Many people turn to substances to cope with difficult feelings like anxiety or stress. You may use food to alleviate boredom or smoke a joint after a hard day, while other people reach for a drink to settle their nerves. These are all examples of self-medicating.
Using substances for short-term relief from difficult symptoms or emotions can worsen your situation over time. It can also increase your risk of substance use disorders and other health issues. By understanding the reasons why you self-medicate, you can find healthier, more effective ways to cope.
Why Do People Self-Medicate?
Self-medicating through drugs, alcohol, or other substances can offer a “quick fix” for uncomfortable feelings. Some of the most common reasons people self-medicate include:
- Stress – Work, family, and other stressors may play a large role in why you self-medicate.
- ADHD symptoms – Substances can provide a surge of dopamine to quiet restlessness or help you concentrate.
- Depression – You may turn to stimulants to feel more energized or productive.
- Anxiety – Anxious People may use alcohol to ease physical symptoms.
- Trauma – People diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder may self-medicate to numb their psychological pain.1
- Emotional dysregulation – If you struggle to manage your emotions, you may reach for substances to dampen their intensity.
- Social pressure – The pressure you may feel to live up to other people’s expectations can lead to using substances to cope with feelings of inadequacy.
Is self-medicating the same as addiction?
A common question many people ask is whether self-medicating is the same thing as addiction. No, it is not the same, but it is an unhelpful coping mechanism that can lead to addiction. Over time, self-medicating can lead to dependence, which is where your brain and body become reliant on the substance.2
Common Ways People Self-Medicate
Some people turn to substances to cope with difficult memories or feelings stemming from their past. Others may use it to face frightening situations or to stay focused. Some of the most common ways people self-medicate include:
- Drinking alcohol to try to unwind, relax, or fall asleep.
- Smoking weed to numb anxiety or depression.
- Using stimulants to focus (especially if dealing with undiagnosed ADHD symptoms).
- Taking benzodiazepines, pain pills, or other prescription drugs to escape emotional pain.3
People turn to drugs and alcohol for many reasons. Oftentimes, it’s to cope with psychological discomfort or pain. Many people lack the resources to find healthier coping strategies. This can lead them to rely on familiar, temporary solutions that can develop into dependence and addiction.
How Self-Medicating Turns Into Addiction
At first, many people may self-medicate to stay productive or to “unwind” at the end of the day. Others may take a pill to “get through” a stressful family gathering. However, over time, you may start to rationalize your use and see these substances as a “reward” or “necessary tool” for success.
As your brain adapts to the substance, this “functional” dose no longer works in the same way since you’ve built up tolerance. At this point, you may have to increase the amount you use to achieve the same result as before.
To keep up with appearances, you may start hiding how often you use drugs or alcohol. This secretive behavior is a sign that you are losing control and may be slipping into a substance use disorder or addiction. When asked, you might also lie about how much you are using, lie about where you are, or use in private (like a bathroom or in a car).
Eventually, your primary focus becomes using, and you may start skipping out on events where you can’t drink or use drugs. School and work may start to suffer, and you may experience negative impacts on your relationships, too.
Related: Addiction vs Dependence: Signs and the Differences
Self-Medicating by Condition
Many people feel helpless when it comes to managing their mental health. However, there are always healthy steps you can take to change how you feel, no matter what you’re facing.
Self-Medicating to Deal With Stress
When stress feels unmanageable, alcohol is one of the most common go-tos. A drink after work can feel like a reasonable way to decompress. Others reach for cannabis or benzodiazepines to take the edge off. Over time, though, these substances disrupt sleep and make it harder to handle pressure on your own.
Alternatives:
Exercise can trigger powerful changes in your brain to boost your mood and promote calmness. It can also be a great distraction to break out of negative thought cycles.4 Practicing relaxation techniques like mindfulness can ease tension, while structured routines can help you feel more productive and in control.
Self-Medicating ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)
People with undiagnosed ADHD are at a higher risk of self-medicating and addiction.5 To deal with executive dysfunction, they may turn to substances like stimulants to help them focus.
Alternatives:
It’s important to get a correct diagnosis and a valid prescription from a psychiatrist to address ADHD symptoms. An ADHD coach can also help you manage your daily activities by teaching you how to plan, prioritize and organize larger projects into easier, smaller tasks.
Self-Medicating Depression
Depressive symptoms often drive people toward stimulants to feel more energized or alcohol to numb their low mood. Alcohol is a depressant, though, and stimulant crashes tend to deepen the very symptoms you were trying to escape. Self-medicating can offer relief from depression symptoms, but it is only temporary.
Alternatives:
Therapy can help you develop positive skills to cope with depression and address distorted beliefs contributing to how you feel. Another technique you can try is called behavioral activation. Behavioral activation involves first changing your behavior patterns, understanding that a better mood will soon follow. This technique can help reverse the vicious cycle of depression and replace it with more positive behaviors to promote a deeper sense of well-being.6
Self-Medicating Anxiety
Anxiety is one of the most common reasons people reach for substances. Alcohol is widely used to quiet racing thoughts or ease physical symptoms, while cannabis is another frequent choice, though for many people it can actually worsen anxiety over time.
Alternatives:
Cognitive behavioral therapy and grounding skills can address the root causes of your anxiety and help you build stronger, healthier coping mechanisms. Your lifestyle choices can also affect your mental health.7 Prioritizing sleep, getting active, eating healthy, and staying socially connected can all significantly lower anxiety symptoms.
Why Self-Medicating Doesn’t Work Long-Term
Whether you’re self-medicating with drugs, alcohol, or other substances, it never works long-term.8 Self-medicating is similar to putting a bandage over a larger wound. It only hides the problem while your underlying issues worsen.
Additionally, your brain continuously tries to maintain homeostasis. This means it strives to keep a balance. When you use an external substance like drugs or alcohol, your brain reacts by changing how much of certain chemicals it produces. Eventually, your brain begins to produce less GABA or dopamine because it expects that you will use a substance to reintroduce these chemicals.9,10 As that substance wears off, your brain enters a chemical deficit, which can leave you feeling more anxious or depressed than you were in the first place.
Related: What is Psychological Dependence? Understanding the Mental Side of Addiction
When Self-Medicating Becomes a Sign of Addiction
Self-medicating can develop into substance abuse and addiction when it changes from a temporary coping mechanism to a compulsive behavior that causes chemical dependency, tolerance, and triggers withdrawal symptoms.11
Here are some signs that self-medicating is spiraling into addiction:
- You’re using more than intended to achieve the same effect.
- You rely on it to function in everyday life.
- You’re using it in secret or lying about how much you use.
- You’ve tried and failed several times to cut back.
- You experience emotional or physical withdrawal symptoms when you aren’t using.
Addiction often worsens the underlying mental illness you were trying to treat in the first place. People don’t begin using substances to become addicted. Unfortunately, many will get caught up in a vicious cycle of drug and alcohol dependence that becomes difficult to break without professional help.
How Dual Diagnosis Treatment Helps
Many people who self-medicate are trying to deal with underlying mental health challenges like depression, anxiety, or trauma. When drug and alcohol abuse (or addiction) and a mental health disorder occur together, they interact and amplify each other. If both are not addressed during treatment, relapse becomes more likely.13
Related: Dual Diagnosis and Co-Occurring Disorders: Treating Mental Health and Addiction Together
Breaking the Cycle with the Right Support
Treating both substance use and the underlying mental health condition is key to recovery. Dual diagnosis treatment programs at New Life House can support your recovery from co-occurring disorders, helping you take those first steps to a healthier future.
Our recovery model can provide you with holistic, evidence-based healing and support that is tailored to your needs. Other highlights of New Life House include:
- Experiencing an opportunity to build a sober community.
- Receiving peer support in a structured setting that fosters accountability.
- Engaging in therapy opportunities to promote emotional growth and healthier coping mechanisms.
- Receiving mental health support through psychiatric evaluation and medication management if necessary.
Remember, you are never alone in your struggles, and recovery is possible. By attending New Life House, you can learn how to manage difficult mental health symptoms without resorting to drug or alcohol use.
References
- Sheerin, C., Berenz, E. C., Knudsen, G. P., Reichborn-Kjennerud, T., Kendler, K. S., Aggen, S. H., & Amstadter, A. B. (2016). A population-based study of help-seeking and self-medication among trauma-exposed individuals. Psychology of addictive behaviors: journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors, 30(7), 771–777. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000185
- Lazareck, S., Robinson, J. A., Crum, R. M., Mojtabai, R., Sareen, J., & Bolton, J. M. (2012). A longitudinal investigation of the role of self-medication in the development of comorbid mood and drug use disorders: findings from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC). The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 73(5), e588–e593. https://doi.org/10.4088/JCP.11m07345
- Schmitz A. (2016). Benzodiazepine use, misuse, and abuse: A review. The mental health clinician, 6(3), 120–126. https://doi.org/10.9740/mhc.2016.05.120
- Sharma, A., Madaan, V., & Petty, F. D. (2006). Exercise for mental health. Primary care companion to the Journal of clinical psychiatry, 8(2), 106. https://doi.org/10.4088/pcc.v08n0208a
- London, A. S., Antshel, K. M., Grove, J., Gutin, I., & Monnat, S. M. (2025). Self-Reported ADHD Diagnosis and Illicit Drug Use and Prescription Medication Misuse Among U.S. Working-Age Adults. Journal of Attention Disorders, 29(14), 1355–1366. https://doi.org/10.1177/10870547251365677
- Medina-Jiménez, E. A., Acosta-Quiroz, C. O., García-Flores, R., Aguilar-Navarro, S. G., & Sotelo-Ojeda, J. E. (2024). Behavioral Activation Therapy for Depression Led by Health Personnel in Older People: A Scoping Review. Gerontology & geriatric medicine, 10, 23337214241300652. https://doi.org/10.1177/23337214241300652
- Sharma, I., Marwale, A. V., Sidana, R., & Gupta, I. D. (2024). Lifestyle modification for mental health and well-being. Indian journal of psychiatry, 66(3), 219–234. https://doi.org/10.4103/indianjpsychiatry.indianjpsychiatry_39_24
- Harris, K. M., & Edlund, M. J. (2005). Self-medication of mental health problems: new evidence from a national survey. Health services research, 40(1), 117–134. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6773.2005.00345.x
- Shyu, C., Chavez, S., Boileau, I., & Le Foll, B. (2022). Quantifying GABA in Addiction: A Review of Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Studies. Brain sciences, 12(7), 918. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12070918
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2020, July). Drugs and the Brain. National Institute on Drug Abuse. https://nida.nih.gov/publications/drugs-brains-behavior-science-addiction/drugs-brain
- Turner, S., Mota, N., Bolton, J., & Sareen, J. (2018). Self-medication with alcohol or drugs for mood and anxiety disorders: A narrative review of the epidemiological literature. Depression and anxiety, 35(9), 851–860. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.22771
- Torrens, M., & Adan, A. (2023). Recent Advances in Dual Disorders (Addiction and Other Mental Disorders). Journal of Clinical Medicine, 12(9), 3315. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm12093315
- Subodh, B. N., Sharma, N., & Shah, R. (2018). Psychosocial interventions in patients with dual diagnosis. Indian journal of psychiatry, 60(Suppl 4), S494–S500. https://doi.org/10.4103/psychiatry.IndianJPsychiatry_18_18