...The Causes and Effects of Drug Abuse The fact that drugs have become a problem in our society is no secret. It seems that although everyone knows the consequences or drug abuse, some people still seem to think they are immune to these effects, or that they will be able to stop drug use after trying it just one time. Although it is true that some are lucky enough to quit after just one time, it is also true that even trying drugs one time causes dependence and a life full of torment and hell. To the observer, it might be questioned why one person will abuse drugs to the point of losing his or her job, home, and family, while another seems to have none of these problems. In this essay, I will discuss these affects, as well as their causes, that we see in a variety of drug users. Drug abuse and addiction each have no single cause. However, there are a number of risk factors that increase a person’s odds of developing a chemical abuse or dependency disorder. These can include different psychological issues, such as depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. Additionally, people can turn to drugs to get relief from physical/mental pain or to deal with stress and loneliness they may be facing. Drugs seem to provide an “escape” from any sort of discomfort a person may be having, whether it be that physical, social, or psychological. However, the escape that a person experiences is brief, and unfortunately causes many harmful effects as it gradually takes over the abuser’s life...
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...Drug abuse and addiction starts after drug use, usually after multiple uses. Addiction is less about the type or amount consumed, but more about how frequently you use the substance. If the drug use is causing problems in different areas of the users life, it is likely that there is an addiction or abuse of that drug. Some of the risk factors of addiction can include a family history of addiction, such as a close family member being an alcoholic. Past instances of abuse, neglect, and other traumatic experiences. If the user has a mental disorder, like depression and anxiety. If the use of the drug started early, like if a 13 year old started smoking cigarettes. The method of use is also a risk factor, as different methods may increase the chance...
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...consequences of drug abuse? Have people ever really taken those consequences into account? Drug abuse is one of the major problems in our society. The causes of drug abuse are really unknown, but the effects of this epidemic are very serious. Many people get used to taking pills or like the way that illegal drugs make them feel. They can easily get addicted and abuse those drugs; that is the problem. The purpose of this essay is to discuss the physical, psychological, and economic effects of drug abuse. The first effect of drug abuse is physical. Physical effects are the most important because these can cause death. For example, drug abuse damages important organs such as the heart, lungs, and liver. Drug abuse can also cause neurological damages, which cause alterations in body movements, loss of appetite, depression, and mood swings. It is possible for a person to overdose on drugs, unknowingly. There are many other effects that drugs have the body. These physical consequences could cause death, or permanent damage to a person's body if too much of a drug is consumed at one time, or even in a long period of time. The second effect caused by drug abuse is psychological. At the beginning, drugs make people feel relaxed, but if someone consumes too much or, at times not enough, it increases anxiety and can lead to depression. Drug abuse also causes a lot of family and legal problems, violence, drastic changes in behavior, suicide, and many other problems. Drugs are very powerful...
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...Drug Abuse and its Psychological Effects Jessica Cadett University of Phoenix Abstract Substance abuse causes substance dependence that of which is a group of psychological and physical symptoms which causes addicts and drug abusers to use drugs and other substances compulsively in order to self-medicate. However, because an abuser takes high amounts of drugs daily, they tend to need larger amounts of drugs in order for an addict to receive a decent euphoric feeling from a drug. Withdrawal symptoms are psychological, as well as physical, causing person’s with drug abuse issues to feel the need of drugs in order to live or function, as well as feeling the need of drugs to help subside physical pain, sleeplessness, low energy levels, and stomach virus symptoms. These psychological symptoms are caused by the chemical chain reactions and chemical imbalances within the human brain. Drug abuse, especially a large amount of drug abuse, causes drug abusers to risk attaining addiction, as well as causing many psychological issues and physical issues within their life. Some people who do not understand addiction and drug abuse do not always realize that abusing drugs is not merely a way of life, but instead it is simply a serious health condition usually generated through genetic DNA or because of a physiological chemical imbalance from long-term drug use. Drug Abuse and its Psychological Effects For many years, drugs have become a huge epidemic throughout the world, affecting...
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...Substance abuse is the destructive pattern of use of any substance for mood altering purposes, which leads to addiction and many other potentially serious problems (NCDHHS). Substance abuse is not limited to the abuse of drugs; it also includes inhalants, alcohol and solvents. In reality, nearly any substance can be abused (NCDHHS). According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), the abuse of illicit drugs and psychotherapeutics has increased; with 9.2 % of the population over the age twelve having abused some substance. Not surprisingly, there has been a rapid increase, (due to its easy access) in the use of marijuana (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2014). Whilst there is no definitive cause of substance abuse, there are a myriad of factors that can trigger it. Socioeconomic status, family history, child abuse, depression, low self-esteem, stress; these are but a few reasons that can trigger substance abuse in an individual. Having relationships with people who use abuse substances, or accept their use as normal can also lead a person to develop substance abuse issues (Robinson, Smith &Saisan, 2014). There is no precise way to determine if someone will or does abuse substances, but there are some things one can look for and identify as indicators of substance abuse. Lack of interest in activities, depression, taking unnecessary risks, becoming drunk or high regularly, preplanning substance abuse, needing more and more substances to get drunk or high and blacking...
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...[pic]Drug dependence - Overview Alternative Names Drug addiction; Addiction - drug; Dependence on drugs Definition of Drug dependence: Drug dependence means that a person needs a drug to function normally. Abruptly stopping the drug leads to withdrawal symptoms. Drug addiction is the compulsive use of a substance, despite its negative or dangerous effects. A person may have a physical dependence on a substance without having an addiction. For example, certain blood pressure medications do not cause addiction but they can cause physical dependence. Other drugs, such as cocaine, cause addiction without leading to physical dependence. Tolerance to a drug (needing a higher dose to attain the same effect) is usually part of addiction. Causes, incidence, and risk factors: Drug abuse can lead to drug dependence or addiction. People who use drugs for pain relief may become dependent, although this is rare in those who don't have a history of addiction. The exact cause of drug abuse and dependence is not known. However, a person's genes, the action of the drug, peer pressure, emotional distress, anxiety, depression, and environmental stress all can be factors. Peer pressure can lead to drug use or abuse, but at least half of those who become addicted have depression, attention deficit disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, or another mental health problem. Children who grow up in an environment of illicit drug use may first see their parents using drugs. This may put them at a...
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...Drug abuse is being seen as a serious problem in the society that could be defined as the lost controlling of drug people who have used too much. Drug is often used to help people in medical issue but there are some reasons that individuals abuse it. This essay will look at some cause of drug abuse and then examine its effects. Firstly, one of major cause is addictive personality that means a person is more likely to become drug dependent. People are curious, lonely and they try a drug because they want to relax or have pleasure. The pressure of busy life, work frequently lead people be stressful then they might find a solution that is use drug. Other cause of drug abuse is peer pressure that means ours relationship sometimes is cause us join in something or in order to maintain that relationship. Teenage time is the hugest time this situation exist, kid want to be cool or accepted as a part of group so they take a drug as showing off. For example, making new friends, to be a part of a group, someone tries to show off their pressure by drink a lot, smoking and even take a drug. There are two cause of drug abuse. Some its effects will now be examine. The first effect of drug abuse could be seen health problems of users. People become drug addict, they can not stop using drug even they require more. Drug makes people lost their resistant abilities with diseases, illness and cause of some social diseases such as HIV. A common example is that people get HIV from the other...
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...The result of drug abuse among the African American society is embarrassing and degrades our race as a whole. Drug and alcohol addiction has continuously been one of our society’s most complex and ongoing problems, which targets mostly the black community. Substance abuse is not appealing especially to African American because they are more dependent for care and treatment. In the African American society today major problems that affect our community are increasing in rates because of drug abusers. However, the inferior impact on our race that it causes and the consequences it creates. Cultural biases and the constant emphasis on typical American values and lifestyles may contribute to drug abuse within the African American community. The psychological well being of African Americans today is consistently disagreeing with the constant reminder of their place in society. The inferior place is of course the place in which many African Americans allow themselves to be put in. Experts on drug abuse disorders agree that poverty and other socioeconomic factors have a great impact on the rise of drug abuse in the African American community (Britt 8). These common mistaken ideas by experts have a great impact on the way African Americans view themselves. Rather than suggesting to that, the several socioeconomic factors are the cause of drug abuse from an outsider point of view. Experts should do their research from within the black community. Research in substance abuse often does not...
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...Christianity point of view. b) Law of the land. DRUG AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE. INTRODUCTION. DEFINITION. Drug. 1) A drug is any chemical you take that affects the way your body works. Example: alcohol, caffeine, aspirin, nicotine etc. 2) A drug is a substance which may have medicinal, intoxicating performance when taken by a human body. Drug abuse. 1) It is the use of illegal drugs, the misuse of prescription or over-the-counter drugs for at least a year with negative consequences. 2) Compulsive, excessive and self-damaging use of habit-forming drugs or substances, leading t addiction or dependence, serious physiological injury(e.g. damage of kidney, liver, heart) and/or physiological harm(e.g. dysfunctional behavior patterns, hallucinations, memory loss),or death. Substance abuse. Harmful/hazardous use of psychoactive substances including alcohol and illicit drugs. Substance abuse is also sometimes referred to as drug abuse. Drug and substance abuse has become a disaster and an issue to be addressed urgently worldwide. In Kenya, drug abuse is one of the major problems alongside poverty, corruption and HIV/AIDS. However, whereas the HIV/AIDS prevalence is coming down, drugs and substance abuse is on the increase compounded by lack of a traditional control system and frustration arising from unemployment, idleness and poverty. WHY SUBSTANCE AND DRUG ABUSE IS AN ISSUE OF CONCERN. Since the issue of drug abuse came into existence, a lot of measures to curb its...
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... Teacher: Topic: Alcohol and Drug Abuse Drug Abuse. Physiological Effects * Physiological effects of drug abuse vary by the type of drug. Stimulants, such as amphetamines, can delay sleep and elevate a person's mood, but high amounts can cause nervousness and anxiety in the user. Depressants, by contrast, impair mental and physical functions, and slow neural activity in the brain. With some drugs, especially narcotics such as opium or heroin, the body can build a tolerance in which it adjusts to the drug's presence. Over time, the body requires higher doses to maintain the same effect. When an abuser stops taking the drug, the body experiences withdrawal symptoms, such as feeling weak or sick. Withdrawal symptoms are the body's reaction to the absence of the drug to which it had become adjusted. Social Effects * The social effects of drug abuse begin with abusers and their families. Substance abuse has been a factor in divorce, family violence and related problems. The social effects extend into the larger society, as well, such as through crimes committed by drug abusers to get money needed to feed drug habits. Further, the lucrative nature of drug trafficking fuels crime as rival drug gangs fight for control of the traffic. The U.S. government, for example, noted increased drug-related violence on the U.S.-Mexico border and cited drug gangs in these areas as the nation's leading organized crime threat Economic Effects * Reports by UNDCP have pointed...
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...Abstract Substance abuse during pregnancy can cause many medical problems for the baby after birth. Tobacco, alcohol, and many other forms of illegal substances can cause medical concerns both during pregnancy and after birth to a baby exposed during pregnancy. Low birth weight, heart defects and premature birth are some of the common effects of substance abuse during pregnancy. The Effects of Substance Abuse on Unborn Babies In today's society, people are talking about babies being born addicted to drugs, and how a mother could harm her unborn child. Substance abuse during pregnancy can have devastating and lasting effects on unborn babies. Drug addiction is a very serious condition that requires more research. We are still learning the effects of substance abuse. Doctors and nurses should not judge these women, but should instead give them the best prenatal care that can be provided. We need to see what harm and side effects substance abuse has on the mother and baby so that we can be able to better understand how to treat the both of them during pregnancy and after birth. Tobacco is sometimes called the lessor of all evils, but “there are over four thousand chemicals” (Johnson, 2012), including nicotine and carbon monoxide. These are the two most dangerous chemicals. Smoking during pregnancy affects the mother and baby’s health before, during, and after the baby is born. The nicotine (the addictive substance in tobacco), carbon monoxide, and numerous other poisons...
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...Drug Profile Drug Profile * * Addiction is an escape of experiencing control it is an illusion and a mood altering experience. A pathological relationship with life-threatening or negative consequences, it is the experience that is addicting. People can become addicted to anything that alters our mood or consciousness. Addiction can be about self-harm and when done repeatedly it will stop or ease emotional pain that a person may be going through. An individual’s addiction can show an increased psychological and physiological dependence on the substance, and the person will cannot live a normal life. A drug addicted person will become unable to cope without the drug they are addicted too. Addiction can lead to antisocial behavior, violence; crime of all sorts, even murder to get what they want. Giving up drug addiction takes strength, mind strength mostly because the mind is responsible for the addiction. It is the beginning of addiction and the end of addiction. The mind and the body crave pleasure and stimulate neurotransmitters in the brain and the addiction finds pleasure in the drugs and the sensation itself. Any withdrawals from the drug will bring about depression, irritability, suicidal thoughts, restlessness, and anxiety. Addiction is mind control and can be overcome if the person wants, learning about his or her condition will give insight and understanding as why he or she may be addicted. There are three categories that certain drugs can share and have...
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...Drugs: Ecstasy and Marijuana Isabelle Balderas San Jose State University Ecstasy has been abused in many different ways since its inception in the 1970s. It was first used in guidance to help with psychotherapy, without evidence of supported research and FDA approval, until 1985 when the DEA classified ecstasy as a Schedule 1 Substance, which is a drug with a risk of excessive abuse and has no proof of being used medicinally (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2013). Ecstasy is taken orally and can either be in the form of a capsule or tablet. Origins of abuse of ecstasy are said to have been by young adults and teenagers at house parties in the Netherlands; furthermore, the popularity of the drug rose over time and eventually became a trend in the rave/all-night party scene. Today, young adults and adolescent teenagers mainly abuse ecstasy to have fun at nightclubs, raves, and/or rock concerts. It has been reported that 1.5% (roughly 3.4 million) of Americans at least the age of 12 have tried ecstasy at least once in their life; unfortunately, a considerable amount of abuse, 5% or 1.4 million people, was found in Americans between the ages of 18 and 25. Some people use ecstasy for therapeutic reasons, such as adrenergic uptake inhibitors, hallucinogens, and serotonin agents, to feel euphoric, empathetic, and an increase in energy (National Institutes of Health, 2008). Shockingly, others even combine ecstasy with other drugs to heighten the effects and make them last longer:...
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...May 2014 Drug Abuse It is often misunderstood by people why or how others get addicted to drugs. Most of the time we perceive abusers lack morals, are bad people and that it is easy to quit and to change their behaviors. Drug abuse is a serious public health problem that affects almost every community and family in some way. Each year drug abuse causes millions of serious illnesses or injuries among Americans. Abused drugs include Amphetamines, Anabolic steroids, Club drugs, Cocaine, Heroin, Inhalants, Marijuana and Prescription drugs. Drug addiction is actually a disease and quitting is more than having a strong will or good intentions. Drugs change the brain which causes quitting to be more difficult even if the abuser is ready to do so because of withdrawals or other symptoms. It has so many negative consequences on the abuser and society. Estimates of the total overall costs of substance abuse in the United States, including productivity and health- and crime-related costs, exceed $600 billion annually. Estimates of the total overall costs of substance abuse in the United States, including productivity and health and crime related costs, surpass $600 billion annually. This includes approximately $193 billion for illicit drugs, (1) $193 billion for tobacco, (2) and $235 billion for alcohol. (3) As bad as these numbers are they don’t fully describe the other prices people pay such as crime, loss of employment, failure in school, domestic violence, child abuse, homelessness...
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...Substance Abuse and Psychosis in Adolescents Over the past several decades, the U.S. population has grown significantly and continues to do so at a rapid pace. The most recent U.S. Census Bureau figures estimate that the population in the United States is currently nearing 304,800,000. Of this tremendous number, approximately one quarter are children under that age of eighteen years and over 40 million are adolescents (U.S. Census Bureau, 2001a). For the purpose of this examination, we will define adolescents as individuals between the ages of ten and eighteen years, although it is important to keep in mind that there are many different definitions and understandings of adolescents, most of which are not as directly related to chronological age (Santrock, 2001). Adolescents are a very special population because these are often the years in which childhood and adulthood become blurred, roles, expectations and needs change, as well as significant physical and psychological growth. As we also know, experimentation is often characteristic of adolescence and this experimentation can be physical, sexual or philosophical; all of which may possibly lead to drug use. This paper seeks to examine the question of whether or not drug abuse is related to psychosis in adolescents. Literature Review Adolescent Drug Use According to a national study in 2006, over 60 percent of reported that drugs were used, kept and sold on their school campuses on a regular basis. ...
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