Experts warn that pill addiction is 'highly underestimated'

By Christof Kerkmann Apr 25, 2007, 4:11 GMT

Hamburg - Pill abuse is front-page news: Robbie Williams has resorted to pills for years and Anna Nicole Smith died from a cocktail of tablets.

Doctors, pharmacists, health insurance companies and experts are now grappling with the problem of how to help pill addicts more effectively, with a conference on the topic in Berlin Monday.

According to research by the German Central Office for Addiction (DHS), between 1.4 and 1.9 million Germans are addicted to pills - about the same number as are addicted to alcohol.

'It'll be all right,' Christa H. was always told, when she went to consult her doctor, who gave her valium to calm her down.

The geriatric nurse from Hamburg, then 42 years old, had been raped and could not get the images of the crime out of her head. Injections and pills were supposed to help her fight her anxiety.

She required more and more valium until, after four years, she collapsed - as a result of her addiction.

According to Ruediger Holzbach, head of the addiction medicine department at the clinic of Warstein, the problem of pill abuse is 'highly underestimated.'

The majority of pill addicts remain anonymous. However, two thirds of them are said to be women. Just as stars like Robbie Williams and Anna-Nicole Smith, many women feel an enormous pressure to perform.

'Women have a different attitude towards medicine', psychologist Karin Mohn of the University of Dortmund says. Taking pills to cope with the burden of handling a job and a family sometimes seems to be an answer.

However, experts also noticed an increase of pill addiction amongst men in certain population groups.

Christa H.'s way into addiction is typical of many of those affected who initally consult their doctor because they are suffering from insomnia, headache and anxiety.

'Medications is often the first choice of treatment as it makes patients think their needs are taken seriously,' says Christa Merfert-Diete from DHS.

As tablets may cure the symptoms without treating their cause, patients go on to look for more.

Psychotropics, which affect mood, can cause addiction after only six to eight weeks, the addiction expert warns.

Although taking pills does not automatically lead to collapse, the consequences can be far-reaching.

Doctor Holzbach has observed, for instance, that powers of concentration and retention as well as physical resilience decrease.

Angela P., a Hamburg accountant, has experienced that. 'I either forgot to do things or did them twice or three times. I actually had blackouts.'

The 50-year-old who took mood-enhancing drugs and drank heavily, eventually lost her job.

Doctors play an important role in fighting pill addiction, but 'long talks with patients are not well-paid,' psychologist Mohn says.

Many physicians therefore prescribe pills instead of getting to the bottom of the patient's problems and ordering psychotherapy.

In March, however, the German National Medical Association took a the first step in the the right direction by publishing medical guidelines on the treatment of pill addicts.

Last but not least, there is a lack of suitable places in therapy. 'The majority of therapies are specific to alcoholics,' says doctor Holzbach.

Pill and alcohol addictions differ significantly. Besides, pill addicts are often keen to establish a distinction between themselves and alcoholics.

Even years after detoxing Christa H. emphasizes: 'I never drank!'