Substance Abuse and Addiction Essay

Substance abuse disorders are common in our society. It is a disorder that each one of us will most likely experience through a family member, friend, or our self. I felt very drawn to this topic due to the fact that I have a family that has background of substance abuse and I myself have battle the demon. Not until I struggled with my own addiction did I become more tolerable and understanding to those that have a substance abuse disorder. Substance abuse is not something anyone wants to have; it is a disorder that takes control of a person’s life. It is a beast that tears a person apart; from their being to the lives of their loved ones. This disorder is not biased in anyway; rich or poor, male or female, employed or unemployed, young or

Substance abuse is serious problem that have negative implications not only on the individual and those closest to them, but on the society as a whole. According to a 2002 National Drug

Drug abuse is worldwide problem and one that has plagued the United States for decades. Drug abuse negatively impacts not only the individual user, but also our society as a whole. The fight to prevent the manufacturing and trafficking of illegal drugs into the country has made very little impact on its accessibility to those that wish to partake. According to the National Drug Control Budget Report for 2015, the President of the United States request $25.4 Billion in Fiscal Year 2015 in order to reduce drug use and its consequences in the U.S. (National Drug Control Budget, 2014). In addition to enormous amount of money the federal government has pledged to fight this social problem, there are numerous organizations and institutions committed to keeping people off drugs and rehabilitating those fortunate enough to have survived their use. Two organizations working to do solve the problem of drug abuse and the associated destructive behaviors are the Drug Abuse Resistance Education also known as D.A.R.E. program and Narcotics Anonymous.

Substance abuse is a major problem that takes place on college campuses across the nation in today’s society. According to The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse half of all full-time college students binge drink, abuse prescription drugs and/ or abuse illegal drugs. This amounts to 3.8 million students. This research essay will be focusing on substance abuse in the Bryan College Station area among students, and what solutions A&M representatives can do to help reduce the issue. Three ways that substance abuse can be reduce on the A&M campus is by educating students on the dangers of substance abuse, engaging with local law enforcement while also generating new rules on campus, and by changing the culture on campus.

When you hear the words drug addict you think of desensitizing terms, like “junkie” or “crack head” and when you see someone panhandling for money on the street, passed out, or swaying in a doorway you likely wonder, “why don’t they just get help?” Maia Szalavitz, author of Unbroken Brain, points out an article about our finger-pointing mentality on drug abuse, “Addiction is one of the most serious health problems we face today and as of 2010, more than 23 million people have an addiction to drugs. According to the National Institutes of Health, these addictions contribute to more than 100,000 deaths per year.” Drug abuse is a major problem in the United States and throughout the world as more and more people become addicted every day.

Addictions are all around us, from celebrity tabloids, television shows and possibly an individuals family member or friend. According to Koob, “addiction can be defined as a chronic, relapsing disorder that has been characterized by (i) a compulsion to seek and take drugs, (ii) loss of control over drug intake, and (iii) emergence of a negative emotional state (e.g., dysphoria, anxiety, and irritability) that defines a motivational withdrawal syndrome when access to the drug is prevented”(Koob, 2013). Substance use disorders are among the largest sources of medical disability in the world and also represent a major public health concern globally (Mari, 2013). Substance abuse is associated with topics

Addiction is a tragic situation severely affecting all American citizens, personally or through family members. Reading “Clean” exposed many key learning points involving the use of drugs and addict treatments: including celebrating the use of drugs in the media, the cost of hypocrisy, and family influence on drug use. Many American citizens’ opinions on addiction are persuaded by social media. The dilemma for individuals in our society involve either idealizing or demonizing the use of drugs. In the chapter, the cost of hypocrisy, disgrace on the use of drugs in our society impact the financial support towards addiction prevention and treatment. The family influence on drug use involves: single-parent and divorced families, dysfunctional

The World Health Organization defines drug dependency as a psychic, sometimes physical state resulting from the interaction between a living organism and a drug (Freidrich, 2010). It is characterized by behavioral responses in which always includes a compulsion to take the drug in continuous and periodic way to experiment its psychic effects and, sometimes, to avoid the inconvenience of their absence (Friedrich, 2010). In the DSM-IV, the diagnostic classifications are related disorders that are divided into two groups: disorders due to consumption of substances (dependence and abuse), and substance-induced disorders (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 1994).

Subsequently, most health care professionals utilize guidelines published by the American Psychiatric Association as an official standard for defining problems associated with drug-taking behavior. Substance-related disorders range from the ingestion of a drug of abuse to the experience of side effects that are associated with medications. Moreover, the fourth edition of the association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) which was published in 2000, categorizes two specific behavioral conditions, which are substance dependence and substance abuse. By definition, substance dependence is a diagnostic term used that identifies an individual with significant signs of a dependent relationship with a psychoactive drug. For a person to be classified dependent upon a substance three of the

According to The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, addiction is defined as a chronic, complex disease which affects the functioning of the ones brain and body (“What is Addiction,” n.d.). There are more people struggling with abuse and addiction than people that have cancer, heart disease, or even cancer (“Addiction Prevalence,” n.d.). The abuse or addiction of alcohol, nicotine, or other drugs has affected the lives of over 40 million Americans, or more than one in seven people (“Addiction Prevalence,” n.d). Abusing drugs and alcohol can cause a snow-ball effect of serious consequences. Crime, violence, overdoses, suicide, and school problems are just a few of the consequences that can result from substance abuse (“What is the Difference Between Drug or Alcohol Abuse and Addiction,” n.d.). In the state of Pennsylvania alone, about twenty percent of the state budget is spent to account for the substance abuse and addiction (“Pennsylvania,” n.d.). Of that twenty percent, eighty-one cents of every dollar is being spent to pay for the consequences of our failure to prevent and treat risky substance abuse and addiction (“Pennsylvania,” n.d.). Three cents of every dollar is spent on the prevention of risky substance abuse and addiction (“Pennsylvania,” n.d.). TOPIC STATEMENT—difference between abuse and addiction, major drugs used in the teen pop.

I heard you say there are many factors that could influence substance abuse issues in today’s society. I personally have never witness any drinking or smoking during a repast after a funeral. I would find it odd, but would have to respect drinking at a repast after a funeral if it is tradition. From my perspective, I belive it depends on the individual belief and religion. In muslins countries drinking after a funeral is very common. According to Dueck and Johnson (2016), significant life experience for an individual with a Jew background would be to drink during social events.

Substance abuse and misuse are common among our patients population because of the lack of education and information from healthcare providers. As a pharmacist, I think that I can prevent drug abuse by having over the counter (OTC) drugs that are subject to abuse on sight, so I can approach whoever is looking for those drugs, ask if the drug is for them, professionally evaluate if they really need the drugs in question, and counsel them about how to safely use them. When it comes to prescription drugs that can create a state of dependence and abuse in my patients, I will always make sure that they are using the medication accordingly to their physician’s recommendation, and I will monitor their physical and mental state every time they would

The drug war in Mexico is fueled by the demand for illegal drugs in the U.S as a result an estimated 90% of drug smuggled into the U.S are from Mexico. The most common illegal drugs smuggled are methamphetamine, cocaine, marijuana, crack cocaine, and heroin. Although the real question is why is there a high demand for illegal drugs in the U.S as opposed to other countries? Most arguments stem from the illegality of drugs, yet this overlooks the reality of the drug problem in the U.S. From an anthropological perspective one must understand the intricacy of the drug trade is influenced by many different social factors, for example, the amount of availability plays a major role in drug prices. Another factor is gentrification which is the process of improving living conditions that as a result raises property value and cost of living that causes poverty it driven to urban neighborhoods with higher crime rates such as drug activity. In many instances of poverty, unemployment is high and the low amount of jobs available do not pay enough to support their families because of this drug dealing becomes a viable option to make money. It is also important to mention that the majority of drug use does not come from one time users and the demand of drugs are reliant on their addictions. Numerous factors influence drug trafficking into the U.S, but the most simple explanation comes down to demand of drugs in the U.S and supply of drugs cultivated in

Acknowledgement of drug addiction came after the Civil War in America. Numerous men had surgeries from loss of limbs and viruses they developed in their base camps while in combat. Physicians in the war abundantly gave soldiers opium and morphine for their pain and sicknesses. According to Bellis (1981), “During the Civil War intravenous injection of morphine spread rapidly and addiction became so pronounced that an American narcotics “problem” was spoken of for the first time” (p. 5). Consequently, soldiers came home sick with an addiction to morphine and introduced the drug to other people causing the problem to spread further.

People in the World State and the United States use drugs to escape reality; however, Drugs actually create more problems than actually exist in reality. There are two causes why people do drugs, drug addiction and to get rid of the emotional pain.