If you use a drug just once, can you become hooked?  Or, can an occasional drug user suddenly become addicted to a drug they’ve taken before without becoming dependent on it?  Sadly, the answer to both questions is “yes.”

In this Rehabilitation Guide Article, we will outline how you can become addicted to drugs, even if you only use one time.

Here is a look at how this can happen.

The Road to Addiction Starts with a Single Use

You won’t become addicted to a drug you never try. That cannot be debated. People who don’t use drugs never end up hooked or in the hospital or dead from an overdose.

Every person who becomes an addict had a “first time” using the drug. Maybe they didn’t become a full-blown addict at that moment, though some drugs are said to be instantly addicting for some. But the first time might have produced feelings or sensations that they want to experience again.

Occasional use often leads to frequent use; frequent use is the threshold of addiction. These are the symptoms of addiction and how they play out in the person who becomes addicted. For them, whether they were addicted from the start or became addicted in the end doesn’t matter. The results are the same.

When Occasional Use Becomes Addiction

Some people use a certain drug for years on an occasional basis and then suddenly become addicted. The causes of this vary.

1. Personal Loss: When a casual drug user experiences significant loss in their life of any kind – the death of a loved one, a relationship breakup, loss of a job, failure in a goal – the loss can trigger addictive use of a drug.

2. Mental or Personality Disorders: As many as 40% of drug addicts are also suffering from a disorder such as depression, anxiety, personality disorder, narcissistic disorder and many others. With the onset of a disorder, personality changes will sometimes lead to more drug use, with addiction being the result.

Some disorders such as depression or bipolar disorder lead to changes in brain chemistry. These might also lead to increased drug use or cause a person who could once use a drug casually without addiction to become drug dependent.

Help for Addiction

Regardless of how the addiction started, it must be treated if the addict is to recover their life, their health and their future. Talk with your doctor about treatment options. Many health insurance plans now cover treatment for drug addiction. Getting the information you need is the first step to finding the help required for yourself or someone you love who is addicted to drugs.