Samuel Coleridge's depression was the beginning of his terrible addiction to drugs and alcohol. Coleridge traveled extensively for years to Malta and Sicily in Italy. One of the main reasons he did this was, hopefully, to improve his health. While living in England, he noticed that it was always very humid and gloomy there and so he thought that if he moved to a place where the weather was sunnier and happier, his health would improve and would lead him to reduce his opium consumption. Unfortunately, nothing could help Coleridge's incredible addiction to opium. No, but a few years later he became so addicted to opium and laudanum that his whole life revolved around it. In retrospect, his opium addiction ruined his entire life. He was so addicted that he couldn't function in everyday life without taking the drug. During this very dark period of his life, he separated from his wife and had to seek full-time medical care. These are just two of many serious problems that are at the root of his addiction. Additionally, as he drank several liters of laudanum per week, he became very constipated and had to undergo almost daily enemas. With his drug addiction ruining his entire life, the only thing he could still do was write. He was broke and living in great poverty. He was given the opportunity to write for a daily newspaper and he did it for some reason to try to save money. In fact, he was so poor at one point that a close, wealthy friend of his had to lend him a large sum of money just so he could continue writing in the newspaper. As Coleridge neared his death, he decided to move to Highgate Homes and live out the remainder of his years. Coleridge's ad...... middle of paper ......dge took opium because he suffered from severe depression, Shelley took it for many other reasons. One of the reasons he took opium was simply to calm his nerves. He was a very nervous person and since he was up to no good most of the time, he took that to calm him down. Another reason he took laudanum was that, in a sense, it called into question the whole reality of life. He became so addicted to opium at one point in his life that he began having daily body spasms and terrifying dreams at night. He was concerned about the effects of opium on his body, so he went to a doctor who told him that he needed to stop taking the drug Dube 7 immediately. Obviously, Shelley did not stop taking laudanum and even attempted to overdose to commit suicide. Ultimately, opium helped bring out Shelley's creativity but also damaged her state of mind..