¿La toxicomanía como síntoma frente a la angustia de abandono en pacientes internos en el Centro de Rehabilitación “U.N.A”?.

Abstract

The present study explored how drug addiction may manifest as a symptom in relation to abandonment anxiety in adult patients admitted to the rehabilitation center Un Nuevo Amanecer (U.N.A.). The research was driven by the interest in understanding substance use not only as a behavioral or physiological phenomenon, but also as a possible expression linked to emotional experiences of loss, separation, or emotional emptiness.The general objective was to determine the extent to which drug addiction presents itself as a symptom of abandonment anxiety among inpatients at the U.N.A. rehabilitation center. The study was conducted under a mixed-methods approach with a predominance of qualitative and interpretative analysis, aimed at understanding the subjective function of the phenomenon and the underlying psychic dynamics. Narratives from 15 adult men were analyzed, complemented by descriptive data that allowed for characterization of the sample.The findings revealed a high recurrence of emotions such as loneliness, anxiety, and emptiness prior to substance use, as well as significant experiences of separation or abandonment in participants’ histories. Likewise, substance use was narratively associated with feelings of relief, disconnection, or emotional regulation. Although no universal causal relationships were established, the results suggest that, within this specific sample, drug addiction may be understood as an expression linked to states of affective distress, contributing to its interpretation from a qualitative perspective.