Feening for Drugs: Understanding Drug Cravings and Addiction

Feening for Drugs: Understanding Drug Cravings and Addiction

Feening, also spelled "fiending," refers to an intense desire and craving for drugs. It is a slang term used most commonly with substances like heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine. Feening can be a sign of drug addiction and dependency.

What Does It Mean to Feen for Drugs?

"Feening" evokes the extreme cravings and obsession drug users feel towards their substance of choice. They desperately seek out the drug and focus their thoughts and behaviors around getting high. Feening may involve both physical and psychological components.

Physically, the body experiences withdrawal symptoms like nausea, shaking, and sweating when deprived of the drug. Psychologically, the obsession and preoccupation with using again takes over the mind.

People deep in their addiction may report "feening bad" for the drug. They feel unable to function or concentrate until they can use again. Feening can drive compulsive drug seeking behavior, even when the consequences are devastating.

Signs of Drug Cravings and Feening

How can you identify if you or someone you know is feening for drugs? Here are some common signs of intense cravings and obsession:

• Inability to think about anything but getting high
• Growing tension, anxiety, or depression when unable to use
• Experiencing physical flu-like withdrawal symptoms
• Taking extreme measures to get drugs despite risks
• Using again to relieve cravings after a period of abstinence
• Obsessive thoughts about buying, selling, or using
• Sudden urges to use triggered by stress or environments

What Causes Drug Cravings?

Feening is driven by both biological and behavioral processes. Understanding what's behind cravings can help manage them.

Biologically, addictive drugs alter brain chemistry. They flood the brain's reward system with dopamine, creating a euphoric high. With repeated use, the brain adapts by reducing dopamine receptors. This makes the user dependent on the drug just to feel normal.

When drug use stops, dopamine levels crash. This triggers withdrawal symptoms and cravings. Environmental cues also spark cravings, as the brain associates people, places, and things with getting high.

Behaviorally, addiction creates habitual patterns and rituals around drug use. Even after detox, these learned behaviors and psychological associations trigger cravings.

The Danger of Feening

Intense feening for drugs is dangerous, as it drives compulsive use even when the consequences are terrible. The obsession becomes more important than anything else in the user's life.

People in the grips of a feening episode will do almost anything to get their drug of choice. This could involve:

• Taking drugs in unsafe ways and settings
• Spending rent or grocery money on drugs
• Stealing money or valuables to buy drugs
• Risking arrest and incarceration for possession
• Associating with dangerous people and dealers
• Engaging in risky behavior like exchanging sex for drugs

Feening can also contribute to a relapse after a period of sobriety. Even after staying clean for weeks or months, a sudden, intense craving episode can lead to impulsive drug use. This restarts the dangerous patterns of compulsive use.

Feening vs Drug Withdrawal

Feening differs from drug withdrawal, though both involve cravings:

• Drug withdrawal - Physical and psychological symptoms when drug use suddenly stops.
• Feening - Obsessive focus on getting more drugs both during active use and when attempting abstinence.

Withdrawal occurs because the body has become dependent on the drug. Feening may happen during withdrawal but is more psychological in nature. It reflects the mental obsession and habitual behaviors around drug use.

Feening for Specific Drugs

While feening can happen with any addictive substance, some drugs are more associated with intense craving episodes:

• Heroin - Feening for heroin reflects extreme physical withdrawal symptoms as well as obsessive heroin cravings.
• Cocaine - Cocaine feening involves strong psychological obsession with getting more coke.
• Methamphetamine - Meth feening combines the rush of euphoria with the crushing mental comedown and depression.
• Nicotine - Nicotine feening creates intense cigarette cravings and the repetitive, habitual nature of smoking.

Coping with Drug Cravings and Feening

Managing feening and cravings is critical in overcoming addiction. Some healthy coping strategies include:

• Avoiding triggers and high-risk situations
• Staying busy and engaged with work or hobbies
• Exercising to relieve stress and boost endorphins
• Calling a sponsor or supportive friend when cravings hit
• Challenging obsessive thoughts through CBT techniques
• Considering medication like methadone to relieve cravings

Having a relapse prevention plan makes it easier to get through the feening episode without giving in. Over time, the intensity and frequency of cravings will decrease with continued abstinence.

Getting Treatment for Drug Addiction and Feening

While feening and cravings are a normal part of recovery, struggling with intense, uncontrollable episodes may indicate a larger addiction issue. Professional treatment can help manage cravings and achieve lasting sobriety.

Inpatient Rehab

Inpatient rehab involves staying at a treatment center or facility while undergoing intensive programming. Being immersed in a controlled, drug-free environment helps separate the individual from destructive habits and behaviors.

Inpatient rehab may begin with medically-supervised detox to alleviate withdrawal symptoms. Following detox, various therapies help identify triggers, develop coping skills, and change addictive thinking patterns.

Outpatient Programs

Outpatient addiction treatment involves participating in rehab while still living at home. The patient commutes to the rehab center for scheduled programming and therapies.

Outpatient rehab offers more flexibility but less structure than inpatient. It relies more heavily on the patient's commitment to recovery. Outpatient treatment can help manage cravings and feening urges through ongoing therapeutic support.

12 Step Programs

Twelve step programs like Narcotics Anonymous are free, community-based support groups. Members work through the 12 steps toward recovery with the help of a sponsor.

Attending NA meetings helps break isolation and provides accountability. Sharing stories and hearing from others struggling with feening can help reduce cravings.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT focuses on changing addictive thoughts and behaviors around drug use. It teaches coping methods and relapse prevention strategies.

CBT helps drug users identify triggers, minimize obsessive thoughts, and manage craving episodes. Developing these healthy coping tools promotes long-term sobriety.

Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT)

MAT involves prescribing medications to help curb drug cravings, withdrawal, and addiction. Examples include methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone.

MAT provides pharmaceutical relief for feening and craving episodes. This assists with recovery, especially in the initial stages of abstinence.

Learning to Manage Feening and Cravings

Feening for drugs can be an overpowering force that leads to relapse if left unchecked. But with professional treatment, social support, and healthy coping strategies, management of cravings is possible.

By understanding the sources of feening and learning techniques to ride out those intense urges, long-term sobriety becomes more attainable. With time and commitment to recovery, feening decreases and freedom from addiction is within reach.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.