Posting from Discussion: Substance Abuse

Drug addiction is a complex disease and itll take more than a strong will to quit, but with
successful treatments and the will to live a productive life people can stop abusing drugs.
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse the estimated total overall costs of substance
abuse in the United States, 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 for alcohol. As staggering as these numbers are, they do not fully describe the
scope of destructive public health and safety implications of drug abuse and addiction, such as
family disintegration, loss of employment, failure in school, sexual abuse, domestic violence,
elderly abuse, and child abuse.
Thinking back when I was in elementary school, I dont remember drugs as anything we talked
about. In fact, I dont recall learning anything about it until I got to middle school and we never
talked about it at home either. It wasnt until the second year in middle school when they started
talking about drugs, sex and abortion. My first encounter with a drug addict at a law firm I
worked for and she was an ex-manager at that firm, I was 26. I still remember her hand shaking
all the time, her inability to talk in full sentences or remember what she was saying, and her
locking herself in her office all the time. She left the firm not long after I started working there,
and that was ten years ago. Years later I found out that she used to be a smart and hard working
person when she started working at that firm, then she got involved in a big accident where she
was hospitalized and prescribed drugs for the pain. That was when everything started to go
downhill for her. Because of the drugs she lost her marriage, her job, her relationship with her
daughter, and the respect of her families and friends.
Personally, due to my many jobs I have not been involved in any school activities but I do recall
the school promoting drug free activities at least once a year. At home, I talk to my 7 year old
about drugs, tobaccos and alcohols. I dont taboo the subject or keep him from seeing movies
that show addicts of any kind, but I do make sure I talk to him and hear what he has to say about
what he saw. I believe a childs first education starts at home and how they understand and
proceeds with the information he absorbs is very important.
To the people who are considering drugs I would:
1. Show them videos about what can happen to a drug addict while under the influence. From
my experience in middle school where we were shown videos of girls talking about horrible
things that had happened to them while under the influence followed by videos of childbirth
and abortion pretty much did it for us. All the girls were so scared that none of us used drugs.
2. Take them to see, in person, someone whose life was destroyed by drugs. Show the worst
thing that can happen like jail, mental institution or hospital.
3. Take them to talk to someone like a psychiatrist to find out why they would consider taking
drugs and hopefully find a solution that can lead them away from drugs. Often getting to
know the person you are trying to help will make finding a solution to help a bit easier.
Remember that if someone knowing and still considering to hurt themselves then something
about them is off balance and they might need to simply talk to someone or seek professional
help. If what I can provide cant help then I would advise them to seek professional help and
I would still offer my support and company.
Other alternative they could consider that are more private would be online drug abuse helplines
such as:
http://www.recovery.org/topics/alcohol-and-drug-addiction-recovery or (888) 299-8125,
http://www.addictioncareoptions.com/drug-help or (800) 784-6776,
http://www.thegooddrugsguide.com/info/drug-helplines/index.htm or
http://www.allaboutcounseling.com/crisis_hotlines.htm or (877) 594-1851

For Teens:
Al-Anon/Alateen, (888) 425-2666 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST, Monday to Friday
http://www.al-anon.alateen.org/index.php
Crisis Call Center, (800) 273-8255 or text ANSWER to 839863, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
http://crisiscallcenter.org/crisisservices.html
The National Alcohol and Substance Abuse Information Center, (800) 784-6776, 24/7 a week
http://www.addictioncareoptions.com
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse & Alcoholism, (800) 662-HELP (4357), 24/7 a week
http://www.niaaa.nih.gov
Thursdays Child National Youth Advocacy Hotline, 800-USA-KIDS (800-872-5437), 24/7 a week
http://www.thursdayschild.org
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Responses from Discussion: Substance Abuse
Hi Jacleen,
I agree with you that a lot of people start taking some sort of drug to forget a trauma or stressor
in their life, but ends up being addicted. Most of the time theyre so drugged, they dont know
what reality is or they dont want to return to reality. Besides, it is true that even though school
warns kids about drugs they dont do anything to help get them out of it. When someone is an
addicts theyre so vulnerable and they desperately need help even though they dont ask for it.
Alienating addicts only pushes them further away from reality and possible recovery dont you
agree?
Hey Gamer,
Ive known people who started taking drugs while they were depressed. I think if a person has
depression and they dont get help then inevitably drugs can become their choice of suicide. My
stepsister had depression at every young age, but unfortunately her parents wouldnt accept it so
they never got help for her. One day she had a fight with her boyfriend, she decided to numb her
heartache by taking a whole bunch of aspirin. Her parents found out and made her throw up into
the toilet and then they decided that she should be alright. The next day they found her dead on
her bed, but not directly from the aspirin, but from a gunshot to the heart. Apparently, there were
still enough drugs in her stomach that made her drowsy enough to accomplish what she had
started without hesitation. As I was growing up I knew a lot of kids who were depressed and they
used drugs as a way to lose it. The mind is a terrible thing to lose because without it were lost.