An example of a person who gets addicted to drugs seen in the corner of the streets. These drug addicts are always looking cautiously around, doing anxiety-related behaviors, yet very discrete with these behaviors. Usually, these people are avoided by passersby and are looked at by society with judgmental eyes. It is a common fact that the acquiring of drugs are done secretly.
If we think about it, those we call addicts came from our society who participates with it normally. These people could be your own babysitter, the newspaperman, the bagel man, or even taxi driver who drives you everyday to work. Like almost everyone, these people are those who buy prescribed drugs in pharmacies. Yes. Prescription drugs could be as as any prohibited drugs. Individuals who buy drugs at the pharmacy can be as addicted to certain drugs as to those who discretely buy illegal drugs from drug dealers in the corners of every street.
Prescription drug serves its function when it is prescribed by the doctor to the patient in order to treat any health-related problems. Except, what we did not see coming was that these prescription drugs have the potential to cause dependency and addiction. Last 2007, Americans who abused prescription drugs has reached 7 million. In addition, it is a fact that prescription drug addiction also exists in other parts of the world and not just in America.
We might think that nobody is safe from addiction, even someone who has been prescribed with a drug by a medical professional. On the other hand, we should distinguish that if taken properly, these drugs need not be addictive. It is when we take more than what is prescribed that we are more likely to be a candidate for prescription drug addiction.
Opioids, depressants, and stimulants are the three types of commonly abused prescription drugs. This is according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Opioids are given to individuals who suffer chronic pain. Opiods do not just take away the feelings of pain but they also cause euphoria. This substance works by binding to opioid receptors found in the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract.
Depressants are used to treat anxiety problems, acute stress, and sleep disorders. As depressants, these drugs slow the brain’s ability to function. With long terms and large doses leading to tolerance, the body would require larger doses to reach the “relaxing” feeling caused by the drug. Consequently, this could lead to addiction.
On the other hand, stimulants are the opposites of depressants. These drugs improve brain activities, increasing energy, awareness, and alertness, and are used to treat attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and narcolepsy. Stimulants cause the heart rate to increase as well as respiration which can be interpreted by the user as euphoria.
One is diagnosed to be addicted to the drug when one needs larger amount of a drug to produce the same effects. Most often, when their physicians discontinue prescribing the drug, they go “doctor shopping”, asking friends to get hold of drugs for them. Now, that patient becomes an addict. Most of the time, elder people are the ones vulnerable to prescription drug abuse. They did not will it. Regrettably, they just have a tendency to be prescribed with more medications than the younger ones. The main cause of the increase in the occurrence of prescription drug abuse is still unknown. However, it can never be denied that convenience of the drug could be a causal factor.
Treating prescription drug would vary depending on the kind of drug the patient is addicted to The needs of the person should also be taken into account. Behavioral and pharmacological are the two main courses of drug addiction. Behavioral treatment encourages patient to end drug use and teach them how to function normally even without the drug. Counseling should go hand in hand so as to guide and follow up the patient for any development. Medication could also be of great help most especially with opioid addiction.
Any drug is not free from addiction
. To treat this addiction, one needs a good combination of behavioral and pharmacological treatment.
