Depending on the addiction your character has, different side effects are caused. Search and look into the type of addiction and what comes with it. Learn about the long term physical and mental effects of both the addiction and withdrawal.
Find out what tempted the character into starting the addiction. This can vary depending on the character's nature. Explain how they first got access to it and if the cause may have been curiosity, an escape, pressure, etc.
It would be helpful to both the story and the readers to find out what they were like before addiction. Home life? Past relationships? Peer pressure from friendships? Depression? PTSD? BPD?
Not everyone who takes drugs results in a personality switch. The drugs don't exactly amplify or twist a person as a whole, though some might actually do so. Speaking of which, being on long term drugs doesn't condone actions. A quick trial high is different to someone who religiously takes drugs. They don't make you break down doors for the fun of it.
Something that drugs do affect is a person's emotional stability. Per say, if someone was prone to jealousy beforehand, they might go out of their way to manipulate the people around them. This can also lead to being generally emotionally unavailable.
You have to consider if their point of view is reliable to the plot itself. Maybe switching POV's would help show the reader what the character is really like and if they are self aware of what they are like.
Make sure you know the difference between addiction and a once in a while smoke. A highschool girl who smokes weed or marijuana to fit in every once in a while is different to a 36 year old woman who starts the day off with a good old sniff of coke. The reasoning behind the characters' addiction displays their characteristics. If they're depressed or have a history of family/close friends with addiction, show how that affects them.
If someone struggles with manic episodes, depressive episodes, etc, explain how that is exactly showcased and how it matters to the people and environment around them. If the character struggles with trauma or PTSD, it would remotely include reliving past memories during a high or in their dreams.
Sometimes the drug will help the character forget about those kinds of memories, therefore giving the author a chance to foreshadow from other characters or the setting.
A big part of being an addict is hating the feeling of being sober. Treating it like black magic or a curse. Display if the character is eager for a constant supply of drug(s) to avoid being sober as a whole.
Another important thing to remember is that there isn't such a thing as a generic 'high'. Each drug gives a different effect.
• Opioids and benzos: It's all going to be okay, now and forever. Nothing will get bad again because everything is okay.
• Stimulants: I'm a motherfucking God! I can do whatever I fucking want and no one can stop me! Then there's the crash.
• Dissociatives: Welcome to the black hole of the abyss. Everything is made up and nothing else matters.
• Delirants: Welcome to the living nightmare of your head. We are the shadow people and will be accompanying your whole experience under this drug.
Repetition and short term memory loss are high-key important effects of taking drugs, no matter which kind it is.
When addiction is alcohol, what kind is it? There's the wine addict, the beer addict, the spirits addict, the expensive bourbon addict, the pink whitney and fireball addict, etc.
A lot of alcoholics are functioning until they pass out. Sometimes even for good. Being drunk 24/7 also means no hangover, because when it finally starts to hit, there will be no chance of a can or a glass not in your hand.
Drinking is often displayed as a coping mechanism, the real issue is the problem which lies underneath. Alcohol isn't generally cheap, make sure to explain the characters reaction to having supply the alcohol.
Sometimes, an addict will go out their way to hide bottles around their house and mini bottles in their pockets to stay under the influence. Chewing gum and mouthwash are commonly used to hide the smell of alcohol from one's breath.
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RandomHi everyone! This is just a guide for people who may be struggling with certain scenes or don't know what to write. It can range from title ideas to plot twist help, MC's with mental illnesses and antagonists. Everything you would need is here! Feel...
