The Prescription Drugs are Abused: Background and Effects - Research Paper Example

 This paper discusses the ways in which prescription drugs are abused, their background and affects will also be highlighted. The causal factors that result in the misuse of drugs have been discussed in detail and the possible preventive measures that can be taken to overcome this problem have also been mentioned. Issues related to society and health is of keen consideration. Abuse of Prescription Drugs It is important to understand what abuse of prescription drugs is before the entire problem and it’s after effects are analyzed. Abuse of prescription drugs is of two types; it can be either in the form of taking medicines that have not been prescribed or not consuming it as per the prescription i.e. for different cause or dosage. Due to drug abuse, an individual’s health is adversely affected and can consequently result in addiction. The most commonly abused drugs are pain killers, anti-depressants and stimulants. The medicines that are under discussion are pain killers such as codeine and morphine based drugs. Sometimes it’s not the overdosing of prescribed medicines that result in the mentioned consequences; scientific researches have proven that different chemicals and compounds when mixed together can result in hazardous reactions and has often resulted in death cases. Therefore it is advised to get the prescription form one pharmacy rather than a combination and following the prescription of someone even if they have the same disease should be strictly avoided. The purpose of prescription drugs is often misunderstood; often people think that experimenting with prescription medicines enables them to lose weight, stay fit or even study efficiently. One more fact that adds to this nuisance is the availability of prescription drugs; researches show that prescription drugs are often sold without the prescription of the doctor. There is a misconception among the majority that prescribed medicines are less harmful than the street drugs since they have been prescribed by the doctor hence they use it according to the amount they think is right. What people fail to understand is that the medicine has been prescribed to some other person after careful and thorough examination by the doctor and the same conditions would not apply on them. Such situations often lead to harmful results, side effects and addiction. This is quite a serious issue since individuals who follow others prescription or even share it with an acquaintance are actually breaking a law. (Jeremy, 64) Abuse of Prescription Drugs – History The abuse of prescription drugs is as old as its use to treat illness. However in the 19th century, the rate of drug abuse started taking toll. Initially this industry was not regulated and no laws were developed to restrict the use of prescription drugs. Later on when the issues of drug abuse started arising, the government started taking measures so as to regulate and maintain a check and balance system to prevent drug abuse and special attention was paid to pain killers. Regardless of the fact, drug abuse is still on the high rise. In the early 19th century, essential chemicals such as morphine, codeine and cocaine were removed from medicines and sold independently. This activity was not regulated and the issue was not given much importance and consideration. The physicians were totally unaware of the harmful effects related to this and prescribed them without through checkups in undefined amount which gave rise to addiction. Prescription drugs were made available online, sold by retailers in all drugstores. The medicines were easy to approach and were provided without proper prescription, easy access and lack of information combined together and gave rise to uncontrolled addiction of drugs. Sigmund Freud himself treated several cocaine addicted patients since it was preliminarily used as an anesthetic medicine. The civil war gave rise to unregulated use of morphine since it was used to cure all types of illness and also for the treatment of wounds and injuries. As a result the patients returned home with an addiction and needles were also made available for the deliverance of this drug. Along with this, use of codeine and cocaine was also on the rise since it could be purchased without any prescription. Another medicine-opium was also being used very frequently for the sake of pleasure and researches have revealed that in the late 20th century a figure of 25,000 addicts were found in America for fervent use of opium. In the early 21st century, prescription pain killers, tranquilizers and relievers were continuously being used in an abusive manner despite the awareness programs. According to the results of researches and surveys, the trend of misusing prescription medicines is equal among both teenagers and elders. Research reveals that the number of addicts has risen from 600,000 to 2.5 million over the decade. It is said that even the sale of marijuana and cocaine is not as high as that of prescription drugs in which pain killers top the list. (Jane, 200) Side Effects of Prescription Drug Abuse Abuse of prescription drugs is on the toll in America as well as in other parts of the world. The obsession of taking prescription drugs happens very silently so much so that the other person is not even aware of it until it is too late. Majority of the people believe that taking prescribed drugs is less harmful as compared to the street drugs however that is not the case. Prescribed drugs have proven to be equally harmful if not taken in the correct manner. Pain killers are the most commonly abused drugs and they can cause drowsiness, lethargy, dizziness, slow and uneven breathing, weary eyelids and deficient concentration when taken in small amounts. On the other side pain killers can be fatal if they are taken in large quantity. Some of its signs and symptoms are contraction of pupils, cold skin that can ultimately turn blue or moist. Intake of pain killers for longer period of time can result into mood swings, inconsistency in the menstrual cycle, contraction of pupils and constipation. Individuals abusing pain killers will ultimately find themselves addicted in a very short period of time. They would require higher dosages to subside the pain. On avoiding its use signs of anxiety, pain in the bone, diarrhea, shivers, hot flashes and nausea are observed. (Karla, 54) Societal Effects Drug abuse has proved to be very harmful and has resulted in devastating effects as far as the individual’s health and the societal issues are concerned. Due to drug abuse, the user starts experiencing nausea, lethargy, drowsiness etc due to which he feels unfit to move around in the society and it gets difficult to socialize. Ultimately relationships, friendships and professional connections start eroding. The most prominent effect of drug abuse is isolation. A time comes when a connection is developed only between the user and drug consequently splitting up all other relationships. The user reaches a stage where he needs higher quantities of drug and it becomes difficult to adjust it in the financial budget, hence the user ends up investing in the medicine ignoring all other responsibilities. Those connections which are very close to the drug abuser are the ones that are affected the most. The drug abuser fails to maintain between the relationships due to which they become dysfunctional and are stained when the acquaintance realizes the effects due to the drug addiction. Due to drug abuse, the most common problem that is observed is drug addiction due to which the family is affected the most. Relationships require love, trust and stability to flourish, due to drug abuse these factors vanish from a relationship causing it to shatter. Professional life is also badly influenced due to this problem; user’s health starts declining which increases the rate of absenteeism and the career is at stake sometimes resulting in loss of job. Not only is the user affected by the abuse of pain killers but they are also a source of inflicting bad affects on the society. First of all the family of the user is affected since the children fail to receive proper care and guidance because the parents are too busy fulfilling their own needs. It is observed that teenagers, who are raised in such homes where drug abuse is common, tend to take this problem lightly failing to recognize its severity and consequences. They ultimately end up indulging in the similar activities which can also lead to addiction. (David, 32) Health Issues Several pain killers include a high quantity of codeine and morphine which can be hazardous for health if not taken in the prescribed quantity. A high dose of these medicines can cause dizziness, drowsiness, hallucinations, loss of memory and actions with which the user is not familiar. Pain killers come in tablets, capsules or syrup and are normally swallowed however for drug abusers not only use high dose but also extract ingredients such as morphine and codeine and snort them. This can be very dangerous and can rupture the nose line causing bleeding and other adverse affects. Small doses can help in subsiding pain whereas high dosage can lead to fever, obscured vision, dizziness, hot flashes, vomiting, nausea, palpitation, high and low blood pressure, unclear speech, irritated skin, unconsciousness, stomach pain, spasms, brain damage and death. There is both short term as well as long term effects that occur due to the misuse of prescription drugs. (Diane, 400) First of all the short term effects will be listed: Loss of appetite Increase in blood pressure, heart rate and fever Pupil dilation Vomiting Nausea Mood swings Enthusiastic and involuntary movements The long term effects have been listed below: Deteriorated blood vessels of heart and brain which results in heart attack, heart failure and high blood pressure Other organs such as kidney, liver and lungs are injured Rupture of vessels along the nose line Loss of weight and eyesight Unconsciousness and confused attitude Psychotic attitude Causes of Drug Abuse A common perception, regarding drug abuse and its cause, is that it is purely a social problem. This common misdiagnosis can lead the stakeholders astray from the real problems that are known to trigger such acts of misguidance on the part of the children. Commonly, people believe that drug abusers have control over their system and they can stop whenever they want to. The causes of drug abuses are many; there are many different aspects of life that contribute towards such a habit development. There is no single factor that can directly point towards a future drug abuse tendency. In a broad spectrum, there are two major reasons for which drug abuse is triggered; they are the biological factors or the psychological factors. (NIDA, 2010) The risk factors play a dominant role in the development of drug abuse tendencies. The greater the risk factors present in an individual, the greater are the chances of introduction of such a habit in the future 1. Biology, surprisingly, is on risk factor; the kind of genes people are born, coupled with the environment and the ethnicity- all contribute towards the development of such a habit. 2. Environment is the second most important factor; the environment includes family friends and society. Factors such as peer pressure, physical and sexual abuse, stress related issues and parental involvement level; can trigger drug abuse. Peer pressure is considered on the top of this list (Drug Addiction Support, 2010). 3. Development of the habit throughout the years is also an important factor. Although drug abuse can start happening at any point of age, it is not restricted to the youth, there is a higher probability that people who taking drugs at a younger age, will develop serious drug abuse problems as they progress in their life. 4. Personality traits of a person can also direct a person towards using drugs to achieve a certain level of benefit and happiness. People are sometimes just curious to know about the effects of the unknown; they start with just an experiment and end up addicted. Depressive nature is more likely to cure its depression through the easier methods of drug abuse; people suffering from depression are more likely to find their peace with drugs. 5. Peer pressure is the most known cause of drug abuse. In the adolescent age, kids want to be cool, considered cool by their society and their peers; they want to identify with the circle they are going around with, leading to adopting habits which they know may be harmful. This peer pressure is not only present at the adolescent age; it takes many forms at different age levels. For example, there is social pressure to drink in parties. 6. Anxiety can form a cause of drug abuse as well. For some people, when coping with everyday life and issues becomes a problem, drugs are used to deal with the situation. 7. Lack of attachment with family: most of the drug abuse profiles also have a weak relationship with their family; the parents are not attached to the children, not involved in their activities and basically leave the children to feel helpless without any strong bonds. (Larry, 233) Preventive Measures of Drug Abuse Substance abuse, or drug abuse, has become common in a liberal society that we are living in. It is increasingly difficult to keep a check on the youth, from a parent’s perspective. Also, controlling such habits is in the hands of the youth themselves. The reasons for which such abuse starts are known to all- peer pressure is the most common of all. However, it is through the peers only, that such actions can also be inhibited. There are a number of ways through which such abuse can be controlled- both by the supervisors or the people who are addicted to drug abuse. This ailment is not only common amongst the youth, but contaminates all walks and ages of society. The signs of risk that a person may end up being a drug abuser are evident from childhood. If a child in general is aggressive, lacks self control on his/her actions or possesses a difficult temperament, may later become to be a drug abuser. The interactions that the person has with its family, social circle may affect the way the thoughts about drug abuse are ingrained in the mind. The causes of drug abuse have been discussed earlier – the preventive measures that parents can take from the start, to prevent drug abusive nature in the future are discussed further in this section. For families and parents to make sure that their children are away from the evils of drug abuse, they should work on developing closeness amongst the family- an attachment where the members of the family feel they are part of a system. They are cared for, they are loved and they will be heard when they want to be heard. This is the basic building block for a successful family system as well as highly important for the future actions of the members of the family. All in all, a strong bond between the parents and the children can be fruitful in inhibiting future drug abuse in the children later in life. Parental involvement in the life of children, their likes and dislikes and wants, also help in building a strong relationship between the children and their parents. This can also help parents realize early signs of drug abuse, if there are any, in their children. If the bond of mutual trust is strong between them, it is highly possible that the children will not drift towards abuse. Also, declaration of clear limits and reinforcing discipline from the start of nurturing can help in building the conscience and thinking of the children. Also, children learn a lot from their parents – the parents themselves should be model examples of how to conduct one under different circumstances To summarize the major points, parents should 1. Try to establish and maintain excellent communication with their children, providing attention to all their kids. 2. Get involved in the lives of their children, to help them build a mutual relationship of trust, supporting their activities and help them to manage their problems. 3. Establish clear rules and reinforce them with rewards and punishments from the start. 4. Become role models for their children to follow and guide them in choosing their friends wisely. Peer pressure is one of the most common reasons for drug abuse 5. National Drug Abuse surveys have indicated that some of the children start abuse at the tender age of 12 or 13. In changing times, there is a higher risk for such a habit to get started. Changing schools, or going through a divorce, moving – may all triggers insecurities and questions in the mind of adolescent children, later transforming into drug abuse. (Russell, 100) Conclusion The trend of drug abuse is increasing day by day despite the preventive measures and laws imposed by the government. It is not only affecting the teenagers but the elders are also involved in this hazardous habit. It is the responsibility of the government to introduce awareness programs and improvise the condition of the rehabilitation centers so that the majority understands and recognizes the dangers that are associated with the misuse of prescription medicines and do not indulge in this harmful habit. People should be made aware that not only street drugs are harmful but the prescription medicines can prove to be equally harmful if not taken according to the prescribed manner. It is also the duty of the physicians and pharmacists not to sell these medicines unless the prescription is provided to them and should in turn guide their customers. For people who are already suffering from drug addiction, proper rehabilitation services should be provided along with simultaneous guidance program so that they recover and do not indulge in this fatal activity in future. Families and society should help the patients and addicts rather than excluding them from their gatherings. They should be welcomed in the societal gatherings so that they don’t feel isolated. Parents should take proper care in keeping a check on their kids and the company they dwell in. Works Cited David, Brizer. Clinical Addiction Psychiatry. Cambridge University Press. 2000. Diane, Hales. An Invitation to Health. Cengage Learning. 2008. Jane, Ballantyne. Bonica’s Management of Pain. Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. 2009. Jeremy, Roberts. Prescription Drug Abuse. The Rosen Publishing Group. 2000. Karla, Fitzhugh. Prescription Drug Abuse. Heinemann Library. 2005. Larry, Siegel. Criminology. Cengage Learning. 2008. Russell, Raymond. Drug Abuse: Why it Happens and How to Prevent It. Valley Publishers. 2001. Read More