Drug Abuse: An Alarming Global Trend - Essay Sample

Introduction

Drug abuse is the exercise of definite element for a reason for constructing pleasurable effects in the brain. In the world, there are over 190 million drug users around the world, and the hitch has been escalating at alarming rates, more than ever among young adults below the age of 30. Apart from the long term damage to the body drug abuse causes, drug addicts who use needles are also at risk of contracting HIV and hepatitis B and C infections.

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Drugs of abuse go down keen on three groups the Depressants which grounds depression of the brain's abilities. Also, there are stimulants which cause stimulation of the brain, giving rise to alertness and increased bursts of activity. A rapid heart rate, nausea or vomiting behavioral changes such as agitation and impaired judgment may also result, dilated pupils, and raised blood pressure. In severe cases, there may be delusional psychosis, which can occur with the use of cocaine and amphetamines. Besides, there are hallucinogen drugs which cause hallucinations and a fantasy sensation of dissociation from oneself. Hallucinogens can cause distorted sensory perception, mirage, paranoia, and even depression. (Schwinn et al., 2015)

Drugs that are often abused are frequently psychoactive drugs that are consumed by people for different reasons, which include: Curiosity and peer pressure, especially among school children and young adults. The use of prescription drugs that were originally intended to target pain relief may have turned into recreational use and become addictive and also as a way of acquiring creative inspiration.

The Existent Technique of Drug Abuse

The result from drugs uses influence escalation of drug abuse in several ways. The more frequent risks an adolescent is exposed to, the more probable the teenager will abuse drugs. Some risk factors become more powerful than others at certain stages in development; this include at the expense of peer pressure during the teenage years; just as some shielding factors, such as a secure parent-child connection, can have a bigger impact on plummeting risks during the early years. An important goal of prevention is to change the balance between risk and protective factors so that protective factors outweigh risk factors. (Das et al., 2016)

Several indicators of risks can be seen as soon as early childhood. The behavior is found to be aggressive, difficult temperament, or lack of self-control. As the child grows older, relations with family, at school, and within the community or the child's environs can affect that child's risk for later drug abuse. Children's first interactions happen in the family; from time to time, family situations enhance a child's risk for later drug abuse. Other factors like availability of the drug, trafficking patterns, and beliefs that drug abuse can generally be put up with are risks that can influence young people to start abusing drugs.

The main risk phases for drug abuse are during major transitions in adolescents' lives are; when they get free from the security of the parents or guardian and join the school. In the aftermath, they move forward from basic school to middle school thus often experience new academic and social experiences. It is during the early adolescence that children are likely to encounter drugs for the first time. (Bray et al., 2017)

As soon as they join high school, adolescents face additional social, emotional, and educational challenges. At the same time, they may be exposed to greater availability of drugs, drug abusers, and social activities involving drugs. These challenges can increase the risk that they will abuse alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, cocaine, heroin as mainly used drugs. When young adults leave home for college or work and are on their own for the first time, their risk for drug and alcohol abuse is very high. Consequently, young adult interventions are needed, as well.

Drug abuse imposes vast harm on health and safety around the world every year and pressures the peaceful growth and smooth functioning of many societies. The present occasions today analyze the consequences of drug abuse in the social domains; health, public safety, crime, output, and governance. The health of an Individual is greatly affected by drug abuse. Economically, the manifestation comes at the cost of prevention and treatment, health-care and hospital costs, increased unwholesomeness and mortality. On the other hand, drug abuse has Impacted on public safety; this is beyond health costs. Incite of a case scenario; drug resulted in driving accidents have become a major global threat in recent years. Additionally, a greater awareness of the impacts on the environment of illicit drug cultivation, production, and manufacture has emerged.

Furthermore, the cost of drug abuse is frequently cited in its impact on governance. Citizens in affected areas time and again live with compromised law enforcement institutions. Today, this is seen in continents, where illegal cultivation of cannabis plant, coca bush, and opium poppy continue unbridled, resulting in fewer steady government institutions and the fraud of government officials. Aside from that, Parental contact with drugs results in a display of emotional, psychological, and physical disorders. Children exposed to illicit drugs after birth may suffer important problems that need additional care. It results in both personal expense and cost to society. Adolescents exposed to drugs are at a majorly higher risk of both physical and sexual abuse, higher rates of anxiety, depression, criminal behavior, and educational and attention problems. It is enhanced by the parents who abuse drugs which are more likely to live in homes individuals also use drugs, thus exposing children to probable emotional and physical harm.

Principles and Methods of Counteracting Drug Abuse

The following key objectives form the basis of an effective counteract program to drug abuse; Addiction is a complex but treatable disease that affects brain function and behavior, no single treatment is right for everyone, people need to have quick access to treatment, effective treatment addresses all of the patient's needs, not just his or her drug use. Also, staying in treatment long enough is critical, Counseling and other behavioral therapies are the most commonly used forms of treatment. In addition, medications are often an important part of treatment, especially when combined with behavioral therapies, Treatment plans must be reviewed often and modified to fit the patient's changing needs, Treatment should address other possible mental disorders, Medically assisted detoxification is only the first stage of treatment. Moreover, treatment doesn't need to be voluntary to be effective, Drug use during treatment must be monitored continuously, Treatment programs should test patients for HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B and C, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases and as well as teach them about steps they can take to reduce their risk of these illnesses.

The following are the options that have been employed and used successfully in treating drug addiction; behavioral counseling, medication, medical devices and applications used to treat withdrawal symptoms or deliver skills training, evaluation, and treatment for co-occurring mental health issues such as depression and anxiety and long-term follow-up to prevent relapse

Conclusion

Attempts that track individuals in treatment over extended periods have shown most people who get into treatment and remain in treatment end up as nonusers to drugs, decrease their criminal activity, and improve their occupational, social, and psychological functioning. For example, methadone treatment has been shown to increase participation in behavioral therapy and decrease both drug use and criminal behavior. However, individual treatment outcomes depend on the extent and nature of the patient's problems, the appropriateness of treatment and related services used to address those problems, and the quality of interaction between the patient and his or her treatment providers.

Reference

Bray, J. W., Del Boca, F. K., McRee, B. G., Hayashi, S. W., & Babor, T. F. (2017). Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT): rationale, program overview, and crosssite evaluation. Addiction, 112, 3-11.

Das, J. K., Salam, R. A., Arshad, A., Finkelstein, Y., & Bhutta, Z. A. (2016). Interventions for adolescent substance abuse: An overview of systematic reviews. Journal of Adolescent Health, 59(4), S61-S75.

Schwinn, T. M., Thom, B., Schinke, S. P., & Hopkins, J. (2015). Preventing drug use among sexual-minority youths: findings from a tailored, web-based intervention. Journal of Adolescent Health, 56(5), 571-573.