The best defense against addiction is prevention.

Several key ideas for preventing the onset of addictive-type disorders.

As we already know prevention is always better than having to intervene, especially if we are talking about addiction to any substance or behavior. to any substance or behavior. The truth is that it is always better to put the means in place so that the damage caused by an addiction does not appear.

There are people who think that an addiction cannot be cured, and they are wrong. It is difficult, it takes time and commitment, but it is possible to overcome it and leave it behind. And in Fromm Wellness we have been helping people to achieve it for a long time. Of course, addictions can be prevented as long as we have a plan for it.

How can addiction be prevented?

We will say yes, addiction can be prevented, but it is necessary to mention that this disease does not appear out of nowhere; there are factors and aspects that condition the potential addict towards dependency.. It is like the example that is always given: the more lottery tickets you have, the more likely it is that you will win.

It must be said that there are many aspects that influence the development of an addiction, and that it is very difficult to have them all under control. However, there are some that are more easily perceptible than others and that can be intervened before they become more serious. Some of them are listed below:

1. Low mood and depression.

When a person we care about is sad and we see it, indeed, if we see him/her too much down, we can consider that this is the first symptom that something may be happening, and we should be alert.

Keep in mind that two of the main aspects that cause a possible addiction are depression and sadness.. That is why it is important to be concerned and try to lend a hand to that person, to try to see what is the origin of their state. We can try to show them that we care, that we support them without making value judgments and talking to them constantly.

2. The influence of the group

One of the factors that can have a powerful influence on a person's behavior is the group. the group, those individuals with whom one surrounds oneself.. If the person we are talking about is always with people who seem undesirable to us, it is essential to be attentive and very cautious. It is possible that telling them openly is not the solution, since the only thing it will cause is rejection towards us.

What we can do is try to make him understand that he is not with the most suitable company, and that, although we are concerned, the final decision about whether or not he wants to be in that company is his. It is not a question of interfering in his life and his decisions, but of accompanying him and giving him our point of view.. If we are able to do so, this will be a very interesting tool to help him change.

3. Bad habits make it much more complicated to prevent an addiction.

This is exactly the way it is. It is essential to have healthy and positive life habits, and if we want to help someone to change.And, if we want to help someone to prevent addiction, we have to encourage in that person the habits we are talking about.

Some bad habits can be, for example, sleeping too much, eating incorrectly, not having established schedules for our vital rhythm and many others that we see in people around us on a daily basis.

Providing advice and help on how to establish positive routines can be a great idea, as it will help the person to have the psychological balance they need.

By way of conclusion

To summarize, it is true that we cannot control everything, and that sometimes addiction prevention involves factors and aspects beyond our control. However, we can do certain things to reduce the chances of that person developing an addiction.

It will be essential to transmit values and norms that he/she can internalize without seeing them as something imposed on him/her, but rather as his/her own.but that he/she sees them as something of his/her own. Nor can we forget that addiction arises as an element that helps us to avoid a situation or a feeling, to manage a painful situation.