Home
Addictions BLOG
Drug Addiction
Prescription Drugs
Generation Rx
Illegal Drugs
Signs & Symptoms
Teen Drug Abuse
Alcohol Addiction
Teen Alcohol Abuse
Binge Drinking
Sex Drugs Alcohol
Signs Of Alcoholism
Domestic Violence
Depression
Self-Esteem
Stress
Addiction Counselor
Christian Counsel
Intervention
Drug Alcohol Detox
Drug Alcohol Rehab
Drug Rehab
Alcohol Rehab
Teen Rehab
Christian Rehab
Holistic Rehab
Rehab Virtual Tours
12 Step Program
12 Steps & The Bible
12 Step eCourse
Relapse Prevention
Health & Nutrition
Eating Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
BiPolar Disorder
Self-Help
Drug Alcohol Videos
Alcohol Videos
Sobriety Mall
Contact Us
About Us
FREE Ezine
Work From Home
YOUR Page
Prayer For You
Addiction Scriptures
60 Seconds Of Truth
Advertise With Us
Resources
Teleseminars
Rehab Guide
Christian Recovery
Donations
Quit Smoking
Link To Us

[?] Subscribe To This Site

XML RSS
Add to Google
Add to My Yahoo!
Add to My MSN
Subscribe with Bloglines

Drug Addiction

What Is Drug Addiction?

Drug Addiction Addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences. It is considered a
brain disease because drugs change the brain, they change its structure and how it works.

These brain changes can be long lasting, and can lead to harmful behaviors seen in people who abuse drugs.

Because of drug addiction in the home, family members or friends may behave in ways that allow an addict to continue to use drugs or alcohol; these people are called enablers (also referred to as codependents when their own needs are intertwined with the addict's continued use).

Enablers may call in sick for an addict or make excuses for the addict's behavior. The enabler may plead with the addict to stop using drugs or alcohol but rarely does anything else to help the addict change their behavior.


Studies find that more people enter treatment if their family members or employers are honest with them about their concerns, and try to help them to see that drugs are preventing them from reaching their goals. (Intervention)

What is Substance Abuse?

Substance abuse is the use of mind-altering drugs without medical need.
If there is continued use, it may threaten the quality of life or health and safety of the abuser and others. Dependence can be very powerful and difficult to overcome.

The body adapts to the continuous use of a drug that produces dependence. This dependence can develop a tolerance and withdrawal symptoms when use stops. Tolerance is the need to use progressively larger amounts of a drug to reproduce the original effects achieved with the starting amount.

Substance Abuse Overdose of a drug may occur as part of drug abuse.

With some drugs, an overdose may even be fatal. Although mind-altering drugs are typically the ones that
are abused the most, other drugs that do not alter the mind are often abused.

Drug addiction occurs in all socioeconomic groups and involves highly educated and professional people as well as those who are uneducated and unemployed.

Withdrawal symptoms occur when drug use is stopped or when the drug's effects are blocked by another drug. A person undergoing withdrawal from drug addiction feels sick and may develop headaches, diarrhea, or shaking (tremors). Withdrawal can evoke a serious and even life-threatening illness.

Drug Addiction And Substance Abuse Statistics

Drug addiction to alcohol, nicotine, and illegal substances cost Americans upwards of half a trillion dollars a year, considering their combined medical, economic, criminal, and social impact.

Every year, abuse of illicit drugs and alcohol contributes to the death of more than 100,000 Americans, while tobacco is linked to an estimated 440,000 deaths per year.

People of all ages suffer the harmful consequences of drug addiction.

  • Drug Rehab Babies
    exposed to legal and illegal drugs in the womb may be born premature and underweight. This drug exposure can slow the child's intellectual development and affect behavior later in life.
  • Adolescents who abuse drugs often act out, do poorly academically, and drop out of school. They are at risk of unplanned pregnancies, violence, and infectious diseases.
  • Adults who abuse drugs often have problems thinking clearly, remembering, and paying attention. They often develop poor social behaviors as a result of their drug abuse, and their work performance and personal relationships suffer.
  • Parents' drug abuse often means chaotic, stress-filled homes and child abuse and neglect. Such conditions harm the well-being and development of children in the home and may set the stage for drug abuse and drug addiction in the next generation.


How does science provide solutions for drug addiction?

Scientists study the effects that drugs have on the brain and on people's behavior. They use this information to develop programs for preventing drug abuse and for helping people recover from addiction. Further research helps transfer these ideas into practice in our communities.

Why do people take drugs?

In general, people begin taking drugs for a variety of reasons:

  • To feel good. Most abused drugs produce intense feelings of pleasure. This initial sensation of euphoria is followed by other effects, which differ with the type of drug used.

    For example, with stimulants such as cocaine, the "high" is followed by feelings of power, self-confidence, and increased energy. In contrast, the euphoria caused by opiates such as heroin is followed by feelings of relaxation and satisfaction.

  • To feel better. Some people who suffer from social anxiety, stress-related disorders, and depression begin abusing drugs in an attempt to lessen feelings of distress. Stress can play a major role in beginning drug use, continuing drug abuse, or relapse in patients recovering from addiction.
  • To do better. The increasing pressure that some individuals feel to chemically enhance or improve their athletic or cognitive performance can similarly play a role in initial experimentation and continued drug abuse.
  • Curiosity and "because others are doing it." In this respect adolescents are particularly vulnerable because of the strong influence of peer pressure; they are more likely, for example, to engage in "thrilling" and "daring" behaviors.

drug abuse

If taking drugs make people feel good…what's the problem?

At first, people may perceive what seem to be positive effects with drug use. They also may believe that they can control their use; however, drugs can quickly take over their lives.

Over time, if drug use continues, pleasurable activities become less pleasurable, and drug abuse becomes necessary for abusers to simply feel "normal."

Drug abusers reach a point where they seek and take drugs, despite the tremendous problems caused for themselves and their loved ones. Some individuals may start to feel the need to take higher or more frequent doses, even in the early stages of their drug use.

Is continued drug abuse a voluntary behavior?

The initial decision to take drugs is mostly voluntary. However, when drug abuse takes over, a person's ability to exert self-control can become seriously impaired.

Brain imaging studies from drug-addicted individuals show physical changes in areas of the brain that are critical to judgment, decision making, learning and memory, and behavior control. Scientists believe that these changes alter the way the brain works, and may help explain the compulsive and destructive behaviors of addiction.



Why do some people become addicted to drugs, while others do not?

As with any other disease, vulnerability to addiction differs from person to person. In general, the more risk factors an individual has, the greater the chance that taking drugs will lead to abuse and addiction. "Protective" factors reduce a person's risk of developing addiction.

What factors determine if a person will become addicted?

No single factor determines whether a person will become addicted to drugs. The overall risk for addiction is impacted by the biological makeup of the individual.

It can even be influenced by gender or society, his or her developmental stage, and the surrounding social environment (e.g., conditions at home, at school, and in the neighborhood).

What environmental factors increase the risk of drug addiction?

  • Home and Family. The influence of the home environment is usually most important in childhood. Parents or older family members who abuse alcohol or drugs, or who engage in criminal behavior, can increase children's risks of developing their own drug problems.

  • Peer and School. Friends and acquaintances have the greatest influence during adolescence. Drug-abusing peers can sway even those without risk factors to try drugs for the first time. Academic failure or poor social skills can put a child further at risk for drug abuse.

    What other factors increase the risk of drug addiction?

  • Early Use. Although taking drugs at any age can lead to addiction, research shows that the earlier a person begins to use drugs the more likely they are to progress to more serious abuse.

    This may reflect the harmful effect that drugs can have on the developing brain; it also may result from early biological and social factors, including genetic limitation, mental illness, unstable family relationships, and exposure to physical or sexual abuse.

    Still, the fact remains that early use is a strong indicator of problems ahead, among them, substance abuse and addiction.

  • Taking the Drug. Smoking a drug or injecting it into a vein increases its addictive potential. Both smoked and injected drugs enter the brain within seconds, producing a powerful rush of pleasure.

    However, this "intense high" can fade within a few minutes. This server felt contrast, has lead scientists to believe this low feeling drives individuals to repeated drug abuse in an attempt to recapture the high pleasurable state.


How do drugs work in the brain to produce pleasure?

All drugs of abuse directly or indirectly target the brain's reward system by flooding the circuit with dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter present in regions of the brain that regulate movement, emotion, cognition, motivation, and feelings of pleasure.

The over stimulation of this system, which rewards our natural behaviors, produces the euphoric effects sought by people who abuse drugs and teaches them to repeat the behavior.

How does stimulation of the brain's pleasure circuit teach us to keep taking drugs?

Our brains are wired to ensure that we will repeat life-sustaining activities by associating those activities with pleasure or reward.

Whenever this reward circuit is activated, the brain notes that something important is happening that needs to be remembered, and teaches us to do it again and again, without thinking about it. Because drugs of abuse stimulate the same circuit, we learn to abuse drugs in the same way.

Can Drug Addiction Be Treated Successfully?

Yes. Drug Addiction is a treatable disease. Discoveries in the science of addiction have led to advances in drug abuse treatment that help people stop abusing drugs and resume their productive lives. Drug Alcohol Rehab


Can Drug Addiction Be Cured?

There is no cure…only recovery. Like other chronic diseases, addiction can be managed successfully. Treatment enables people to counteract addiction's powerful disruptive effects and regain control of their lives.



Prescription Drugs Generation Rx Illegal Drugs Drug Rehab

Drug Alcohol Counselor Signs-Symptoms Addiction Bible Scriptures

The first step towards recovery is selecting the right Drug Rehab Program for you.

Drug abusers often requires rehabilitation in a drug addiction treatment center to truly find sobriety and maintain it.



Drug Addiction

New Release!

Drug Abuse

How To STOP The Madness!

Instant Download

Click HERE!

Get A In Depth Look At One Of The Most Noteworthy Guides On Drug Abuse Available On The Market Today!

This (79-page) drug abuse handbook is extremely informative and helpful. You can't find such a complete guide like this in any store, on the internet, or even at your local library.

It doesn't matter if you have concerns about your own drug use or you're just looking for answers...this guide is loaded with incredible insight on drug abuse!

Ask yourself, has the use of drugs taken over my life? Are you finally looking to break the cycle? Do you or someone you know need some help?

Here's a "small preview" of what you'll discover in
Drug Abuse - How To STOP The Madness!

  • Why People Use Drugs
  • The Attraction Of Illegal Drugs
  • The Innocence Of Prescription Drugs
  • The Pull Of Nicotine
  • Identifying Drug Problems
  • Spotting Signs In Others
  • How Addiction Works
  • What Happens At Rehab?
  • Safe Detoxing
  • Do The 12-Steps Work?
  • Building Self-Esteem
  • Involving The Family
  • Intervention (How To Do It)
  • Staying Clean and Sober
  • Teens And Drugs ("Startling Information")
This ebook is for both the addicted and for those who have a loved one battling addiction. PLUS, you get this...

12-Page "Special Report" BONUS!

Prescription Drugs

Prescription Drugs

Abuse And Addiction

An estimated 48 million people (ages 12 and older) have used prescription drugs for non-medical reasons in their lifetimes.

A survey of 8th, 10th, 12th graders reported using Vicodin without a prescription in the past year, and 50 percent reported using OxyContin making these medications among the most commonly abused prescription drugs by adolescents.

The biggest bonus of all is that you can be reading both of these ebooks in less than 90 seconds from now!

Click HERE!

to get your Drug Abuse - How To STOP The Madness! ebook and
Prescription Drugs - Abuse And Addiction "BONUS Report" now!

You Also Get A Full 30-Day No-Risk 100% Money Back Guarantee!

At anytime from the date of your purchase up until a FULL 30-DAYS, if you’re not completely satisfied with the Drug Abuse - How To STOP The Madness! ebook, just send a simple email and you’ll get a prompt and courteous REFUND, no questions asked!

(Note: Refund email: robert@recoverynetwork.info
and it's also posted on the download page)

Click HERE To Get Yours NOW!


Don't Forget To Sign Up For Your FREE Ezine!

Recovery Network FREE Ezine The Recovery Network Ezine called:
"Breaking News" On Addictions & Recovery

will be a monthly resource of fresh up-to-date information from people who have been-there-
done-that and learned how to live happy, joyous and free in Recovery, one-day-at-a-time.

You'll get the latest information on what's happening in the "Addictions Recovery Industry." Click HERE To Sign Up!

To Read Back Issues - Click HERE

GO TO Sobriety Mall

Drug Addiction - Go to TOP OF PAGE

You can SEARCH this entire website by adding a Keyword(s) to the Google Search Box to find the exact topic you are looking for.
(i.e., drugs, alcohol, teen drug abuse, statistics, etc.)

Google
 


footer for Drug Addiction page