DRUG ABUSE

DRUG ADDICTION AND YOUTH

• Adolescence is a time when a young person
forges a sense of self, experiments with
independence and seeks new experiences.
• The adolescent brain responds more quickly and
more intensively to excitement, arousal and
rewards.
• Channeling this exuberance toward healthy and
growth-enriching experiences are among the
important tasks for parents as they raise their
teenager and for youth-serving professionals who
work with young people.
 DRUG ADDICTION AND YOUTH
• Research indicates that brain development is still
in progress during adolescence; immature brain
regions may place teenagers at elevated risk to
the effects of drugs.
• The developing brain of the teenage years may
help explain why adolescents sometimes make
decisions that seem to be quite risky and may
lead to safety or health concerns. And it may add
insights into unique vulnerabilities and
opportunities associated with youth.
 CAUSES OF DRUG ABUSE
• Defective personality, including chronic inadequacy,
poor frustration tolerance, insensitivity and
egocentricity.
• Widespread belief in the magic of medicines
• Enjoyment of induced euphoria and excitement
• Dissatisfaction and disillusionment of young persons
• Search for sharpened perception, especially by music
lovers
• Self – medication of primary psychological disorders.
 CAUSES OF DRUG ABUSE
• Parental neglect of their children
• The prevalence of drugs in the community
• Pathological family background – broken homes,
illegitimate relationships, alcoholic parents or parent’s
involvement in antisocial and illegal activities.
• Peer influence
• Imitation of film stars and teenage idols
• Media
• Urbanization and unemployment
• Ignorance of the dangers of illegal drug use
• Alienation – they feel isolated and want to belong
 CAUSES OF DRUG ABUSE
• Desire to change the way they feel, or to “get
high.”
• Escape school and family pressures
• Low self-esteem
• To be accepted by their peers
• To feel adult-like or sophisticated
• Curiosity
• Perception of low risk associated with drugs
• Availability of drugs
 TYPES OF DRUGS
Marijuana
• Sense of relaxation
• Heightened sensory awareness
• Increase in appetite
• Slowed thinking and reaction time
• Anxiety and paranoia
• Impaired coordination
• Respiratory problems
• Red, dilated eyes
• Memory and learning difficulties
• Increased heart rate
 TYPES OF DRUGS
Depressants and downers
• Decreased anxiety
• Sense of relaxation and well-being
• Lowered inhibitions
• Drowsiness and fatigue
• Slowed breathing and pulse
• Depression
• Confusion and disorientation
• Slurred speech
• Impaired coordination
• Impaired memory and judgment
 TYPES OF DRUGS
Stimulants and uppers
• Feelings of exhilaration and euphoria
• Increased energy and hyperactivity
• Rapid or irregular heart beat
• Reduced appetite and weight loss
• Aggressive or impulsive behavior
• Anxiety and restlessness
• Insomnia
• Irritability
• Paranoia
• Rapid speech
 TYPES OF DRUGS
Hallucinogens and dissociative drugs
• Heightened sensory awareness
• Hallucinations
• Euphoria
• Impaired perception of reality
• Increased heart rate and blood pressure
• Nausea and vomiting
• Flashbacks
• Panic or paranoia
• Impaired motor function
• Memory loss
 TYPES OF DRUGS
Narcotics and opioids
• Pain relief
• Euphoria
• Drowsiness and sedation
• Nausea
• Constipation
• Confusion
• Slowed breathing
• Depression
 TYPES OF DRUGS
Inhalants
• Brief “high”
• Loss of inhibition
• Headache or lightheadedness
• Nausea or vomiting
• Seizures
• Impaired motor coordination
• Impaired memory
• Weakness and fatigue
 TYPES OF DRUGS
Anabolic steroids
• Stunted growth in adolescents
• Breast enlargement in men
• Facial hair growth in women
• Hostility and aggression
• Acne
• High blood pressure
• Infertility
• Liver disease
• Cardiovascular disease
• Cholesterol changes
 TYPES OF DRUGS
Prescription drug abuse
• Prescription drugs in the opiate family, such as Vicodin
(hydrocodone) and Oxycontin, are often prescribed for
chronic pain or recovery from surgery.
• Benzodiazapines, such as Valium or Xanax, are
prescribed to treat anxiety.
• The problem arises when these drugs begin to be used
‘off label’.
• Furthermore, prescription drugs provide an easy access
point to other family members susceptible to abuse.
 EFFECTS OF DRUG ABUSE
Psychologically, intoxication with or withdrawal from
substance can cause everything from
• euphoria with alcohol, Ecstasy, or inhalant
intoxication,
• paranoia with marijuana or steroid intoxication
• severe depression or suicidal thoughts with cocaine or
amphetamine withdrawal.
Physical effects can range from
• marked sleepiness and slowed breathing with
intoxication with heroin or sedative hypnotic drugs
• rapid heart rate of cocaine intoxication
• tremors to seizures of alcohol withdrawal.
 CONSEQUENCES OF DRUG ABUSE
• Mental disorder
• Social violence
• Gang formation
• Cultism
• Armed robbery
• Lawlessness among youths
• Rape
• Loss of senses
• Instant death and wasting of precious and
innocent lives
 DRUG ABUSE AND BRAIN
• The executive functions of the brain include planning,
organizing, acting when it is time to act, as well as
delaying or preventing action (inhibitory functions)
when appropriate.
• The parts of the brain that tend to harbor the executive
brain functions are the front-most parts of the brain,
called the frontal cortex and prefrontal cortex.
• When a person takes drugs, the inhibitory functions of
the brain are particularly impaired, resulting in the
person using drugs and having trouble stopping him or
herself from acting on impulses that the brain would
otherwise delay or prevent.
 DRUG ABUSE AND BRAIN
• This dis-inhibition can result in the substance abuser
engaging in aggressive, sexual, criminal, or other
activities that can have devastating consequences for
the addicted person or those around him or her.
• Given that the brain of individuals below about the age
of 25 years is in the process of actively and rapidly
developing and is therefore not fully mature, drug use
that takes place during the childhood or teenage years
can have particularly devastating effects on the
younger person's ability to perform all these important
executive functions.
 DRUG ABUSE AND BRAIN
• Taking a recreational drug causes a surge in levels of dopamine in your
brain, which trigger feelings of pleasure. Your brain remembers these
feelings and wants them repeated.
• If you become addicted, the substance takes on the same significance
as other survival behaviors, such as eating and drinking.
• Changes in your brain interfere with your ability to think clearly,
exercise good judgment, control your behavior, and feel normal
without drugs.
• Whether you’re addicted to inhalants, heroin, Xanax, speed, or
Vicodin, the uncontrollable craving to use grows more important than
anything else, including family, friends, career, and even your own
health and happiness.
• The urge to use is so strong that your mind finds many ways to deny or
rationalize the addiction. You may drastically underestimate the
quantity of drugs you’re taking, how much it impacts your life, and the
level of control you have over your drug use.
 EARLY SIGNS OF RISK
• Association with drug abusing peers
• A lack of attachment and nurturing by parents or
caregivers
• Ineffective parenting
• A caregiver who abuses drugs
• Aggressive behavior
• Lack of self-control
• Poor classroom behavior or social skills
• Academic failure
 Physical warning signs of drug abuse
• Bloodshot eyes, pupils larger or smaller than
usual.
• Changes in appetite or sleep patterns. Sudden
weight loss or weight gain.
• Deterioration of physical appearance, personal
grooming habits.
• Unusual smells on breath, body, or clothing.
• Tremors, slurred speech, or impaired
coordination.
 Behavioral signs of drug abuse
• Drop in attendance and performance at work or
school.
• Unexplained need for money or financial
problems. May borrow or steal to get it.
• Engaging in secretive or suspicious behaviors.
• Sudden change in friends, favorite hangouts, and
hobbies.
• Frequently getting into trouble (fights, accidents,
illegal activities)
 5 Myths about Drug Abuse and
Addiction
• MYTH 1: Overcoming addiction is a simply a matter of willpower.
You can stop using drugs if you really want to. Prolonged exposure
to drugs alters the brain in ways that result in powerful cravings and
a compulsion to use. These brain changes make it extremely
difficult to quit by sheer force of will.
• MYTH 2: Addiction is a disease; there’s nothing you can do about
it. Most experts agree that addiction is a brain disease, but that
doesn’t mean you’re a helpless victim. The brain changes associated
with addiction can be treated and reversed through therapy,
medication, exercise, and other treatments.
• MYTH 3: Addicts have to hit rock bottom before they can get
better. Recovery can begin at any point in the addiction process—
and the earlier, the better. The longer drug abuse continues, the
stronger the addiction becomes and the harder it is to treat. Don’t
wait to intervene until the addict has lost it all.
 5 Myths about Drug Abuse and
Addiction
• MYTH 4: You can’t force someone into treatment; they
have to want help. Treatment doesn’t have to be voluntary
to be successful. People who are pressured into treatment
by their family, employer, or the legal system are just as
likely to benefit as those who choose to enter treatment on
their own. As they sober up and their thinking clears, many
formerly resistant addicts decide they want to change.
• MYTH 5: Treatment didn’t work before, so there’s no point
trying again. Recovery from drug addiction is a long process
that often involves setbacks. Relapse doesn’t mean that
treatment has failed or that you’re a lost cause. Rather, it’s
a signal to get back on track, either by going back to
treatment or adjusting the treatment approach
 TREATMENT FOR ADDICTION
• The primary goals of drug-abuse or addiction
treatment (also called recovery) are abstinence,
relapse prevention, and rehabilitation.
• During the initial stage of abstinence, an individual
who suffers from chemical dependency may need help
avoiding or lessening the effects of withdrawal. That
process is called detoxification or "detox." That aspect
of treatment is usually performed in a hospital or other
inpatient setting, where medications used to lessen
withdrawal symptoms and frequent medical
monitoring can be provided.
 TREATMENT FOR ADDICTION - DETOX
• For many drugs of abuse, the detox process is the most
difficult aspect of coping with the physical symptoms of
addiction and tends to last days to a few weeks.
• Medications that are sometimes used to help addicted
individuals abstain from drug use long term also
depend on the specific drug of addiction. People with
alcohol addiction might try to avoid alcohol intake by
taking disulfiram (Antabuse), which produces nausea,
stomach cramping, and vomiting when the individual
consumes alcohol.
 TREATMENT FOR ADDICTION
• Often, much more challenging and time consuming
than recovery from the physical aspects of addiction is
psychological addiction.
• For people who may have less severe drug
dependency, the symptoms of psychological addiction
may be able to be managed in an outpatient treatment
program.
• However, those who have a more severe addiction,
have relapsed after participation in outpatient
programs, or who also suffer from a severe mental
illness might need the higher structure, support, and
monitoring provided in an inpatient drug treatment
center, sometimes called "rehab."
 DRUG TRAFFICKING AND
DEVELOPMENT
• Drug abuse and illicit trafficking continue to have a
profoundly negative impact on development and
stability across the world.
• The billions of dollars generated from illicit drugs fuel
terrorist activities and abet other crimes such as
human trafficking and the smuggling of arms and
people.
• Illicit drugs and related criminal networks undermine
the rule of law. And the impunity with which they go
about their business causes tremendous fear and sows
disillusion with governance at all levels.
 COSTS TO SOCIETY
• Drug production harms the global
environment; methamphetamine production
uses toxic chemicals which seep into the
ground and contaminate water sources.
• Drugged drivers injure and kill innocent
people every year.
• Children are adversely affected by drugs their
parents use or manufacture in their homes.
 FIGHTING DRUG ABUSE
UNODC - The United Nations Office on Drugs
and Crime
• UNODC, which is responsible for coordinating
all United Nations drug control activities,
pursues three goals:
– reducing demand for illicit drugs,
– reducing production of illicit drugs and
– reducing trafficking of drugs.
 FIGHTING DRUG ABUSE
• Involving communities
• Reaching street kids
• Reaching employees in the workplace
• Mobilizing young people
 FIGHTING DRUG ABUSE IN YOUTH
• FAMILY - Family training including children as
well as parents to teach positive family
interactions have shown to be effective.
• SCHOOL - Effectiveness is shown if school
based programmes are interactive, (actively
involving the students) and if the focus is not
only on drug abuse but on the training of life
skill in general.
 FIGHTING DRUG ABUSE IN YOUTH

• OUT OF SCHOOL ACTIVITIES

• MEDIA - Effectiveness campaigns are
characterized by the following aspects:
– They use strong emotional pictures
– They only express one clear message
– The carriers of the message are young people
themselves
– They don’t use humour.
 FIGHTING DRUG ABUSE IN YOUTH
• POLICY - Increase of taxes, restriction of physical
availability of alcohol and other drugs, restriction
of advertisement and marketing, and drink
driving counter measurers have the highest level
of effectiveness
• COMMUNITY - building interagency coalitions
and training community members and agencies
in substance abuse education and prevention
 FIGHTING DRUG ABUSE
• Community-wide laws, policies, and programs
• Strengthen anti-drug-use attitudes and norms.
• Strengthen life skills and drug refusal
techniques.
• Reduce risk and enhance protection in families
• Strengthen social bonding
• Ensure that interventions are appropriate for
the populations being addressed.
 LAWS - INDIA
• The introduction of death penalty for drug-
related offences has been a major deterrent.
• The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic
Substances Act 1985, were enacted with
stringent provisions to curb this menace. The
Act envisages a minimum term of 10 years
imprisonment extendable to 20 years and fine
of Rs. 1 lakh extendable up to Rs. 2 lakhs for
the offenders.