to determine if the addiction presents comorbidity with other disorders, that is, if it occurs together with other health disorders mental.

• Related article: "Mental health: definition and characteristics according to psychology"

2. Break the vicious circle

The goal of this part of the treatment is that the person eliminates the routine of carrying out the specific behavior to which he or she is addicted, to get out of that initial vicious circle.

It is a period of total abstinence towards addictive behavior so that the person learns to control their impulses. against said behavior and begin to disassociate from the dependency, to then start the intervention therapy. This phase is analogous to the detoxification stage that occurs in substance addictions.

3. cessation

In the cessation phase, it consists of a stabilization of the life plan that incorporates abstinence, making that the person opens up to a new way of experiencing the day to day beyond focusing on not relapse; an action plan tailored to the person who is suffering must be designed, taking into account their characteristics (age, social or economic situation...), the type of addiction suffered and their needs individuals.

Tailoring the intervention to each patient means that the reality of the person and the social environment in which they live must be taken into account; that is to say, that in the case of addiction to videogames or betting, carrying out the behavior can be reduced to 0 but in the case of addiction to cell phones or sex it is impossible to eliminate the behavior by complete.

The purpose of detoxification is for the person to recognize, identify and combat those patterns that can reactivate the behavior addiction and integrate useful coping strategies into your daily life to help you overcome your addiction and take control of it. situation.

There are several methods of therapeutic intervention in the cessation of behavioral addictions, which are usually applied jointly and coordinated: On the one hand, cognitive-behavioral treatment, on the other, pharmacological treatment and also other methods such as motivational therapy or group therapy.

• Related article: "The 14 most important types of addictions"

4. reinsertion

Reintegration is the last phase of treatment for behavioral addictions, and its objective is that the person can rejoin social life with other people and recover their previous life.

This is achieved with the essential support of their closest family and social environment, as well as through follow-up by the professionals who have directed the entire detoxification process to ensure that there is no relapses.

Intervention modes

These are the main forms of intervention in the treatment of behavioral addictions.

1. Cognitive-behavioral treatment

Cognitive-behavioral treatment is one of the most used by psychology professionals in since it is based on scientific evidence and offers proven positive results as long as it is apply.

This type of therapy is based on the identification of thought patterns, reasoning or ideas that push the person to perform the addictive behavior, and later in the reconfiguration and replacement of these ideas by other more adaptive ones that allow the person to function without making her addiction compulsively.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy should be used to work on all those problems that the person may present, both in the social or of relationships, as well as at the level of self-esteem and also to treat all kinds of symptoms of anxiety, stress, obsessions or cases of depression.

2. Pharmacotherapy

pharmacological treatment can be performed in conjunction with the psychotherapeutic, and consists of the administration of drugs that can help the person deal with the anxiety unleashed by withdrawal. Although they are more used in the case of drug addiction due to the changes that the latter generate in the brain, these drugs are also a useful resource here.

3. other methods

Other widely used methods that can be applied in conjunction with the above are motivational therapy, group therapy, and family or marital therapy.

Motivational therapy is based on equipping the person with strategies and knowledge of all kinds that enhance the motivation of the person with the objective of achieving detoxification of the behavior, taking control of their impulses and compliance with the treatment within the term established.

On the other hand, family or conjugal therapy or group therapy can also be applied, methodologies based on the external support that the person receives from their loved ones or other people who may be going through the same thing addiction.