INTRODUCTION
Drug abuse is like a tornado, in that it leaves a trail of destruction. It is known for destroying neighborhoods, relationships, a person’s morality, and in many cases it has induced death. The main point here is that drug addiction has consumed many lives. Just as it is possible to renovate a neighborhood, a life can be rebuilt as well; provided you have access to the appropriate tools. But who is to say what is or is not appropriate treatment? The first thing that comes to mind is an addiction treatment program. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported that “only 2.6 million of 24 million people suffering from substance abuse received treatment in a specialized rehab facility” (2013). For those who did receive treatment, how do you know if the treatment was effective? Is it measured by the length of abstinence from drug usage? Were they able to rebuild their lives? If so, how long did it take? The aim of my research project is to explore what life is like after addiction. Was the transition a smooth one, or were
…show more content…
I am interested in knowing what other types of research has been done in this subject area and to what extent. I will be looking for similarities, as well as contradictions in the previous studies. While researching previous studies, I can acknowledge what areas of interest have not been covered, therefore providing a gateway for me to possibly bridge any gaps that have been left uncovered. Drug addiction and rehabilitation is very broad by nature; however, all research done on this topic can be sociologically beneficial in that collectively, the findings will indicate how to better assist recovering addicts in reintegration. The subsequent segment of this document will be a summarization of literature on the topic of drug abuse, and presented by the following subsections: Addiction, Treatment for Addiction, and Life After
Substance abuse is a tragedy that touches many lives. Abuse begins with a single use event that, with continued use and overindulgence, transforms into a battle. The abuser most always loses that battle. Personal relationships, social ties, and employment suffers. Irresponsible and erratic behavior becomes the norm, and though the abuser is aware on some level of the reckless and thoughtless acts that they commit, they continue to use and abuse their drug of choice. What starts as experimentation often ends in addiction. The best hope for a person in the grips of substance abuse is immediate,
Addiction is has been around for a long time. The fear of people becoming addicted to certain substances has lead to policies changes. However, there has not been a major federal law passed that dealt with addiction in over forty years. In 2016, President Obama signed a law that covered all the major points of addiction and recovery. This topic this important to me because some of my loved ones are addicts. I may also have clients that are addicts.This paper will take a look at that law. First, we have to define a few key terms.
According to MedlinePlus, alcoholism is a disease in which a person has a physical or psychological dependence on drinks that contain alcohol. This can last for years or even last a whole life time. There are more than 3 million cases per year. Alcohol abuse can have many negative effects on family, friends, and the alcoholic. It can damage a person’s body, such as the heart, and the liver, health, and it can affect your life decisions.
Getting help for drug addiction is often such an intimidating idea that many addicts continue to use rather than expose themselves to the embarrassment or pain that they have associated with reaching out to someone for help. This is in large part due to the fact that television, books and movies have portrayed drug rehab centers in such a negative light that the reality is actually quite incomprehensibly different than these depictions. Millions of people have gotten help for addiction and gone on to lead productive and fulfilling lives free from the bonds of substance abuse. However, there are plenty still who delayed treatment for one reason or another and suffered severe consequences by doing so. Because addiction is a progressive and
Once someone enters treatment, there are a number of addiction recovery options that they may be given. Since every addiction is different, patients are given the unique blend of treatment options that work best for their circumstance. Most patients will need to start by going into a detox program. Afterward, rehab may include options like counseling, peer support and relapse prevention.
Attention Getter: Imagine 60,000 people in one city, all dealing with the same problem, addiction. According to an article written by Carter M. Yang for ABC news on March 14th of this year, there are 60, 000 people in Baltimore alone that are addicted to illicit drugs. These numbers are disheartening and unfortunate. I can relate to every one of these people struggling with substance abuse, because I am an addict. A program called Narcotics Anonymous has
Since the creation of drugs, its abuse and addiction became a taboo. As technology advanced into the 21st century, an impetus in civilization created the allure of drugs, which became propagated and popularized into modern society. Consequently, its Achilles heel created a social epidemic which threatened their innocence. Therefore, the conundrum of this phenomenon caused challenges for the addict, society, and treatment providers. Nonetheless, as problem arises, solutions await its discovery; and, as new and innovated ideas emerged, there are precipitate and modern challenges when getting individuals into addiction treatment.
Too many people try to keep their addiction a secret for a wide variety of reasons. Many are worried about legal problems, others are concerned about family reaction, while an even larger number don 't want to lose their job. That 's why so many people are concerned about whether or not they can keep working while in drug rehab. Thankfully, the answer is mostly positive, though maintaining that balance may be a challenge.
The use of drug and substance abuse interventions have resulted in a decrease of relapses throughout the United States due to the amount of support each participant receives, the unique treatments each person gets, and those who receive treatment are automatically better off than those who do not receive treatment.
We have recently seen a change in the way that drug abuse and addiction are viewed. Considering addiction to be a chronic and relapsing disease is a new concept for the public, policymakers, and even health care professionals (Leshner 46). With this in mind, we can recognize that corrections without the benefit of treatment will fall short in correcting drug-seeking and addictive behaviors (Leshner 46). These, of course, are also the behaviors that most often cause an individual to return to crimes that promote their drug use upon leaving jail or prison (Leshner
Drug-related crimes are often committed to obtain money or goods to sell to get money to support drug use. It was estimated that there were 1,552,432 arrest made in 2012 due to drug abuse violations (“Crime in the United States” 2012). Rehabilitation after the release of a person from prison is a major factor of the recovery system (Matheson, Doherty, and Grant, 2011). If a person such as Tina, or Jason and all of the other offenders who are addicted to drugs, had to attend some type of addiction counselling while incarcerated and have to continue after their release date as a stipulation of their probation, they may not go back down the same path time and time again. They may even decide that they want to help support others, much like Jason has done.
Addiction has a way of pulling your attention away from your basic needs and making it harder for you to succeed in life. It's a sad truth that I've seen happen to so many people over the years. These are good people, with good brains and real potential, but addiction takes over and they can only focus on that aspect of their life.
Although the BPS model had been adopted by many professionals and has gained much support as an effective model of addiction rehabilitation, there are still aspects that leave room for the possibility of improvement. The model is based on the idea that many factors can play an equal role in contributing to a disease. Some have criticized the model due to the fact that some diseases involve few psychological or social factors. Although this is rarely the case for addiction counseling, some still believe that a distribution of focus on multiple issues may reduce the ability to focus on the issues that present the largest presenting problem. Since the model was proposed there have been aspects that have been added such as spirituality, still, one critic argues that the model is “leaving out a critical ingredient of the healing system, the physician-as if the physician were the isolated observer, posited by the mechanistic model, whose observations do not alter the system in any fundamental way” (Ruane, 1986). Additional criticisms include Foss and Rothenberg who argue that the model concedes too much to the traditional biomedical approach, and that modem medicine needs an entirely new set of "basic sciences (1988). But these criticisms suggest alternative models and in many ways they can be handled by simple extension of the BPS model. Criticisms also appear to surround the application of the BPS model in one way that is extremely relevant to addictions counseling as is
Drug and alcohol addiction is a very serious and widespread problem in America, and across the globe. Drug addiction is a constant craving, seeking, and using of a substance, despite the negative consequences it may have on the addict or those around them. When drug use becomes more frequent, it is considered drug abuse. Once an individual’s drug abuse is can no longer be controlled, and they are using the drug to get through everyday life, it beomes an addiction. A person on drugs has an altered way of thinking, behaving, and perceiving. There are treatment facilities all over the world dedicated to help those suffering with drug addictions. All
There are many contributing factors and political issues that address substance abuse. Throughout the years, many researchers have designed many interventions and social policies designed to treat people who have used, abused, and became addicted to substances. Today, there are many new studies that address substance abuse at the individual, group, family, and community or policy levels. Today, there are many services that are effective for decreasing recidivism in youth who have completed a substance abuse program. A substance abuse treatment program or center is the best way to treat individuals who have abused substances.