These begin with Experimentation or Voluntary Use and move into Regular Use, Problem Use, Dependence, and Addiction. Some describe what chronic substance abuse does to the brain, while others (such as these stages) are more focused on the outward behaviors it can cause. Experimentation Drug and alcohol addiction always begins with this seemingly-harmless phase. A person begins voluntarily using one or more drugs or drinking heavily. Generally, experimentation begins socially at a party or in some other group setting. At this point, use is irregular and only occurs in specific situations. Regular Use At this stage, drinking or drug use has made its way into a person's everyday life. Typically there is often a specific problem that they use to cope with. For example, they suffer from physical pain, stress, depression, or social anxiety. They may still partake in social settings, but they now use the substance or substances alone as well. The line between regular use and problem use is a thin one.
Stage #4 of Addiction - Dependence Addicts in the fourth stage of addiction have fallen prey to their addiction. They can no longer get through the day without using because they don't believe they can handle life free from the effects of drugs and/or alcohol, or they suffer too greatly from the withdrawals. This dependence causes them to put their addiction before anything else. Dependence can be emotional, mental, and physical. While physical dependency nearly happens for everyone using, emotional and mental dependency may not be present or as apparent for everyone. It is possible to be dependent on a drug and know there is a dependency on it and only use because the body will experience withdrawal symptoms if use decreases or ceases. Stage #5 of Addiction - Total Takeover - Substance Abuse Disorder This is the last stage of addiction. It is when drugs and/or alcohol have completely taken over the addict's life. The addict may be fired from work, kicked out of school, spend days and nights using, lose a spouse and/or children and even be homeless due to not being able to pay rent or a mortgage.