Addiction can strike any demographic of people, but the demographic of working professionals is a particularly vulnerable demographic to addiction. Busy working professionals face some heavy stress factors in their professions, and addiction is a common effect of these difficulties. Working professionals tend to carry a lot of professional weight singularly on their shoulders, tend to feel the burden of pressure and expectations, and tend to be fiercely independent and unlikely to reach out for help.
Working professionals typically endure the burdens of their jobs alone, often with no one to talk to about their work struggles. It is a very human trait to tell one’s self that everyone has burdens so there is no need to share yours with others, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Every person needs someone to talk to about their struggles in order to fully process them. When working professionals isolate themselves with their problems, they can set themselves up for levels of stress that lead predictably into addiction tendencies.
In the lives of working professionals, the pressure, expectations and consequences of professional actions are very high. The higher up the corporate ladder one is, the higher the stakes are. The pressure to outperform the competition is immense. The expectations on work performance are daunting. And the consequences of actions and decisions are very serious. One false move could lead to professional ruin. Living with the constant awareness of this can push a person past their limits and into the clutches of addiction.
And lastly, working professionals tend to be fiercely independent and look down on asking for help. Chances are they have long been used to fighting their way through life with diligent hard work and focus. It is not within their nature or their character to lean on others or reach out for help. While this can be a noble quality, it can also be a defect. There are times in life that call for letting others in to help with difficulties, and if one cannot see when these moments are, they will overburden themselves and end up wanting to escape through addiction.