A Comparison Of Substance Use And The Mentally Ill

The article discusses research on the use of hallucinogens for medical therapies applicable to cancer, drug addiction, and psychological problems. Studies being undertaken at Johns Hopkins University are discussed. Johns Hopkins' research on hallucinogens includes assessment of the drug's psychospiritual effects among volunteers and its use in easing psychiatric and behavioral disorders in those so affected.

Addiction to drugs and alcohol has taken epidemic scale in the recent decades, the number of people affected by this disease has been increasing steadily and the age of drug and alcohol use initiation has sadly been decreasing, children as young as 12 years old are reported as addicts. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) estimated that 22.5 million Americans aged 12 and older self-reported needing treatment for alcohol or illicit drug use in 2014. Drug abuse and mental health disorders are commonly seen as coexisting conditions. They are among the top conditions that cause disability and carry a high burden in society.

Introduction - Use of psychoactive substances for recreational purposes is not a radically new social issue. In fact, history tells us that almost every society had their own pharmacopeia of herbs, potions, and substances that not only contributed to healing, but also allowed the user to escape reality (Schules 1992, 4-5). However, it is the contemporary use of psychoactive drugs purchased through illicit or illegal channels and used by persons neither prescribed nor in quantities larger than necessary that defines modern drug abuse (Robins 2006). Prior to World War I, substances like morphine, heroin, and cocaine were available in the major American cities, particularly those with active international ports. For instance, when Chinese immigrants were first imported to work in the mines and railroads during the early 1800s, they brought opium to America. It was the leisure class, who began to experiment with this drug, and, as in Europe, many major U.S. cities had so-called opium dens. In addition, there were a substantial number of "society women" who ended up addicted because their doctor prescribed this drug to deal with female histrionics or to "cure" an excessive sexual appetite (Johnson 2002). Within major cities, this problem began to spill over into other groups: prostitutes, child laborers, orphans, and even men and women of lower social classes seeking to escape the harshness of their lives (Courtwright 2002, 3-19). Between the widespread use and general

Other substance/medication-induced disorders are disorders that develop as a direct result of drug use. It must occur within one month of a person engaging in drug use. It must be identified that these disorders did not develop until a person engaged in drug use and no longer remain once a person is no longer engaging in that particular drug. The exclusions to this criterion is substance-induced neurocognitive disorders or hallucinogen persisting perception

Gender, ethnicity, and the presence of other mental disorders may influence risk for drug abuse and addiction also. Negative consequences go along with drug abuse and addiction. Estimates for the total costs of substance abuse in the United States, according to Drug Facts revised in November 2011, say that including productivity and health and crime related costs, exceed $600 billion annually. “This includes approximately $193 billion for illicit drugs, $193 billion for tobacco and $235 billion for alcohol. Indeed alcohol has the highest amount of expenditure for abuse. These numbers do not fully describe the amount of destructive public health and safety implications of drug abuse and addiction, such as family disintegration, loss of employment, failure in school, domestic violence, and child abuse.” Drug addiction, along with alcoholism, is a chronic disease. With medication and psychotherapy they can be overcome. Relapse is always a concern and a possibility when considering chronic disease. The actual fact is that they can reoccur and will continue to need the willingness and commitment of the patient to maintain sobriety. Often people think that because a substance may be addictive that it should not be used; however the fact is that there are many benefits to the supervised use of marijuana which are more evident every day now. Chemicals that effect the brain and

This paper seeks to question rather than answer our understanding of the motivation to use and abuse of substances. Within this paper the author challenges the reader to critically contemplate why a person would continue to use a substance that is known and proven to be detrimental to life, both quality and quantity. In exploring the issues of substance use and abuse, the prevalence of Mental Health Disorders stands out like a sore thumb. It seems to be so prevalent that the author feels a need to explore that notion that the answer may well be within the question; Why do individuals with chemically imbalanced disorders have such a high level of using, abusing, and becoming addicted to chemicals they have access to.

Last week at my field placement, an enormous amount of our patients shared that they used drugs in response to depressive symptoms and experienced mood elevation, regardless of their drug of choice. The correlations between mental health illnesses and substance abuse, as our readings confirmed, contribute to the poor functioning of this population. In addition, abusing drugs and alcohol can worsen our patients’ mental and physical health problem by increase symptoms or bring on new illnesses. In other words, self-medication might seem helpful. But in reality, it can deepen the difficulties a patient might face.

Substance abuse complicates almost every aspect of care for the person with a mental disorder. When drugs enter the brain, they can interrupt the work and actually change how the brain performs its jobs; these changes are what lead to compulsive drug use. Drug abuse plays a major role when concerning mental health. It is very difficult for these individuals to engage in treatment. Diagnosis for a treatment is difficult because it takes time to disengage the interacting effects of substance abuse and the mental illness. It may also be difficult for substance abusers to be accommodated at home and it may not be tolerated in the community of residents of rehabilitation programs. The author states, that they end up losing their support systems

The information I gathered from the research was that the major factors that contribute to homelessness are mental illness, drug and alcohol abuse. I also learned that many individuals need to develop skills and seek treatment to learn how to break the patterns which lead to cyclical or generational homelessness (Morris, 1997).

According to Psychologist Ellen Pastorino, a Professor of Psychology at Valencia College, “In 2012, an estimated 23.9 million people (9.2%) in the United States aged 12 or older admitted to using illegal substance in the past month” (Pastorino, 149). Prescription medication is useful as a method of treatment for illness, but irresponsible use of a psychoactive substance can lead to addiction. Psychologists, and medical doctors are concerned about misuse of psychoactive substances since it can lead to physiological, and psychological distress, decreasing overall wellbeing. Anyone has the potential of developing an addiction, which is the key danger to these psychoactive medications – they are a useful tool in the medical

The report by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows that 24.6 million Americans aged 12 or older were current (past month) illicit drug users, which is a representative of 9.4 percent of this age group (SAMHSA, 2014). The use of psychoactive substance poses a detrimental effect to the health, social and economic fabric of families, communities and nations. The worldwide use of psychoactive substance is estimated at 2 billion alcohol users, 1.3 billion smokers and 185 million drug users

The city of Philadelphia’s recent policy changes regarding the stigma and usage of recreational drugs has shown a positive impact on the community through decrease of incarcerations and medical advancements. This essay argues that although state and local policy changes have shown to be more effective than it’s predecessor set by the Nixon administration, federal oversight and involvement is still crucial to the success of applying a drug policy onto any type of population.

It is no secret that drug use has the ability to completely alter a person’s state of consciousness, whether it be through extreme euphoria, increased hyperactivity, pain relief or psychedelic hallucinations. Although many drugs are used for medical purposes, the global issue of recreational drug use is now being fronted as an extremely serious matter that is steadily on the uprise. Recreational drug use is often associated with negativity, addiction and as having serious physical and mental repercussions. One of the few class of drugs that is often associated with both positive and negative connotations are hallucinogens, otherwise known as “psychedelics”, which have powerful altering effects on ones sense of perception, brain function

The use of drugs is a controversial topic in society today. In general, addicts show a direct link between taking drugs and suffering from their effects. People abuse drugs for a wide variety of reasons. In most cases, the use of drugs will serve a type of purpose or will give some kind of reward. These reasons for use will differ with different kinds of drugs. Various reasons for using the substance can be pain relief, depression, anxiety and weariness, acceptance into a peer group, religion, and much more. Although reasons for using may vary for each individual, it is known by all that consequences of the abuse do exist. It is only further down the line when the effects of using can be seen.

Persons who suffer from untreated and/or undiagnosed mental illness are prone to turn to substance abuse in their attempts to self-medicate. Due to the mood-altering effects of substances, those who may experience anxiety, depression, and psychotic symptoms, tend to find temporary relief from such symptoms in their drug usage, however the adverse effects