The Issue Of Substance Abuse Essay

Despite the higher cost, a high-end substance abuse treatment center does not constitute better treatment. The support of therapists, counselors, family, friends, and peers can all be important factors in the recovery process. The most significant factor for an individual in the recovery process is a desire and a willingness to change. Many options exist for individuals that want to recover from addiction. These options include substance abuse rehabilitation centers and support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous and SMART Recovery. These programs all have the same goal but use different techniques that at times even contradict other programs. Although the approach of the programs may vary, they have all been proven to work for certain

Substance abuse has long been a major problem in our society, with estimations reaching as high as 250 million people worldwide that have used the illicit drug at least once in 2014, and causing more than two hundred thousand drug-related deaths each year (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2016; hereafter UNODC). However, it is not just forbidden substances that are a major cause of harms to individuals but also commonly used recreational drugs, such as alcohol and tobacco products that account for millions of deaths each year. These statistics and particularly the contribution of legal drugs to an overall ‘drug epidemic’ have caused an increasing concern in the validity of current drug classification system. For instance, Nutt, King and Phillips (2010) have recently questioned the accuracy of the present UK classification system under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (MDA) owing to a lack of specificity and transparency of classification processes, and have proposed a new rationale for drug harm estimation. The most controversy was caused by their alcohol ranking as the most harmful substance. In this essay, report on harmful drugs by Nutt et al. (2010) will be briefly introduced. Then, the controversies and criticisms that followed their findings will be presented. Finally, the critical evaluation of both arguments will follow with concluding notes on the implications of Nutt et al. findings for the UK drug classification system.

Difficulty meeting academic responsibilities is one of the most common consequences of drug use and abuse. The relationship between drug use/abuse and the academic performance of college students rises every year that causes a critical issue on Colleges and Universities campus. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) Task Force on College Drug reports that about 25 percent of college students report academic problems caused by drug use, such as earning lower grades, doing poorly on exams or papers, missing class dramatically, and falling behind. However, the history of drug abuse has been rooted in the early stages of life. Drug use/abuse has been classified as a major problem of students as early as in the fourth grade. Consequently, it

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 the habitual use of mind altering substances (Substances). Addicts have a false or altered look on reality; they need help seeing what is wrong with the life style they are living. Nikki Sixx once said,” Addiction- When you can give something up at any time, as long as it’s next Tuesday!” Recovery is teaching a person to break old habits. Substance abuse counselors are very important, not only in the mental health field, but in society as well.

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 abuse among college students The use of drugs among college students is becoming prevalent day by day. It is quite common to indulge oneself in the consumption of drugs due to many factors. When students shift themselves from high school to college, they encounter a bunch of problems. There might be some issues linked to financial status, lessen control of parents and peer pressure.

There have been numerous attempts historically to control and address issues related to substance use. Methods have been aimed at ways to eliminate the actual distribution, illegal sales and use of a span of substances. These methods date back in to the 1800’s and include some of the psychoactive substances that are now in epidemic problems in many states. The methods put in place in history have not been adequate to address the identified issues. Heroin is a substance where there has been a rise in use, addiction, and overdose.

Prevention methods for substance abuse are taught to children as early in their kindergarten years and follow throughout their lifetime. Current programs available are school-based programs, parent and family, work programs and community and public media campaigns.

In the modern era both addiction and substance abuse are serious issues. In order to fix these issues we need to understand the different types of addiction and the difference between addiction and substance abuse. Firstly we need to understand what substance abuse and addiction are, let us start by looking at their definitions. Substance abuse is when someone misuses a specific substance for example alcohol. Addiction is when that someone repeatedly misuses the substance, so much so that they no longer have control, over whether they use the substance or not, and when to use the substance. The difference being; that addiction is repeated substance abuse and by being so is a different, and more dangerous problem then substance abuse.

Over the recent years, we have seen a sharp incline of drug-related overdose here in Flordia. Although we have heard about some new and still developing preventative approaches, treatments, legislations and the possibility of drug consumption facilities here in Florida addiction is still a huge problem. Especially with stronger drugs such as fentanyl being used to cut heroin or sold as heroin. Furthermore, there 's a need to address the underlying issues from addiction such as depression, A.D.H.D, and chronic pain. Ultimately addiction can happen to anyone; a person does not just wake up one day and decide to do drugs. Something happens to them whether its an accident and the person is prescribed prescription drugs for pain, peer pressure or many other ways it can happen to anyone. Which is there is a need for strengthening interventions with the aim of reducing deaths caused by drug overdose in Florida

Undoubtedly, a huge role in the women abuses plays by the biological characteristics of the development of drug addiction. The most important are features of a constitution and hormonal difference, which significantly affect the pharmacokinetics of drugs (NIAA, 2015). In general, women have a lower activity of hepatic enzymes related to drug metabolism. Resulting from the body weight and a higher ratio of fat tissue in relation to the muscle, there is a higher concentration of surfactant in the blood of women compared to men even while receiving similar doses of substance. A larger amount of adipose tissue significantly increases the absorption of lipophilic surfactants (PCP, marijuana) and their subsequent slow release. The action of drugs on the central nervous system also depends significantly on the human sexual affiliation. It is connected with the central mechanisms of neurotransmission mesocorticolimbic system in women, leading to a higher concentration of dopamine (Scott, 2015). In conclusion, it can be said that females are less resistant to the drugs, which leads to the faster habituation to complications when trying to overcome the addiction.

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.

Drugs have been a big part of our history dating back all the way to the 1800’s and beyond. We have to remember that drugs were first introduced as a form of early medication and its intent was to help cure things such as depression, headache, and used as a form of an anesthetic. The biggest downside of the medical drug evolution was the side effect of mass addiction. Although there was a problem with addiction the drugs still were very effective in helping cure many problems. Even with the addiction there were very few recorded problems with crime however. It wasn’t until they tried to put controls on the use of drugs that we began to see major criminal spikes in crime due to the trafficking of drugs illegally. America saw the same