If you can’t stop doing these 10 things, you may have an addictive personality

If you have an addictive personality, it’s easy for you to get hooked on things—from games, to books, to alcohol, and even love. 

And while some addictions are good (hey, many inventions are born from an obsessive mind), it’s still generally unhealthy. 

It’s a good idea to at least be aware of your tendencies, so you can manage yourself better.

And in this article, I will talk about them in detail.

Here are some things you can’t stop doing if you have an addictive personality.

1) You can’t stop being impulsive

One of the key traits of people who are prone to addiction is being impulsive. 

Basically, you act before you think.

If you want to do something, you’ll do it without first thinking things through. 

Sometimes things go right, sometimes they go wrong, and you don’t care whatever happens. If anything, you might even feel like the risk is part of the fun.

But being impulsive is one of the reasons why a lot of people end up trying out things they shouldn’t.

This by itself isn’t enough to doom someone into addiction unless some strong substances are involved. But it definitely has a very big role in all kinds of addiction.

2) You can’t stop going for “just one more”

It’s easy to fall into the trap of “just one more.”

One more cup of beer doesn’t seem like much in the grand scheme of things. Neither does one more dollar in the slot machine or one more game of chess or one more cup of coffee.

But all of these opportunities where you chose one more, they add up. 

Next thing you know is that you’ve drunk the whole pub dry, lost a thousand dollars to the casino, and spent the whole day playing chess.

3) You can’t stop obsessing over your passions

We all have our passions, and we all naturally like to geek out about them. But there’s a line between simply being passionate about something, and being outright obsessed with it.

If you’re someone who tries to find a way to slip your passions into every aspect of your life—from the way you decorate your room to how you plan your holidays, then you might have an addictive personality.

This is a potential sign that you have difficulties self-regulating. And the ability to self-regulate is important in keeping yourself from falling to addiction.

But again, I just want to point out that addiction is an incredibly complicated subject. 

So while a combination of most of these habits can be a sign of an addictive personality, there’s no one habit that can directly say that one is at a heightened risk of addiction.

4) You can’t stop making excuses

If you’re the kind of person who keeps making excuses and deflecting the blame whenever something goes wrong, then you’re more vulnerable to developing addictions.

Not only does it make you more likely to try out addictive activities and substances like cigarettes and Coke, it also makes it harder for you to realize when you’re starting to develop an addiction.

“I’m just curious” becomes “I just do it because I’m stressed” becomes “Well, it’s my life, isn’t it? I’m free to do what I want!”

In most cases, addictions start slow and then build up over time. 

There’s plenty of opportunity for you to stop… well, if you don’t keep making excuses for yourself every time.

5) You can’t stop jumping from one hyperfixation to another

Something that people don’t understand about you is how you can be so fixated on something, only to abandon it and then find something else to fixate on after a week or two.

People see it as you being indecisive, but as far as you’re concerned you’re just that interested in the things you like, and there’s a lot in this world that’s worth digging deeply about.

That said, this is a sign that you might have ADHD on some level, which is effectively a lack of dopamine in your brain. 

Addiction, unfortunately enough, can also satisfy that lack of dopamine, which is why you’d be at risk for it.

6) You can’t stop complaining about boredom

It doesn’t take a lot to get you bored. 

If you are unable to do anything you’re particularly interested in for any length of time, or have to do something you don’t want, you immediately get restless.

There’s a constant need for you to be engaged and occupied, but only in ways that you actually like.

This kind of need for stimulation will make you an easy victim of any kind of addiction.

You’ll start chasing after the things that stimulate you to the detriment of everything else, and it will be harder and harder for you to stay still again.

7) You can’t stop beating yourself up

When something goes wrong, one of your first thoughts would be to think “what did I do wrong?” and “if only I were better.”

You beat yourself up every time something goes wrong, and you blame yourself even when it isn’t even your fault.

This is a sign that you have very low self-esteem, and unfortunately addiction comes easily to those who have poor self-image.

If you don’t value yourself, then you have much less incentive to resist being sucked into bad habits. You know these habits would harm you, but why care?

8) You can’t stop stressing out over everything

For one reason or another, you’re always stressed out over anything and everything around you.

People don’t always understand why you’re this way, and you might have even been told about how you’re stressing out over nothing.

Regardless of the reasons why you’re this way, the fact remains that you’re stressed. And stress, unfortunately, is a well-known risk factor for the development of addiction.

If you’re constantly stressed, it might be the reason you play games until the wee hours of the morning, watch porn until you feel disgusted with yourself, and stuff yourself with food.

9) You can’t stop being obsessed with perfection

When you’re trying to paint, you don’t want to put down the brush until every single imperfection in your work is dealt with. 

When you’re cleaning up your room, you want to make sure everything is as neat and organized as they could be.

This might come as a surprise, but perfectionism and addiction are more alike than people realize, and the very thought patterns that lead to perfectionism also create addiction.

It’s because of that and all the dissatisfaction that perfectionism creates that disillusioned and frustrated perfectionists are easily lured in and trapped by addiction.

10) You can’t stop following your feelings

‌You might think “Wait, isn’t it a good idea to listen to your feelings?” and the answer is yes. 

Listening to one’s feelings is indeed a good thing. Well…as long as you do it in moderation.

There are times when you should set your feelings aside and instead try to approach things more logically. Ideally, you should always factor in both your heart and mind when doing things.

Addiction—not just to activities or substances, but also to people—is an irrational, emotional trap, and if you keep letting your emotions rule your life then of course you’ll end up stuck in it.

Last words

All of the things I’ve talked about in this article can help inform you if you’re at risk for addiction.

But as I had said before, addiction is complex and ultimately things like the people you talk with, how stressed and unhappy you are, and the kind of environment you grew up with play a huge role, too.

So sure, these habits might indicate that you’re at risk, but that doesn’t mean you should try getting rid of all of them. 

In fact, they’re plenty good if you know how to live with them and use them to your advantage.

The most important thing is that you’re aware that you are at risk, and that you take steps to keep yourself from developing an addiction.