Preventing Substance Abuse In The United States

Not only can children be put in drug use situations but so can parents. When parents struggle to maintain a stable household or income and employment it may expand stress on the family and its powerlessness, pushing negligible people to discover answers or comfort in illegal drugs. In general, addiction and use of

Substance abuse is a very current problem in the United States. Opiate addiction is a particularly difficult problem in the State of Vermont where the abuse of prescription opioids has created addictions for many individuals. The problem of substance abuse has severe repercussions that may encompass severe dependence and overdose.1 Substance abuse is an epidemic that cannot be ignored. However, the combined forces of over-prescription, addiction and subsequent unemployment may mean that coverage for treatment for opioid addiction is not guaranteed even with increased Medicaid access through the Affordable care Act (ACA).

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the relapse rate is 40-60%. Not only do we need better alternatives to recovery for alcohol and drug addiction, but we must lower the relapse rate. In order to successfully lower the relapse rate we must inform people on the effect gateway drugs can have on future addictions, educating about relapse and addiction and focusing on key factors to making a treatment a successful one. My research on lowering relapse rates taught me that the problem is not getting sober, its staying sober.

In the book “Drugs and Sports”,on page 13, the author Rodney G. Peck states that “Experts believe that the disease of addiction can be passed down from parent to child.” He also states that, “ a teen who has a parent with an addiction (or a parent who is recovering from an addiction) may be more likely to become an addict as well. Teens should talk with their parents and not follow their steps to addiction. Drug addiction usually starts with something called a gateway drug. One commonly used gateway drug would be weed, the easiest drug to get in the streets and everywhere.

If recovering from drugs and alcohol is a process, then a relapse is an event. However, how a relapse is interpreted can be debated. In abstinence-based programs such as Narcotics Anonymous (NA), the basic text notes that relapse does occur and may be the result of an individual not following the program. If an individual stops following the basic principles of the NA program, old thoughts and behaviors may return which can lead to them to engage in the use of drugs or alcohol. Furthermore, the NA text suggests that these behaviors are “reservations” (p. 79) and because addiction is a disease, relapse can occur. As such, any individual who begins using drugs or alcohol again has relapsed. The basic text of NA describes relapse as a “reality” (p. 78) and states “It can and does happen”. When it does, the individual

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse 2014, the disease model addiction is considered a brain disease that can affect multiple circuits in the brain, which involve motivation, learning, memory and inhibitory control over one’s behavior. Because drug addiction and abuse have so many dimensions and disrupts aspects of one’s life, treatment is just not that simple. Addiction treatment must be able to stop an individual from using drugs and continuously maintain a drug free lifestyle, and achieve productive functioning in working, family and society. Because a person’s addiction is typically considered a chronic disease, those who have the disease cannot simply stop using drugs in a few days and totally be cured. Some require long-term and repeated episodes of care to be able to achieve one’s ultimate goal of sustaining abstinence and recovery of their lives. A report conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), the

Since “parents are a crucial part of their child’s environment” (Sharma, 2016), it is no surprise that their behavior can affect how their children grow up to be. While yes, people who end up addicted to drugs can come from all sorts of lives there are some circumstances that may help to influence a person’s choice to turn to drugs. The likelihood that a person turns to drugs increases if they experience a traumatic event such as sexual, emotional, or physical abuse (Mirlashari, Demirkol, Salsali, Rafiey, & Jahanbani, 2012). Depending on the level of trauma can influence the level of drug addiction a person may have. If a person witnesses’ violence in their family or they are sexually victimized they are more likely to not only use drugs but to turn to hard drugs like

Recovery is a process and not something that happens overnight. Relapse still remains a challenge in and during the recovery process Relapse can happen at any time, even after years of sobriety. When addicted to something the brain is altered, this sets a person up for relapse and leaves them vulnerable to their addiction. Long-term recovery is attainable, as long as the right form of treatment is used, and as long as the treatment plan is intended for the specific needs of the individual. Addiction causes many changes and (it’s not enough [to] simply get a person off drugs…[the] physical, social, [and] psychological [needs] must also be addressed to help people to stay off drugs for good.) Relapse takes a toll on everyone who is invested in

“This could mean that addiction is rooted in genetics and might be inherited, but it could also mean that drug abuse could be impacted by environmental factors, such as the family background in which the child was raised and influenced” (Drug Use Hurts Kids 2017). Another problem with kids growing up around drugs could be that they’re not being taken care of the right way. As stated by The National Institute of Drug Abuse, “People with drug problems can forget to take care of the kids. There might not be anyone making meals or helping the kids get washed and dressed. There might not be anyone to buy clothes or do the laundry. There might not be anyone to take the kids to the doctor or help with homework.” (National Institute of Drug Abuse 2017). Unfortunately, kids who grow up in underprivileged homes and neighborhoods are more likely to remain ‘in the system’ then children are born. Children who grow up in an environment where abusing drugs is not only tolerated but accepted can develop a sense of dependability to the drugs they’re around. This creates a whole new generation of drug abusers that, later in life, will continue the cycle all over again.

Drug treatment is intended to help addicted individuals stop compulsive drug seeking and use. Treatment can occur in a variety of settings, take many different forms, and last for different lengths of time. Because drug addiction is typically a chronic disorder characterized by occasional relapses, a short-term, one-time treatment is usually not sufficient. For many, treatment is a long-term process that involves multiple interventions and regular

The purpose of this paper is about two substance abuse preventing program in the United States. Team Awareness is a preventing program that deals with behavioral risk that is associate with substance abuse among employees and their families. The purpose of this preventing program is to help individuals with social health and communication to improve the attitude towards alcohol. The program is about six to eight months to help employees and prepare them for the program. According to NREPP “Team Awareness is a customizable wellness program that also incorporates substance abuse prevention; it has been adapted for many different contexts.” Therefore, programs like team awareness help organizations that have employees that are having a hard time with substance abuse. The goal of this substance abuse program is to help with community resources and if they need to be refer to a program 12 step program. According to NREPP “ To achieve these objectives, the training focuses on six components: the importance of substance abuse prevention; team ownership of policy (embracing policy as a useful tool for enhancing safety and well-being for the whole workgroup); stress, including stressors, individual coping styles, and other methods for coping; tolerance and how it can become a risk factor for groups; the importance of appropriate help-seeking and help-giving behavior; and access to resources for preventive counseling or treatment. Team awareness is funded by the Peer Assistance

In addition to trauma being a risk factor for adolescent drug misuse, poverty also plays a major role in making youth susceptible to addiction. Youth that live in poverty may rely on substances to cope with the environment they live in.

The causes of drug addiction are numerous and varied, and they vary from person to person depending on the circumstances and the surrounding environment. Some of those causes are having high levels of stress, disintegrating of family, and seeing other people using drugs. Today's life is full of stresses, whether the stress of finding a job, raising the children, paying the bills,

Addiction is a “chronic disease characterized by drug seeking and use that is compulsive, or difficult to control, despite harmful consequences.” The initial decision to take drugs is voluntary for most individuals, but frequent drug use can lead to brain alterations that challenge an addicted person’s self-control and interfere with their ability to resist intense urges to take drugs. These brain alterations can be persistent, which is why drug addiction is considered a "relapsing" disease. People in recovery from drug use disorders are at increased threat for returning to drug use even after years of not taking the drug. It's common for an individual to relapse, but relapse doesn't mean that treatment doesn’t work. As with other chronic health conditions, treatment should be constant and should be adjusted based on how the patient answers. Treatment plans need to be reviewed often and modified to fit the patient’s changing desires.

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