Am I an addict?

[Yakidah]

I suffer from OCD and I am literally terrified of being an addict. It all started when about 10
years ago when I ‘liked’ the feeling I had when I took some codeine, I felt relaxed etc and struggled to stop taking it, but I did. I also worry about drinking so I stop myself from having a drink because I’m terrified of becoming an alcoholic. Do these things creep
on you or does an addict not know they are an addict? Sorry if I am not making sense 😭

I became addicted to prescription sleeping tablets, I was prescribed them for a very long time, over 10 years and in the end I was so physically addicted to them I could not function without them and built up such a tolerance I had to take more and more to stop myself becoming unwell, it did creep up me, absolutely. I went to a rehabilitation centre for 3 months and have remained off them and also alcohol since.

I think a lot of people can enjoy a drink without it having a negative impact on their life, obviously i don’t know you but from your posts it sounds like your fear around addiction could be irrational given you do not excessively drink or use a substance.

You won’t become an addict OP. How’s it going to creep up on you when you’re so hyper aware?! If it makes you feel more in control then keep a record of any alcoholic drinks you’ve consumed and have a quota that you can’t exceed. Get it out of your brain and onto paper and then you can stop thinking about it…it will be there in front of you and if you see the amount increasing you can stop immediately.

I’m a fellow ocd sufferer/Aspie and have these feelings to a degree. (I’m bonkers for sure, but my focus is on other things.) You have to try to stop yourself becoming so emotionally affected by other people’s stories. Other people become addicts but you will not become one. As the video above says, addiction tends to happen when our lives are rubbish and empty so focus on filling your life with nice things rather than obsessing over the things you shouldn’t be doing.

I became addicted to cocodomal first that weren't prescribed to me. I loved the buzz and when I later got them from the doctor for myself I just kept finding reasons to take them. The toothache or whatever if got them for at the time had gone but then I'd have a sore back or period pains. My NDN had a huge stockpile too so I'd run out before I could order my own and she'd give me a couple of boxes. If she wasn't home id go to a few different chemists and get the OTC 8mg and take enough to add up to the prescription mg

Posted too soon but realised that was really long and I probably haven't answered your question
I was never addicted to alcohol though. My body craved the downers lime diazepam

It's hard to explain where it first started because I have addictive personality, OCD, raging anxiety and a bit of depression so I was probably bound to fall into some sort of addiction. It's just sad how far I went. And how difficult it was to get through because the ADD pills you back
I don't crave substances or the feelings of drugs any more but I still feel the addiction in me pulling towards other things. Like hoovering at 12pm. If I don't do it or there's something stopping me from getting it done I feel the absolute rage, a tightness around my throat like I'm being choked and from my tongue to my belly tenses over and over again that later on it feels like I've done a million sit ups
Over hoovering by a certain time!! I know it's totally ridiculous to feel that way but it's how my body reacts when I feel it's not going right and im losing control
Sounds completely stupid writing it down. I wonder if someone else who has these feelings too reads this they'll maybe resonate or understand and be able to word it better. Sorry