Cycle+of+Substance+Abuse

Cycle of Substance Abuse =  Alcohol =  Everyone starts drinking at different times, whether you're 19 and begin drinking early, or start drinking at 40, everyone is different. Not everyone abuses alcohol for the same amount of time either, some abuse for a short amount of time, while others are dependent for life.  When a person uses alcohol to enhance the experience of social interactions, this increases the risk of dependence for that person. Alcoholics believe that they need alcohol to get through everyday situations, such as reducing stress, coping with problems and escaping from reality.

 Alcoholics usually deny the overpowering role that alcohol plays in their lives. They may secretly drink to avoid causing more problems with family or friends, and feel guilty afterwards, causing then to drink to alleviate the stress, then feel guilty, and so on, creating a cycle of abuse.

 Feeling lonely and isolated also cases reason for someone to use alcohol, depression may also be a factor in these cases, which makes alcohol a form of self medication. Alcohol relieves anxiety because of the sedative effects. However, these initial effects subside and more severe depressive symptoms follow. The Persons may drink to relieve theses symptoms. Once again, creating a cycle of abuse.

 Over the course of months of drinking, the central nervous system builds a tolerance for alcohol. Causing the person to drink larger amounts to create the desired effect.

 Withdrawl symptoms begin to appear over time, which is a sign of physical dependence. These symptoms include high blood pressure, accelerated pulse rate, and tremors when not using alcohol.  Alcohol dependence has a variable course. Sometimes having a traumatic experience such as a car accident while under the influence of alcohol will cause the person to stop drinking for a period of time, (go into remission) but only for a short period of time. The person may relapse or begin drinking again, the amount and frequency will likely increase.  There have been two courses of alcohol dependence clinically defined:  - **Young males** who begin drinking in teen years or early 20s, abuse develops rapidly. Young men with a large family history of alcoholism may become dependent within 1 or 2 years. Dependents often lasts through the 30s, and sometimes into the 50s and 60s. Of the two courses of alcohol dependence, this has the worse prognosis.  - Males and females who experience a **late onset of abuse**. There may or may not be a family history of alcoholism, and the progress from abuse to dependence is slower, taking from 5 to 15 years. The prognosis for recovery is better for this group. = Marijuana = Forget the idea of marijuana being a soft drug that does not have the potential to become an addiction. According to the NIDA, 9% of people become dependent on the drug. People who use the drug most often or every day are at a higher risk of developing an addiction. The NIDA reports that 25-50% of these users develop an addiction to marijuana. Marijuana has little or no withdrawal symptoms, leading people to believe that thus drug must not have an addiction potential. This is not the case. Users often develop withdrawal symptoms of marijuana when then try to quit cold turkey. Symptoms include anxiety, drug cravings, lack of appetite and trouble sleeping. There is a fine line between using, and abusing marijuana. Some people use every day for medical uses. Even these people may develop a tolerance and need to use larger doses to obtain the beneficial effects. They are often not considered abusers of marijuana because they are simply following Drs. orders. Other people use marijuana for recreational use. To have fun and relax with friends. They then resort to taking the drug every day, and taking it alone, not enjoying it, but feeling compelled to take it. This is when you may be crossing the line into abuse. Marijuana is also psychologically addictive. a large amount of prep is required to take the drug. Such as cleaning tools, preparing the marijuana to be smoked, rolling cigarettes, etc. Even having a person start to prepare to take the drug can start to soothe them. Marijuana is a social drug. People become accustomed to taking the drug with people. Once the drug disappears from the social interactions, people are less likely to hang out with those same people when the drug is not available. This drug is also self medicating. Meaning people use the drug to cope with every day issues. Eventually it becomes something you must do in order to feel normal. This is really what defines marijuana addiction, and this is how the cycle perpetuates itself. People get accustomed to medicating their feelings away, causing them to need to smoke it every day. Anyone can wake up one day and decide not to take the drug, but it is clear that the addiction is psychological. Most everyone who is addicted to marijuana can describe a transition that they went through with a cycle of friends. Before they had a diverse group of friends, but after taking the drug they now spend a lot of their time with friends who smoke the drug every day. To everyone else this is a huge shift in priorities, and is seen as a warning flag, but to the addict, they usually can not see this argument that they are choosing their friends based on their drug habit. The lifestyle of marijuana addiction goes beyond friendships. We get caught up in obsession about the drug on almost every level imaginable. Addicts are either using it. thinking about using it, or trying to figure out ways and means to get and purchase more of it. This lifestyle becomes consuming and this is also what leads us to call this in fact a real marijuana addiction. By: Samantha Buckley