Distinguishing between therapeutic and harmful drug use patterns

Drug Use and Abuse

Drug abuse

Caetano (1997, 58) in his studies describe drug abuse as the poor pattern of substance or drug consumption that results to harm on one's health and when you think about the word drugs, what comes to mind? It's in our human nature to instantly think about someone using crack or codeine. So therefore; we just stereo-typed someone we knew nothing about, it's what makes us humans. On the other hand, what about those people who using drugs prescribe to them by their doctor. This paper is going to talk about the good and bad of drug from the writer point-of-view. In the end hopefully you will see it as I see it through my eyes.

The thesis statement for this essay is that drugs consumed over a long period of time is dangerous since it has been proven that it damages the brain and changes one's physical appearance. Thou at times drugs are recommended in prescriptions thesis argues that excessive consumption, unregulated or prolonged consumption has negative consequences to a person's general health.

Overview

The centre for medical research recently released a report which stated that currently in the market there are various drugs that have been manufactured with little considerations to quality measures and controls of standards this is so because they are manufactured by non-professionals in home-based labs. This means that the dosage level is something of uncertainty and even there are possibilities of the existence of harmful ingredients in such drugs. This reports recommend that users should be aware of the physical damage they are exposing themselves while using such drugs since they can also limit the ability for one to set his or her limits.

Types of drugs exist in five distinct classes and one of them is club and date rape drugs under which there are drugs such as GHB, Rohypnol or roofies, ecstasy, Ketamine. Under the stimulants drugs there are amphetamines, caffeine, diet pills or anorectic drugs, cocaine and methamphetamines. Under depressants there are barbiturates, benzodiazepines and alcohol. While the Hallucinogens comprise of psilocybin, DMT, LSD, peyote and mescaline and PCP. For narcotics drugs there are codeine, heroin, opium and morphine.

It is important to note that in the different clusters of drugs that have just been mentioned above, there are those drugs that are used to alter the behavior or mood of a person of which some are generally accepted in the community, for example drinking coffee. Further more there are drugs that can also be prescribed as medication and are obtained over-the-counter for use in reducing pain or to suppress appetite, an example of such a drug is marijuana which has been legalized in some states like California and Arizona. However with frequent use of these drugs they are likely to show signs of interfering with the normal functioning of one's body and hence the drug use has turned into drug abuse.

Jaffe (2005, 284-324) described in his book that an individual will exhibit substance abuse problem when they continue to use some form of drugs or the so-called medication despite the recurring, physical, psychological, social or occupational problems associated with their use. The National Institute of Mental Health have attributed the cause of most death, disability, premature and preventable illness to substance abuse, cigarettes, alcohol abuse, legal and illegal drugs, medication and other mood-altering substances.

Marijuana as an advantageous drug

Despite the earlier government tough stand on marijuana use of which possession and use of it could have attracted a huge criminal penalty under the United States drugs law, the government was forced to back down on this tough stand when reportedly in the 1980's research proved that therapeutic marijuana can help in the changing diseases prevalence like cancer and AIDS. By 1996 states such as Arizona and California had approved the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes, this approval was attained through the States' ballot initiatives.

The reforms in this law lead to the development and subsequent production of marinol, which is a synthetic analogue of the principal active agent in marijuana and seemingly responsible for most its' psychotropic and medicinal properties.

However, O'Donohue and Ferguson (2006 335-350) both critics of the legalizations of marijuana for medicinal purposes argues that there are many families in the United States whose lives have been negatively affected by heavy use of marijuana; O'Donohue and Ferguson further argues that marijuana is easily addictive and can't be relied upon as temporal use only for medicinal purpose. Moreover, according to the National Institute for Mental Health marijuana use is the leading cause of mental illness and disorder; frequent users have developed mental problems due to the in take of excessive marijuana.

Signs and symptoms of drug abuse

Mental illness is one among the many symptoms of drugs abuse and it is exhibited when the abusers is still abusing the drugs or at the withdrawal state when the abuser wants to quit the addiction. In some cases psychiatric disorder such as depression or prolonged psychosis will still be exhibited in a drug abuser who has been cleaned through detoxification.

Abuse of specific drugs such as cannabis causes panic attacks when the abuser is under the influence and also a state of dysthymia. As for hallucinogens abusers may experience delusions and other psychotic phenomena long after quitting its use. Those who abuse alcohol usually show signs of severe anxiety and depression.

Drug abuse usually affects the central nervous system and the abuser is likely to have changes in moods, awareness level or perception and sensations as a result of the impact of the drug on the central nervous system.

Benzodiazepines has been touted to be the most notable drug that has the most prolonged withdrawal effects with signs and symptoms at times persisting for years after quitting from the abuse. However it is important to note that the signs and symptoms usually fade away after a long period of abstinence.

Incidences and prevalence in the case of alcohol abuse

Reports released by the National Institute of Health show that over 7.4% of the American population are either dependent or abuse alcoholic drinks. The dependency among the men is higher than those of women as men are five times more dependent on alcohol than women. The reports also classified the prevalence of alcohol abuse into two types, namely alcoholism which reportedly fourteen million Americans suffer from and the alcohol dependency prevalence of which also fourteen million Americans suffer from including women who are estimated to 4.6 million.

Caetano (1997, 565-572). noted in his studies that the incidence of alcohol abuse in the American society appear to be coined around socio-cultural, psychological and biological factors, (Bachman, O'Malley and Johnston (2004, 629-645) also shared the same observation in their studies as they are quoted saying that "a child who has a parent with alcohol-related disorder has higher chances of becoming an alcoholic unlike a child whose parent doesn't suffer from the same.

According to information released by the Illinois criminal justice information authority on drug arrest in the state; the report also used as indicator to measure the level of alcohol abuse in the state showed that the central Illinois is the most affected with high number of alcohol abuse related cases. Over the past two-decade the state of Illinois has posted an increase in the prevalence/incidence rate of alcohol abuse and fact that has prompted the opening of many rehabilitation centers in the state.

Preventive measures

Statistics showed that nearly more than two thousand five hundred children experiment with prescription medication that are home based and that one in every five children has abused a prescription medication. Such statistics prompted the Massachusetts legislature to enact a law that required all pharmacy's located within the Commonwealth region to display in their counters or rather fifty feet from the counter an offer for sale of medical lock box that are designed for home consumption. Concurrently there have been products that were developed to act as a preventive measure, an example of this is the Rx Drug SAFE, which is a medical box designed for homes and only opens after recognizing an authorized fingerprint the Rx Drug SAFE helps to prevent unauthorized access to the prescription medication mostly by the minors, thereby preventing drug or medication abuse.

Similar move has been touted by medical specialists who have suggested that parents lock alcoholic substances away from reach of their children who seeming turn to alcohol abusers when their parents are away.

Treatment

Jaffe (2005, 284-324) in his studies applied the behavioral theory in his suggestion of a treatment plan for drug abusers, he stipulates that there are behavioral medication and interventions that are currently available and can be used to help drug abusers reduce or quit from their drug abuse behavior. Behavioral psychologist have outlined an evidenced based intervention for drug users key among them include motivational interviewing, behavioral marital therapy, exposure therapy, community reinforcement approach and pharmacological therapy which is series of medication that has been approved for the treatment of drug abuse. These comprise of replacement therapy and antagonist medications.

Impact of drug abuse

According to statistics released by the Centre for disease control, alcohol abuse has led to the increased number of traffic accidents in the U.S. As there are over one hundred thousand annually reported cases alcohol related deaths on the road and related injuries.

Bachman, O'Malley and Johnston (2004, 47) attributed the nearly half of the cases of rape in the U.S. To be caused by alcohol abuse, alcoholic parents were more likely to abuse their children and more than forty percent cases of suicide are related to alcohol abuse.

The American economy hasn't being spared either, as reports show that in the year 1999 alcohol abuse cost the economy a whooping 150 billion dollars and the number of babies who are born with problems attributed to their mothers alcohol disorder is also alarming, for example 2.9% of every one thousand live births in the United States have fetal alcohol syndrome

In the United Kingdom reports from the Home Office show that that drug abuse has caused the society and the country's economy a staggering twenty billion pounds annually in terms of the drug related absenteeism, sickness and crime.

Effective visuals Example 1:

These photos illustrate the neighbor next door, a middle class woman in her mid thirties, on Methamphetamine (also known as: ice, speed, or crystal). Over the course of ten years these photo shows what methamphetamine has done to the physical appearance of this woman.

Example 2

This graph shows the statistics of people who use certain drugs ranging from all ages. Marijuana is the most common drug used among teenager. Millions of people use each of these drugs some more often than other.

Conclusion

Drug abuse not only in the American society but also in the World as a whole poses an alarming danger to the survival of the entire universe, because at least 1.8 million deaths in each year are attributed to drug causes and the damage to human life also know as DALY's, that occur annually attribute sixty percent to drug abuse.

The essay has tried to spell out even the good of drug using the case example of marijuana, which has been touted for its' medicinal benefits. However, this positive attribute to marijuana has been quickly down washed by the dangers it poses to users and also the fact that drugs are easily addictive makes no drugs or substance any better. Take the example of simple pain killer, once the pain is going people tend to rely on them when the pain comes back creating dependency that will eventually turn to abuse.

Responsive measures such as the "healthy people 2020 objectives" should be encouraged and other preventive measure should be put in place to prevent drug abuse and dependency from becoming a national disaster. The impact of drug abuse that have been mentioned justify the need for more expenditure of resources for dealing with the problem and the study recommends that this problem could be resolved effectively if more focus was given on maternal homes where prescription drugs or alcohol consumption initially starts.

Work cited

Anthony, J. C and Helzer, J.E. (1995) Epidemiology of drug dependence Textbook in psychiatric epidemiology New York: Wiley & Son..

Bachman, J.G., O'Malley, P.M., and Johnston, L.D. (2004) Drug use among young adults: The

impacts of role status and social environment Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,

Caetano, R. (1997). Prevalence, incidence and stability of drinking problems among whites,

Glasscote, R.M., Sussex, J.N., Jaffe, J.H., Ball, J., Brill, L. (2002). The Treatment of Drug Abuse for people like you...: Programs, Problems, Prospects. Washington, D.C.: Joint Information Service of the American Psychiatric Association and the National Association for Mental Health.

Jaffe, J.H. (2005). Drug addiction and drug abuse. In L.S. Goodman & A. Gilman (Eds.) The pharmacological basis of therapeutics (5th ed.). New York: MacMillan

Lowinson, Joyce H; Ruiz, Pedro; Millman, Robert B; Langrod, John G (2005), Substance Abuse: A Comprehensive Textbook (4th ed.), Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins,

O'Donohue, W; K.E. Ferguson (2006). "Evidence-Based Practice in Psychology and Behavior Analysis" The Behavior Analyst Today