Substance Abuse And Its Effects - 1707 Words

According to Dictionary.com, substance abuse is defined as a â€Å"long-term, pathological use of alcohol or drugs, characterized by daily intoxication, inability to reduce consumption, and impairment in social or occupational functioning; broadly, alcohol or drug addiction (dictionary.com).† Substance use can include anything from alcohol to any variety of drugs, prescription or illicit. Responsible alcohol use is considered being no more than 3 drinks for a woman and no more than 5 for a man in a single setting. Proper prescription medication use means only using the medication as it is recommended, or prescribed, by a doctor. Any other use of the medication falls under substance abuse and can put a person on the substance use disorder†¦show more content†¦This same perspective was the one that set the precedence for drug abuse prevention programs and for the rehab facilities. The treatment modalities tended to be designed with an emphasis on the needs of the male clientele with the female clientele being pushed through a one size fits all style treatment. This started to change in the 1980’s after the second wave of the women’s movement occurred. Women began to question science’s conclusions that pointed to a male oriented bias in research, hypothesis and design (Anderson, p 286). Once questioned and pushed, researchers of substance use began using what is known as the â€Å"gender lens† approach. The gender lens tool was created by Dr. Anna Day at the University of Toronto. She believed that all areas of health and health care are influenced by gender. The idea was based on the belief of how glasses correct our vision, so could a metaphorical â€Å"gender lens† correct our view on gender, allowing attention to be focused on specific fender differences and needs of medical care that do require more research. It was an approach that looked at both genders separately and compared their different ou tcomes based on the specified genders, not based on the total usage (Van Koughnett, The Gender Lens). The treatment modality for substance abuse used to be a one size fits all treatment that was geared toward the male population. Dr. Tammy AndersonShow MoreRelatedSubstance Abuse And Its Effects1575 Words   |  7 PagesSUBSTANCE ABUSE Researchers state that almost half of individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia in the United States also self-medicate with alcohol and other drugs (Elements Behavioral Health, 2014). This is suggested due to individuals attempting to lessen the symptoms of their disorder. As discussed previously symptoms can include hearing and seeing things that others don’t hear or see, problems falling asleep or staying asleep and problems with concentration and memory. In an effort to lessenRead MoreThe Effects Of Substance Abuse1111 Words   |  5 PagesOpiate abuse in the United States is an epidemic. It is argued whether addiction is being handled correctly, and if the amount of resources for combating addiction should be increased. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, â€Å"The number of past-year heroin users in the United States nearly doubled between 2005 and 2012, from 380,000 to 670,000† (2014). This nation-wide increase of heroin abusers leads to another i ssue: how to treat them. One method of treatment is giving them another medicationRead MoreSubstance Abuse And Its Effects Essay2001 Words   |  9 PagesSubstance abuse has long been a major problem in our society, with estimations reaching as high as 250 million people worldwide that have used the illicit drug at least once in 2014, and causing more than two hundred thousand drug-related deaths each year (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2016; hereafter UNODC). However, it is not just forbidden substances that are a major cause of harms to individuals but also commonly used recreational drugs, such as alcohol and tobacco products that accountRead MoreSubstance Abuse And Its Effects On Society1285 Words   |  6 PagesSubstance abuse has existed since the start of civilization and it is an ever present entity in the modern era as well. Distilled beverages were the main drinking source in many cases even safer to drink than water in early civilizations, for instance durin g the Middle Ages. Many substances were also used in medicine derived from certain plants for anesthetics such as opioids from poppy seeds. In addition, nicotine and tobacco products and other hallucinogenic substances were used for recreationalRead MoreThe Effects Of Substance Abuse On Children1364 Words   |  6 Pagesare 50% more likely to abuse substances (Promises Treatment Center). Bullying is the act of physical or verbal tormenting over a set amount of time, usually targeted at one person or a group of people. Bullying is an international issue that ruins the victim s emotional well-being. Those who are victims of bullying can turn to drugs or other substances as a form of coping; people who bully can be shown to have abusive tendencies with these substances as well. Substance abuse is defined as being dependentRead MoreThe Effects Of Substance Abuse On Children1443 Words   |  6 Pagessubstance it can lead to impairment or distress in many different ways such as, â€Å" recurrent substance use resulting in a failure to fulfill major role obligations at work, school, or home, recurrent substance use in situations in which it is physically hazardous, recurrent substance-related legal problems, continued substance use despite having persistent or recurrent social or interpersonal problems caused or exacerbated by the effects of the substance† (Susic, 2007). According to the Foster CareRead MoreSubstance Abuse And Its Effects On Society Essay1579 Words   |  7 PagesAmerica’s silent killer, substance abuse. Substance abuse affects the user and everyone that they are around and most of the time the user doesn’t even realize nor care that it affects other people because they are consumed by the substances. These substances have the power to dramatically change people’s lives, such as the physical toll it takes on our body, the ways in which it corrupts our metal process, and the detrimental effects it has on our social lives. Most substances that are used in our societyRead MoreThe Effects Of Substance Abuse On The Community844 Words   |  4 Pageseven some adults tend to try and find a short term fix to a long term problem. leading many students to substance use. Many of them use drugs and alcohol to help distance themselves from the stress they are faced with. A community with a large number of substance abusers is almost guaranteed to come with more violence, theft, and even gang activity compared to a community where substance abuse is low. Having students stay away from drugs will greatly lower the violence and theft in the communityRead MoreSubstance Abuse And Its Effect On Education1348 Words   |  6 PagesSubstance Abuse and its Effect on Education Drug abuse is a serious public health problem that affects almost every community and family in some way. Each year drug abuse causes millions of serious illnesses or injuries among Americans. A study done in John Hopkins University School of Medicine, found that individuals who are unemployed have higher rates of substance abuse than those who are regularly employed. Five hundred and fifty nine participants, who were unemployed, at least eighteen yearsRead MoreThe Effects Of Substance Abuse On Adolescents1651 Words   |  7 Pagesthis time, there can be a lot of room for error or misjudgements. One very common bad decision is substance use and abuse. Although drug and alcohol use is common and many users don’t develop a dependence on the substances, the adolescents who end up developing the disorders of substance abuse and dependence make substance use a major public health concern (Sanchez-Samper, Knight, p. 83). Substance abuse can lead to many developmental problems in ad olescents. Problems experienced by adolescents who