Transferring addictions (a.k.a. “replacement addiction”) is a phenomenon recognized for decades, typically defined as the functional replacement of a discontinued addiction. In treatment and recovery circles, transferring addictions has long been viewed as a significant threat to healthy, sustainable sobriety & the pursuit of a life worth living in recovery. In spite of its recognition, however, transferring addictions has not always been well-understood or effectively treated, especially when considering the behavioral addictions that may become more evident as someone is trying to gain freedom from chemical dependency.
There are related behavioral & neurochemical understandings that can be useful to individuals experiencing replacement addiction, as well as to those supporting treatment & recovery. A prominent one has to do with how any individual copes with distress, emotional or physical. We all have “tools” or strategies in our coping “toolbox” that we turn to in moments of need, & addicted individuals are no different. It is important, though, to distinguish between healthy & unhealthy coping, and for many individuals who struggle with addiction, it has become the “go-to” (albeit unhealthy) coping strategy. So it makes sense that, especially when initially trying to step away from addictive coping, there may not yet be other well-developed healthier coping tools in the toolbox, and so the risk is high of gravitating toward other unhealthy coping strategies in the form of replacement addictions.
A helpful neurochemical understanding is that addictive coping does initially deliver a sought-after payoff that reinforces additional addictive use, however unhealthy it may be. The relief from distress is real, caused by an associated change in neurotransmitter activity & levels, which must be taken into account when an individual is progressing through acute and post-acute withdrawal. When using, the neuroplastic human brain’s neurotransmitter status changes to accommodate the use-driven neurochemical action, & when abstinent, that neurotransmitter activity needs to recalibrate, resulting in uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms. If this neurochemical recalibration transition is not managed well – with eyes-wide-open education for the withdrawing individual, and other indicated social, behavioral, &/or short-term pharmacological supports – then the distress experienced by that individual puts them at high risk for turning to some other fast-acting relief, often in the form of a replacement addiction.
Examples abound, including but not limited to individuals in early chemical dependency recovery gaining weight from over-using sugary foods, or ramping up caffeine or nicotine use during post-acute withdrawal, as perhaps a milder form of replacement. Optimal education and social/behavioral/pharmacological supports are among the indicated solutions to prevent the more damaging forms of transferring addictions from occurring.