The word dependence means reliance or deep need. When you add psychological to it, you get an emotional or mental need to do something like drink or use drugs. Psychological dependence doesn’t get talked about nearly as much as physical dependence. Many people who go through withdrawal don’t separate the physical from the mental symptoms because they are both challenging. Addiction treatment programs at TruHealing Centers will deal with both.
Psychological Dependence Definition: What Is It?
Psychological dependence is the mental component of addiction. It is the strong craving you feel to get a drink or use a drug. Your mind associates your addiction with feeling a certain way. When you stop using a drug or drinking alcohol, you will likely experience psychological withdrawal.
Not all drugs lead to physical dependence. This is one reason why the terms addiction and dependence are not interchangeable, even though they are often used that way. Addiction is more complex. It is a brain disorder that involves both physical and mental dependence.
You can be dependent on things other than drugs, too. For example, the need for sweets after diner is a psychological dependence, not a physical one. When you don’t get dessert, you may crave sweets.
Psychological Dependence Definition: What Are the Symptoms?
The exact symptoms of psychological dependence will vary from drug to drug and even from person to person. Some common symptoms include:
- A strong belief that you need something
- Emotional cravings for a substance
- Distraction due to urges for a substance
- Loss of interest in other activities
- Constantly thinking about a substance
- Irritability
- Depression
Compare these symptoms to what you might experience with a physical withdrawal. When your body goes into physical withdrawal, you can have muscle cramps, get nauseous, and may even run a fever.
Psychological Dependence Definition: Is It Addiction?
Addiction is the combination of psychological and physical dependence on a substance. In other words, you can be psychologically dependent on something and not be addicted to it. You can not be addicted to something and not be psychologically dependent on it, though.
It’s important to understand how psychological dependence fits into addiction treatment. An effective addiction treatment program addresses both the physical and the psychological dependence right from the start, including during detox.
TruHealing Centers offers treatment strategies that deal with both physical and psychological dependence. The staff consists of experts in mental and medical health. They perform an assessment to determine what treatments you need to create an individualized care plan.
Services at Amatus Recover Centers are holistic, meaning they treat the whole body. They include:
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy
- Dialectical behavior therapy
- Individual therapy
- Group therapy
- Trauma therapy
- Family therapy
They also offer medically managed detox to ensure you can enter primary addiction treatment sober. During detox, the treatment would focus on both psychological withdrawals such as cravings and physical symptoms.
TruHealing Centers provides a full continuum of care so that you can get all your treatment, mental and medical, there. They also offer all levels of care, including residential treatment, intensive outpatient services, and partial hospitalization.
Their support system includes a care coordination specialist. This expert can link you with community resources for career training, legal help, and sober housing. The care coordinator can also help you with the financial side of addiction treatment. Going over your options with you and assisting you with social service applications like Medicaid if necessary.
Overcome Psychological Dependence with TruHealing Centers
If psychological dependence is getting in the way of your dreams, give us a call at [Direct] or use our contact form online. A member of our TruHealing Centers staff can help you decide if addiction treatment is the right choice for you.
