Reflection Essay On Drug Use

Dangerous illegal drugs have plagued American citizens and their youth for as long as the country has been in existence. These harmful drugs are not only responsible for countless amounts of deaths, but the corruption of the American society in general. All too many times have these drugs been blamed for insanity, racism, rebellion, and straight up violence. Today the government is spending approximately $19.179 billion in one year to combat these evils (Gifford). Unfortunately, even with all of this effort going in to stop illegal drug use, the “War on Drugs” is yet to produce almost any positive results. Because of this, politicians are urging the government to spend even more money to combat the seemingly

Substance Use Disorder (SUD) and criminal activity are often interconnected and intrinsically linked. It is a relevant and pressing issue associated with continued use, as well as inflated recidivism rates for this population. It has been found that over half of all inmates at county, state, and federal sentencing levels meet criteria for substance use disorders, as well as having served at least 3 total correctional sentences during their lifetime (Mumola & Karberg, as cited in Pettus-Davis, Howard, Roberts-Lewis, & Scheyett, 2011). Along with experiencing incarceration and forms of institutionalization, this population also requires rehabilitation

“Substance Use Disorders” are new to the DSM-5. Previously, the terms “abuse” and “dependence” where used instead. In general, the DSM-5 considers a Substance Use Disorder to be recurrent drug use that causes impairment and continued use, despite substance use related problems. The DSM-5 also focuses on how substance use causes a change in brain functioning. The change is primarily responsible for intense drug cravings, as well as repeated relapses. Finally, the DSM-5 divides use into four groups, including impaired control, social impairment, risky use, and pharmacological criteria (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).

Drug treatment centers are far more abundant now than they have been in terms of effectiveness as research and studies have been conducted. In particular THE CAMP Recovery Center is a “Nationally-accredited program run by an expert staff with extensive training” and has had numerous success and recovery stories from struggling addicts that just wanted a way out, including one from a family member of mine. THE CAMP is located in Santa Cruz mountain with an offering a variety of outdoor focused activities to supplement group therapy and other recovery-related programming. The clinic offers a variety of different detoxification options depending on the addiction a person has. The Center offers detox/treatment programs for the following additions:

The concept of drug use was not always seen as problematic. Instead, students viewed substance use as a means of remedying negative emotions as a sign of addiction. Overall students were able to recognize and share how their peers and close relations had suffered from this type of use, rather than admit that they personally had used substances as a means of self-medicating negative emotions. The idea of using drugs to remedy negative emotions was also named use “as a source of happiness” or a “means of escape.” Despite these different descriptions all of these concepts have roots in dislocation causing addictive behaviors.

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

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

A study conducted by Lester, Tronick, LaGasse, Seifer, Bauer and Shankaran (2002) measured the prospective effects of drug exposure during pregnancy on the neurodevelopmental outcome of their children at one month of age. Previous studies conducted in the 1980s suggested children that were exposed to drugs, specifically cocaine, in utero were irreparably damaged. Because these studies concerned the overinterpretation of the evidence and the likely inaccurate recognition of various problems, current research suggests that although there are viable effects of substance use on a child’s development, these effects are generally more subtle and present certain

Drug use in America is one of the major issues we face and the problem has skyrocketed over the past three decades. Heroin and painkiller addictions exceed all other countries. It is important that we address some of the causes that lead to the abuse, how to treat the abuse, and how to prevent the distribution of illegal prescription drugs.

Alcohol abuse is a serious problem, driving while drunk or under the influence of drugs is an even bigger problem that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Abusing either one of these substances can lead to the death of you or the death of someone else or even cause a major change in their life like Jacqueline’s story, her whole life has been changed because of another person’s ignorance and carelessness. Therefore, you should know the facts about drug and alcohol abuse before you do something you may regret for the rest of your life.

My reflection paper is on the subject of substance abuse. As the structure of society changes, the acceptability of one drug or another changes. I have dealt with my own experiences of substance abuse personally and through family and friends throughout my community. I believe there are many underlying problems Native people face today that lead to substance abuse. So, drug use and alcoholism is not the problem in my town, those are more like side effects of something deeper. I would have to agree most with the symbolic interactionist perspective as far as the labeling theory goes. There are also many images in the media that depict the use of drugs and alcohol to make it seem like even though it is bad, it is sometimes okay. These images sparked my own curiosity to experience a fun high or a night out with friends and hopefully getting lucky. I had so many questions about drug use and alcohol. My older siblings and cousins were involved in those circles so it was only natural that me and my cousins and peers who I grew up with got into smoking marijuana and buying drinks on the weekends. I did not know at the time about the dangers of underage drinking. I also had very little knowledge of the condition of my mental health at my young age. Eventually I found out that I had an addictive personality and I got myself into a downward spiral of substance abuse.

In the fall of 2014 I got a phone call from my best friend of 12 years pleading with me to help him. He told me he had a heroin addiction and desperately wanted to get clean and needed to get out of Ohio to do it. I told him he should just go to rehab, but he was confident getting far away would be the best option. To be completely honest, I did not want him to live in our home, I was a little disappointed that my husband told me the decision was completely up to me; I was hoping he would be the one to say, “No, I will not have a drug addict in my house!” If he could have said this, I wouldn’t have to feel so bad for turning Eddie away, after all, it wasn’t me who said those words. After two days of battling my conscience, I decided to I could not turn him away. Having someone so close to me fighting addiction would change the way I saw drug addiction and open my eyes to the deep emotional impact it can have on their loved ones.

Drug abuse exists throughout multiple levels of society. It goes through families, places we live, and the world of technology. Demographics such as race, age, social class, location are all important factors of how drug abuse come into counter. A person who is addicted can only accept their addiction through guilt and settlement. The social control theory states that the deviant behavior, drug abuse is caused by the lack of being in control socially. We chose this category of behavior because is it becoming more of a norm in some cases which is exploited in many ways such as social media, music, politics, and the criminal justice system

Drugs are heavily used throughout the entire world. However, it is important to understand and not undermine the variability in which drugs are used. It is clear some are for distinct medical treatment and others are for recreational use. In the United States, marijuana has been and continues to be a very controversial drug. Some states have allowed marijuana consumption for medicinal purposes, while others have completely outlawed the drug. Those who are against the legalization and regulation of marijuana suggest the economical and health risk associated with consumption of the drug are too high. Although there is risk involved with the legalization of the marijuana, our country has already been risking too much banning the drug.

It is a petrifying scene when you stumble or drive passed a town that could be almost claimed to be a third world country, due to drug abuse. Drug abuse has caused an epidemic in our society straying us away from healthy civilizations. Even the civil force of a national or local government, responsible for the prevention and detection of crime and the maintenance of public order, known as the police. Are getting payed off by the increased amount of drug cartels or gangs; in order for the police department to overlook the drug activity. Even more horrifying is the increased number of drug abusers constantly ending up in the streets or in hospitals during curfew. Whether it be over overdose, being shot for not paying the money for drugs, or just plain turf wars between gangs or cartels. This is also, slowly depleting our economy. The more people that get addicted; the greater amount of people become unemployed, the crime rate increases, and economy depreciates rock bottom.