I.

Background

Drug addiction is a complex neurobiological disease that requires integrated treatment of the
mind, body, and spirit. It is considered disease because drugs change the brain --- they change its structure
and how it works (Origins Behavioral HealthCare, 2018). Drug addiction or also known as substance abuse
disorder is a disorder that makes a person’s mind and behavior becomes not normal which leads to
uncontrollable usage of legal or illegal drug despite of the harm it causes (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2017). People
with a substance use disorder such as drug addiction have distorted thinking, behavior and body function.
Because of the changes in the brain’s wiring, it causes people to have some intense cravings for the drug
and make it hard to stop using the drugs. People in who has addictive disorder are aware of their problem
but has difficulties in stopping it even if they want to (Parekh, R. M.D., M.P.H., 2017). There is no exact
cause of substance use disorder such as drug addiction has been identified but there are factors that may
be one of the causes of it. These are a person’s genes, the action of drugs, peer pressure, emotional
distress, anxiety, depression, and environmental stress. But mostly who had this disorder have
depression, attention deficit disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, or another mental problem. A
stressful or chaotic lifestyle and low-esteem are also common. The commonly used substance includes
are opiates and other narcotics are powerful painkillers that can cause drowsiness, and sometimes intense
feelings of well-being, elation, happiness, excitement, and joy. These include heroin, opium, codeine,
narcotic pain medicines that may be prescribed by a doctor or can be bought illegally. Next is the
stimulants which are drugs that stimulate the brain and nervous system. These may include cocaine and
amphetamines. Next is the depressant which causes drowsiness and reduces anxiety. These may include
alcohol, barbiturates, benzodiazepines (Valium, Ativan, Xanax), chloral hydrate, and paraldehyde. Lastly
is the marijuana. People undergo to some stages before they’ve become addicted to substance. These
stages are the experimental use, regular use, problem or risky use and addiction. In the experimental
stage, this typically involves peers, the user may enjoy defying parents or other authority figures. Regular
stage is the stage where the user misses more school or work, worries about losing drug source, uses
drugs to fix negative feelings, begins to stay away from friends and family, may also change friends to
those who are regular users and lastly it shows increased tolerance or ability to handle the drug. The
problem or risky use stage is the stage where the user loses motivation and does not care anymore about
school or work. It also has obvious changes of behavior. In this stage the user has more excitement feeling
and thinks that the drugs are more important than any other. They become secretive and they may begin
to deal drugs to help and support habit. Also in this stage the legal problems may increase. Lastly is
addiction stage. This stage, the user cannot face the daily life anymore without drugs, they deny their
problems, their physical condition has worsened, and they may have broken the ties with their family
member or friends (Berger, F. M.D. & Zieve, D. M.D.M.H.A., 2018). According to Diagnostic and Statistical
Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), there 11 different criteria for substance use disorder.
These are as follows:

● Taking the substance in larger amounts or for longer than you're meant to.
● Wanting to cut down or stop using the substance but not managing to.
● Spending a lot of time getting, using, or recovering from use of the substance.
● Cravings and urges to use the substance.
● Not managing to do what you should at work, home, or school because of substance use.
● Continuing to use, even when it causes problems in relationships.
● Giving up important social, occupational, or recreational activities because of substance use.
● Using substances again and again, even when it puts you in danger.
● Continuing to use, even when you know you have a physical or psychological problem that
could have been caused or made worse by the substance.
● Needing more of the substance to get the effect you want (tolerance).
● Development of withdrawal symptoms, which can be relieved by taking more of the
substance.

II. The Problem

Drug addiction is really a problem to us because it is not good to people and society. It only cause
and gives a lot of problems to our society. There is an effect on your brain if we use drugs. Once you use
drugs, you can’t deny the fact that you want to use it again because your brain is wired to make you want
to repeat experiences that make you feel good which gives you motivation to do them again and again.
The addictive drugs target your brain’s reward system. They flood your brain with a chemical called
dopamine which triggers a feeling of intense pleasure that can be the reason of continuous intake of drugs
just to chase and feel the pleasure. As time pass time, your brain is getting used with the dopamine so
you are going to take more of the drugs to get the same feeling and it leads you to feel less pleasure with
food, hanging out with family and friends, and other things you’ve enjoyed before. When you have using
drugs for a long time, it causes changes in other brain chemical system and circuits as well. They can hurt
or damage your judgment, decision making, memory, and ability to learn. Together, these brain changes
can drive you to seek out and take drugs in ways that are beyond your control (Goldberg, J. M.D., 2018).
If we look to our society which is here in the Philippines, according to the Dangerous Drugs Board, the
Philippine’s has 1.8 million people who are drug users out of the 100.98 million total population. Filipinos
that aged 10 to 69 years old comprises around 75% of the total population as of 2015. These ages are the
current drug use prevalence in the Philippines which ranges up to 2.3% or an estimated 1.8 million users.
Current drug users refer to individuals who are currently using or have used illegal drugs more than once
from January 1, 2015, until February 5, 2016. There are 1.3 million drug user has been estimated there
are 1.7 million drug user that has been estimated. It only shows and proves that as the years passed by,
the rate of drug users is growing higher. Commissioned by DDB, the survey on national drug abuse
situation was conducted by Resources, Environment and Economics Center for Studies Incorporated
(REECS) from December 5, 2015, to February 5, 2016, among 5,000 respondents across the Philippines. It
had a ±0.9 margin error. Meanwhile, data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) states
that 11,132 out of 42,036 barangays in the country are drug-affected as of December 2015. The survey
results of the year 2015 show that the lifetime drug use prevalence is around 6.1% of the same sample
population. Which means that 4.8 million Filipinos have used illegal drugs at least once in their lives. Year
2015 drug situation survey tells that the drug retention rate is currently 28% for shabu and 24.7% for
marijuana (Gavilan, J., 2016).

As a conclusion to this there are many people who uses drugs to escape from poverty. Those
people who are involved in drugs are been listed or estimated by the Resources, Environment and
Economics Center for Studies Incorporated (REECS) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency that the
sample population is increasing in a year. Those survey result that been estimated show that the lifetime
drug use prevalence is the same sample person or population.

III. What we are doing

The Philippines has a rehabilitation center for people who are drug addicts. It is essential for the
drug addicts to undergo rehabilitation because it is really very hard to handle the stress factors and fear
of all sorts of negative implications including endangering the lives of other loved ones and people around.
It is a fact that the abuse patients usually lose their conscious positive thinking when they are under the
influence of drugs or they are already addicted to drugs. To prevent further family and life collateral
damage, families usually resort to them to treatment centers for help such as rehabilitation center (my
pilipinas, N.D.). Here are some of the rehabilitation center in the Philippines: (Rappler, 206)

GOVERNMENT-OWNED RESIDENTIAL CENTERS

1. Department of Health (DOH) Treatment and Rehabilitation Center - Bicutan

Address: Camp Bagong Diwa, Bicutan, Taguig, Metro Manila
Contact details: (02)837-6540/ 838-0093 / 838-0261
Modality: Therapeutic Community
Capacity: 550 (male and female)

2. Marikina Rehabilitation Center

Address: East Drive St cor. Champagnat Street, Marikina Heights, Marikina City
Contact details: (02) 475-4269 / 645-6407
Modality: Eclectic
Capacity: 50

GOVERNMENT-OWNED, OUT-PATIENT CENTER

1. Region XI Outpatients & Aftercare Center for Drug Dependents

Address: CHD Davao Region, J.P. Laurel Ave., Bajada, Davao City
Contact details: 305-1495

PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL CENTERS

1. Bridges of Hope Drugs and Alcoholic Rehabilitation Center - Parañaque City

Address: 364 Aguirre Ave. Phase 3 BF Homes, Parañaque City
Contact details: (02) 662-0193 / 986-3883 / 571-9951
Modality: Eclectic
Capacity: 48 (male and female)
 PRIVATE OUT-PATIENT CENTERS
1. The New Beginnings Foundation
Address: Unit 101 Midland Mansion Condominium, Pasay Road, Makati City
Contact details: (02) 894-5399
Modality: Hazelden Minnesota

IV. What can be done

As a student we can also start with small programs such as mental awareness about how drugs
affect our lives. It can be through symposium to schools, barangays, cities and municipalities. The
symposium was aiming to strengthen the understanding and awareness on war on drugs. The programs
that would like to conduct is Ethical issues in using a cocaine vaccine to treat and prevent cocaine abuse
and dependence, Anti-Drug Abuse Council, Drug Abuse Prevention and Education, Drug Abuse Prevention
and Control, Drug Abuse Prevention Program, and others. Even just once a month of those programs listed
are conduct in place where needed in those symposium. All of the students, teenagers, and parents in the
barangays or schools, cities and municipalities are the respondents of those kind of symposium.
Government should look for the people whose involved in drugs of the country because there are lots of
poor people who use drugs as an escape from poverty. By that there will be a peaceful way of reducing
drug addiction.
References:

Jon O. Ebbert, M.D. 2018. Understanding Drug Use and Addiction. NIDA researchers and scientists.
https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/understanding-drug-use-addiction

Sanjay P. Bagaria, M.D. 2019. Drug addiction (substance use disorder). Mayo Foundation for Medical
Education and Research. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/drug-addiction/symptoms-
causes/syc-20365112

Ranna Parekh, M.D., M.P.H. January 2017. What Is Addiction? 2019 American Psychiatric Association.
Washington, DC 20024. https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/addiction/what-is-addiction

Eric S. Edell, M.D. What is Drug Addiction? .2005 - 2019 WebMD LLC. https://www.webmd.com/mental-
health/addiction/drug-abuse-addiction

James C. Waldorf, M.D. 2019. Philippines’ ‘War on Drugs’. New York.

https://www.hrw.org/tag/philippines-war-drugs

Elster J, Skog O-J, eds. Getting Hooked: Studies in the Rationality of Addiction. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1999. Google Scholar
https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/001522.htm

https://www.verywellmind.com/dsm-5-criteria-for-substance-use-disorders-21926

Barangay-Based Symposium on Anti-Illegal Drugs and Community Anti-Terrorism Awareness Seminar

Conducted in San Jose.
http://sanjose.camarinessur.gov.ph/barangay-based-symposium-on-anti-illegal-drugs-and-community-
anti-terrorism-awareness-seminar-conducted-in-san-jose/

Rappler. 2016. List: Where are Drug Treatment and Rehab Centers in the Philippines?
https://www.rappler.com/nation/241996-cebu-highest-reported-hiv-cases-visayas-january-may-2019
 DRUG
DEPENDENCY

Shanaih Elaine M. Diola

Lisette A. Omayana
October, 2019