Quiz: MDMA (Ecstasy)

These materials are produced by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. They are in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission. Citation of the source is appreciated.

Instructions: After reviewing Facts on Drugs: MDMA (Ecstasy), on the NIDA for Teens Web site (http://teens.drugabuse.gov/), take this short quiz to test your knowledge.

1. The scientific term for Ecstasy is __________.

A. MDMA

B. PCP

C. LSD

2. MDMA is known as a “club drug” because __________.

A. teens take MDMA at a clubhouse

B. teens take MDMA in a big sandwich

C. some teens use MDMA at all-night dance clubs

3. MDMA has __________.

A. part opiate and part inhalant properties

B. part stimulant and part hallucinogenic properties

C. part marijuana and part prescription drug properties

4. One of the slang words for MDMA is __________.

A. dumbo

B. Adam

C. noodles

5. MDMA is usually taken in a __________.

A. needle or syringe

B. patch on the skin

C. pill, tablet, or capsule

6. One of the dangers of MDMA abuse is hyperthermia, which means __________.

A. extreme overheating

B. freezing

C. losing an arm or a leg

7. MDMA is __________ in animals.

A. neurotoxic

B. hypertoxic

C. not toxic

8. MDMA use can affect ________.

A. sight and hearing

B. thought and memory

C. speech and language

9. A tablet of MDMA often includes ______________.

A. other chemicals or substances

B. added vitamins

C. artificial sweetener

10. A “hit” of MDMA can last __________.

A. all night

B. 30 minutes

C. 3 to 6 hours

Answer Key: MDMA (Ecstasy) Quiz

1. A. The scientific term for Ecstasy is MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine).

2. C. MDMA is known as a “club drug” because teens and young adults have taken the drug at a nightclub or all-night party.

3. B. MDMA is part stimulant (amphetamine-like) and part hallucinogen (LSD-like).

4. B. MDMA is sometimes called “Adam.”

5. C. MDMA is usually taken by mouth, as a pill, tablet, or capsule.

6. A. One of the dangers of MDMA abuse is hyperthermia—extreme overheating— because of dehydration or loss of fluids through excessive sweating.

7. A. MDMA is neurotoxic in animals, which means it can damage the brain.

8. B. MDMA use can affect thought and memory.

9. A. Other chemicals or substances are often added to or substituted for MDMA, such as caffeine, dextromethorphan (cough syrup), and amphetamine. Makers of MDMA can add anything they want to the drug, so its purity is always questionable.

10. C. For most MDMA users, a “hit” can last 3 to 6 hours.

A new study recently published in a peer-reviewed British medical Journal called The Lancet, ranks drugs according to the problems they create. Factors include it were physical, psychological, and social problems created by drug use of different types. The study was paid for by the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies in London.

A conclusion was drawn that the drugs most harmful to the addict themselves were Heroin, crack and methamphetamine.

The drugs most harmful to society as a whole, or other people were alcohol heroin and crack.

Leave a comment share your thoughts on the study.

Here the rankings: (the higher the score the worse the effect)

1. Alcohol, overall harm score 72
2. Heroin, overall harm score 55
3. Crack, overall harm score 54
4. Crystal meth, overall harm score 33
5. Cocaine, overall harm score 27
6. Tobacco, overall harm score 26
7. Speed/amphetamines, overall harm score 23
8. Cannabis, overall harm score 20
9. BHB, overall harm score 18
10. Valium (benzodiazepines), overall harm score 15
11. Ketamine, overall harm score 15
12. Mephedrone, overall harm score 13
13. Butane, overall harm score 10
14. Khat, overall harm score 9
15. Ecstasy, overall harm score 9
16. Anabolic steroids, overall harm score 9
17. LSD, overall harm score 7
18. Buprenorphine, overall harm score 6
19. Mushrooms, overall harm score 5
20. The most harmful drugs to the individual are heroin, crack and crystal meth.
21. The most harmful drugs to others are alcohol, heroin and crack.

For more info see study

By definition, an addiction is described as being abnormally tolerant or dependent on something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming. Addictions come in many forms, from substance abuse addiction to behavior addictions, all of which may require intervention or professional treatment to overcome. As addictions have changed and redeveloped over time, programs have had to progressively change and modify approaches as well. In fact, while addiction trends have changed in the last three decades with some becoming more problematic than others, more help is available for overcoming addiction than ever before.

Though alcohol dependency has been a constant addiction recognized for many years, in the mid-1970s, illicit drug use and addiction peaked to a point almost rivaling that of alcohol. Illicit drugs, including cocaine, heroine, and marijuana were the primary source of drug addictions until the 1990s. At this point, illicit drugs that were more cheaply made and acquired, like meth, became a growing trend.

Marijuana dependency and addiction is a source of interest in both the medical and political sectors today. As more states explore the legalization and government control of marijuana for medical purposes and even recreational use, the potential for marijuana use to peak and become as problematic as alcohol addiction is possible.

While dependency on illicit drugs continues to be a problem for some, prescription drug addiction has nearly overshadowed illicit drugs in the last decade. Narcotic pain relievers and stimulants top the list of prescription drug addictions. In 2001, reports indicated that nearly 87 percent of prescription drug addicts were white. Some reports also indicate prescription stimulates, such as those used to treat ADHD, are primarily abused by people under the age of 21. In addition to prescription drug addiction, over the counter (OTC) drug addiction has seen a rise in the last decade.

In addition to substance abuse, other addictions that are behavior oriented have seen rises and falls as well. Some behavior-based addictions that have existed for years have only recently become recognized as genuine addictions requiring intervention. For example, where gambling addictions were once unacknowledged, 12-step programs for gambling addicts are now as mainstream as AA. Similar addictions, including sex addiction, have also seen an increase in awareness. Certain addictions, like food addictions, have less social stigma but have come into the forefront as behavior addictions requiring modification nonetheless.

For many, an addiction may stem largely from habitual familiarity but many addictions are both psychological and physiological. Those who struggle with addiction are bound not only by the psychological habit but in many cases, a physical addiction. Substances that cause the body to respond to an absence, such as caffeine, nicotine, or an opiate drug, make overcoming addiction that much more difficult.

With an increase of studies pertaining to the psychological and physical dependencies created by addiction, programs to overcome addiction have improved as well. Programs to treat addiction were once barbaric in some sense, ignoring the psychological aspect of addiction. Today, programs that focus on the individual and each aspect of their addiction make it possible to overcome addiction once and for all. Through various support and treatment programs that address an individual’s addiction in both traditional and non-traditional methods, addiction recovery is becoming more successful.

Addictions of all varieties have seen some resurgence in different times but the core of addiction and the road to recovery remain the same. People struggling with addiction are often depressed and can see their life spiraling out of control but feel too alone or ashamed to ask for help. Oftentimes, denial is at the core of addiction, with those suffering from addiction unable to acknowledge their dependency. Those who are involved in an addict’s life also feel alone and afraid and may not know how to help.

Thankfully, as addiction at its core has remained virtually unchanged, the influx of information available through the Internet and the increase in public awareness and health education curriculum has improved the way people can find help. Additionally, this increase in information and awareness has improved the way recovery and treatment facilities are able to offer help. Treatment and recovery centers exist for nearly all types of addictions, in nearly every part of the country. Substance abuse hotlines and mental health benefits through insurance companies have also helped to facilitate addiction help. If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, the first step to recovery is to ask for help.

Catherine Cosgrove is a representative of Heritage Home Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Center. Heritage Home Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Center offers a tranquil and therapeutic environment to begin your recovery from alcohol and drug addiction. Our team has worked together in drug rehab centres for many years and will give you a personal, unique, and individualized approach to emotional healing and sobriety.

Opiate addiction and the need for opiate treatment is definitely on the rise. But these days it is not in the traditional form of heroin, but rather in the form of prescription pill medication. Prescription pain killers are a segment of drug use that is rising astronomically.

It is now not uncommon in alcohol and drug rehab’s to have groups with 50% of the people either abusing or addicted to opiates. And within this group of people one of the most common fears verbalized instead of ‘drug sickness. This is not the unpleasant effects of with drawl are described by the users. Withdrawal from opiates while as dangerous in a medical sense, as withdrawal from alcohol or benzodiazepines, can be very unpleasant and prolonged.

So the concept of getting high and stay high becomes cemented in the mine of an opiate user not from the desired to feel the effects of the high, but to avoid negative effects of the withdrawal. This is an extremely powerful motivator for continued use.

There is a high rate of opiate users needing treatment for the end of the program because the fear of the withdrawals becomes so great that they feel they must use. Getting through an opiate withdrawal can be described in the sense of getting over the hump. There is great discomfort and then there is a breakthrough moment. Unfortunately, many people eat before they have the breakthrough.

Fortunately, there is some government approved medication that can help with the unpleasant effects of opiate withdrawal; Buprenorphine (Subutex) and buprenorphine and naloxone (Suboxone). That is the good news. The bad news is that there are many misconceptions about its use, and effectiveness. In order to be effective they must be taken in a precise way. Unfortunately, people with addiction have difficulty taking medications exactly as prescribed.

Buprenorphine (Subutex) and buprenorphine and naloxone (Suboxone) are used to treat opioid dependence (addiction to opioid drugs, including heroin and narcotic painkillers). Buprenorphine is in a class of medications called opioid partial agonist-antagonists, and naloxone is in a class of medications called opioid antagonists. Buprenorphine alone and the combination of buprenorphine and naloxone prevent withdrawal symptoms when someone stops taking opioid drugs by producing similar effects to these drugs.

They are usually taken once a day. To help you remember to take buprenorphine or buprenorphine and naloxone, take it around the same time every day. Follow the directions on your prescription label carefully, and ask your doctor or pharmacist to explain any part you do not understand. Take buprenorphine or buprenorphine and naloxone exactly as directed. Do not take more or less of it or take it more often than prescribed by your doctor.

You will start your treatment with buprenorphine, which you will take in the doctor’s office. Your doctor will start you on a low dose of buprenorphine and will increase your dose for several days before switching you to buprenorphine and naloxone. Your doctor may increase or decrease your buprenorphine and naloxone dose until the medication works properly.

Do not stop taking buprenorphine and naloxone without talking to your doctor. Stopping buprenorphine and naloxone too quickly can cause withdrawal symptoms. Your doctor will tell you when and how to stop taking buprenorphine and naloxone.

as a learning opportunity. Make sure you get a ‘take away’, some form of growth. Do not let them become the team, mundane, or simply a reporting of facts.

It is an all-too-common scenario: A person experiments with an addictive drug like cocaine

Perhaps he intends to try it just once, for ‘the experience’ of it. It turns out, though, that he enjoys the drug’s euphoric effect so much that in ensuing weeks and months he uses it again — and again. But in due time, he decides he really should quit. He knows that despite the incomparable short-term high he gets from using cocaine, the long-term consequences of its use are perilous. So he vows to stop using it.

His brain, however, has a different agenda. It now demands cocaine. While his rational mind knows full well that he shouldn’t use it again, his brain overrides such warnings. Unbeknown to him, repeated use of cocaine has brought about dramatic changes in both the structure and function of his brain. In fact, if he’d known the danger signs for which to be on the lookout, he would have realized that the euphoric effect derived from cocaine use is itself a sure sign that the drug is inducing a change in the brain — just as he would have known that as time passes, and the drug is used with increasing regularity, this change becomes more pronounced, and indelible, until finally his brain has become addicted to the drug.

And so, despite his heartfelt vow never again to use cocaine, he continues using it. Again and again.

His drug use is now beyond his control. It is compulsive. He is addicted.

While this turn of events is a shock to the drug user, it is no surprise at all to researchers who study the effects of addictive drugs. To them, it is a predictable outcome.

To be sure, no one ever starts out using drugs intending to become a drug addict. All drug users are just trying it, once or a few times. Every drug user starts out as an occasional user, and that initial use is a voluntary and controllable decision. But as time passes and drug use continues, a person goes from being a voluntary to a compulsive drug user. This change occurs because over time, use of addictive drugs changes the brain — at times in big dramatic toxic ways, at others in more subtle ways, but always in destructive ways that can result in compulsive and even uncontrollable drug use.

The fact is, drug addiction is a brain disease. While every type of drug of abuse has its own individual “trigger” for affecting or transforming the brain, many of the results of the transformation are strikingly similar regardless of the addictive drug that is used — and of course in each instance the result is compulsive use. The brain changes range from fundamental and long-lasting changes in the biochemical makeup of the brain, to mood changes, to changes in memory processes and motor skills. And these changes have a tremendous impact on all aspects of a person’s behavior. In fact, in addiction the drug becomes the single most powerful motivator in the life of the drug user. He will do virtually anything for the drug.

This unexpected consequence of drug use is what I have come to call the oops phenomenon. Why oops? Because the harmful outcome is in no way intentional. Just as no one starts out to have lung cancer when they smoke, or no one starts out to have clogged arteries when they eat fried foods which in turn usually cause heart attacks, no one starts out to become a drug addict when they use drugs. But in each case, though no one meant to behave in a way that would lead to tragic health consequences, that is what happened just the same, because of the inexorable, and undetected, destructive biochemical processes at work.

While we haven’t yet pinpointed precisely all the triggers for the changes in the brain’s structure and function that culminate in the “oops” phenomenon, a vast body of hard evidence shows that it is virtually inevitable that prolonged drug use will lead to addiction. From this we can soundly conclude that drug addiction is indeed a brain disease.

I realize that this flies in the face of the notion that drug addiction boils down to a serious character flaw — that those addicted to drugs are just too weak-willed to quit drug use on their own. But the moral weakness notion itself flies in the face of all scientific evidence, and so it should be discarded.

It should be stressed, however, that to assert that drug addiction is a brain disease is by no means the same thing as saying that those addicted to drugs are not accountable for their actions, or that they are just unwitting, hapless victims of the harmful effects that use of addictive drugs has on their brains, and in every facet of their lives.

Just as their behavior at the outset was pivotal in putting them on a collision course with compulsive drug use, their behavior after becoming addicted is just as critical if they are to be effectively treated and to recover.

At minimum, they have to adhere to their drug treatment regimen. But this can pose an enormous challenge. The changes in their brain that turned them into compulsive users make it a daunting enough task to control their actions and complete treatment. Making it even more difficult is the fact that their craving becomes more heightened and irresistible whenever they are exposed to any situation that triggers a memory of the euphoric experience of drug use. Little wonder, then, that most compulsive drug users can’t quit on their own, even if they want to (for instance, at most only 7 percent of those who try in any one year to quit smoking cigarettes on their own actually succeed). This is why it is essential that they enter a drug treatment program, even if they don’t want to at the outset.

Clearly, a host of biological and behavioral factors conspires to trigger the oops phenomenon in drug addiction. So the widely held sentiment that drug addiction has to be explained from either the standpoint of biology or the standpoint of behavior, and never the twain shall meet, is terribly flawed. Biological and behavioral explanations of drug abuse must be given equal weight and integrated with each other if we are to gain an in-depth understanding of the root causes of drug addiction and then develop more effective treatments. Modern science has shown us that we reduce one explanation to the other — the behavioral to the biological, or vice versa – at our own peril. We have to recognize that brain disease stemming from drug use cannot and should not be artificially isolated from its behavioral components, as well as its larger social components. They all are critical pieces of the puzzle that interact with and impact on one another at every turn.

A wealth of scientific evidence, by the way, makes it clear that rarely if ever are any forms of brain disease only biological in nature. To the contrary, such brain diseases as stroke, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, schizophrenia, and clinical depression all have their behavioral and social dimensions. What is unique about the type of brain disease that results from drug abuse is that it starts out as voluntary behavior. But once continued use of an addictive drug brings about structural and functional changes in the brain that cause compulsive use, the disease-ravaged brain of a drug user closely resembles that of people with other kinds of brain diseases.

It’s also important to bear in mind that we now see addiction as a chronic, virtually life-long illness for many people. And relapse is a common phenomenon in all forms of chronic illness — from asthma and diabetes, to hypertension and addiction. The goals of successive treatments, as with other chronic illnesses, are to manage the illness and increase the intervals between relapses, until there are no more.

An increasing body of scientific evidence makes the compelling case that the most effective treatment programs for overcoming drug addiction incorporate an array of approaches — from medications, to behavior therapies, to social services and rehabilitation. The National Institute on Drug Abuse recently published Principles of Effective Drug Addiction Treatment, which features many of the most promising drug treatment programs to date. As this booklet explains, the programs with the most successful track records treat the whole individual. Their treatment strategies place just as much emphasis on the unique social and behavioral aspects of drug addiction treatment and recovery as on the biological aspects. By doing so, they better enable those who have abused drugs to surmount the unexpected consequences of drug use and once again lead fruitful lives.

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It is my experience that no group of drug users more staunchly and irrationally defends the use of their drug of choice than marijuana users.

In fact, based on past experience I will get a lot of ranting rebuttals to my stand against marijuana. It is not a friendly, benign ‘soft’ drug

The facts are the more you use…the worse it gets.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has reported that marijuana can be harmful both from immediate effects and damage to health over time.

Specifically…

1. Multiple studies have shown that marijuana can hinder the users’ short term memory and ability to handle difficult tasks (Schwartz et al. 1989). Students may find it difficult to study and learn.

While many of the long-term effects of marijuana use are not yet known, studies have shown that:

2. Daily marijuana smokers who did not use tobacco had more sick days and doctor visits for respiratory problems than a similar group who did not smoke either substance. A person who smokes marijuana regularly may have many of the same respiratory problems that tobacco smokers have (Tashkin et al. 1987).

Other studies have shown that:

3. The regular use of marijuana may play a role in cancer and problems of the respiratory, immune and reproductive systems. Heavy marijuana use can affect hormones in both males and females.

4. Both animal and human studies have shown that marijuana impairs the ability of T-cells in the lungs’ immune defense system to fight off some infections.

5. Because of the drug’s effects on perceptions and reaction time, users could be involved in automobile accidents (NIDA 1995). According to the 1996 NHSDA, nearly one million 16-18 year olds (11 percent) reported driving at least once within two hours of using an illicit drug in the past year (most often marijuana) (SAMHSA 1998).

Although it is not yet known how the use of marijuana relates to mental illness, some scientists maintain that regular marijuana use can lead to chronic anxiety, personality disturbances, and depression (NIDA 1995). Some frequent long-term marijuana users show signs of lack of motivation and tend to perform poorly in school (Pope 1996). A recent study demonstrated similarities between marijuana’s effect on the brain and those produced by such addictive drugs as cocaine, heroin, alcohol, and nicotine (Volkow 1996).

Most commonly abused classes of prescription drugs

• Opioids, such as OxyContin and Vicodin, which are most often prescribed to treat pain;
• Central nervous system (CNS) depressants, such as Valium and Xanax, which are used to treat anxiety and sleep disorders; and
• Stimulants, which are prescribed to treat certain sleep disorders and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and include drugs such as Ritalin and Adderall.

Risks of prescription drug abuse

Opioids:

• High risk for addiction and overdose. This is a major concern, particularly for recently synthesized slowrelease formulations, which abusers override by crushing the pills and injecting or snorting the contents, heightening their risk for respiratory depression and death.
• Dangerous combination effects. Combining opioids with other drugs, including alcohol, can intensify respiratory distress.
• Heightened HIV risk. Injecting opioids increases the risk of HIV and other infectious diseases through use of unsterile or shared equipment.

CNS Depressants:

• Addiction and withdrawal dangers. These drugs can be highly addictive and, in chronic users, discontinuing them absent a physician’s guidance can bring about severe withdrawal symptoms that must be properly managed by a medical professional.
• Risk of overdose. Overdose can cause severe breathing problems and lead to death, especially when these drugs are combined with other medications or alcohol.

Stimulants:

• Reputation as performance enhancers. Incorrectly perceived as safe for enhancing academic achievement and weight loss, these drugs are highly addictive and potentially harmful.
• Range of risky health consequences. These include risk of dangerously high body temperature, seizures, and cardiovascular complications.

Teen drug abuse is real and for parents to have an impact on the decisions their kids make, they need to keep their responses ‘real’ too. The time to get involved is now. Don’t wait until you suspect a problem; taking a proactive stand can significantly alter the course of your child’s life.

Research has proven that the primary way to prevent teenage drug abuse is for parents to become a central and guiding influence in the child’s life. Teenagers want their parents’ trust and respect and it’s this single factor that keeps kids off drugs. But developing this kind of relationship requires the application of a few key principles.

• Knowledge is Power

Before talking to your kids about drugs, parents need to do their homework. Get the latest facts from websites like www.TheAntiDrug.com or www.freevibe.com

The National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information is another excellent resource and can be reached at 1-800-788-2800

• Talk to Your Child

If you suspect drug use, plan to talk to your teen when you are calm. Make sure both of you have plenty of time to talk. Be honest about your feelings. Sure you’re angry, but are you worried and disappointed too? Tell your child. Encourage a real sharing of feelings.

• Listen to Your Child

A teen on drugs is a teen who is troubled. Find out why drugs became an answer. Listen as your child expresses feelings of fear, stress or anger. Allow these emotions to be articulated without condemnation.

• Determine the Level of Involvement

Did your child try drugs once at a party out of curiosity or is your teen regularly using drugs? Are there certain friends who are promoting drug use? Where do they get the drugs? While all of these questions will help you determine the best course of action, don’t make your conversation sound like a police interrogation. Encourage your child to talk, reminding him that you need answers in order to help. Stress that you are not out to punish this behavior, but rather you want to promote a healthier and happier lifestyle for the teen.

• Set Ground Rules

Once you understand your child’s involvement with drugs, you need to set up some rules. Once again, these rules are not meant as punishment, but they are needed to keep the flow of communication between you and your teen possible. Hiding drug abuse is a form of lying and honest communication stops at that point. You may need to set up a curfew or even prohibit certain friends from coming to your house.

• Talk to Your Child…Again

Don’t think one conversation is enough. Engage your teen in talks on a regular basis. Stay in touch with their lives, their studies and their friends. Ask questions and be sure to give honest answers in return. When your child sees that you are making a genuine effort to connect with their life, positive changes can occur. Stay talking, guard against angry feelings and don’t be ashamed to hug your child. The power of a loving touch can do wonders.

Each day, about 4,700 young people under age 18 try marijuana for the first time. Eighth grade students report that at least half of them have tried alcohol. Yes, the numbers are high, turning the odds against you.

But parents who are committed to the well being of their children don’t need odds on their side because they have a determined love to do whatever it takes to keep their children safe and happy.

“There’s a lot of talk about the importance of being honest in all our affairs and relationships. I really don’t know where to start it’s been so long since I’ve been honest it’s almost easier to lie.”

There are two major challenges concerning dishonesty that must be met and overcome in order to enter into a healthy recovery.

1. The dishonesty and lying has to stop. Unfortunately, for many people, this has become a habit. This behavior needs to be ‘unlearned’and the habit broken.

2. We must also overcome the fear of the consequences of once again being truthful

Being dishonest can easily become the standard of action, or way of life for most alcoholics or addicts. We deceive ourselves and we lied to others. We lie about how much we used, and how often we used.  We hid our feelings and emotions, or became distant from our relationships, perhaps not in all areas, but certainly in terms of our substance use.

We lied about where we went and what we had been doing. It’s a way of staking our claim to our right to continue drinking or using drugs. The lies, self deception, and self delusions were created for the for the purpose of allowing us to continue to use. Somehow we needed it all to make sense.

Sometimes it was not even our intention to deceive. But it is simply that our thought processes had become so clouded and confused and distorted, that our sense of reality was way off base and we no longer made sense.

Many people have discovered that there is a tendency to continue to be untruthful it just doesn’t go away when your substance abuse stops.

Did you know that if someone takes alcohol and cocaine at the same time, they increase and compound the danger of each drug? By mixing them together, you are essentially turning your body into a complicated chemical experiment. Scientists and researchers have discovered that when alcohol and cocaine is combined in the human liver, it creates a substance called cocaethylene.

This third substance, cocaethylene is an amplifier which intensifies cocaine and its pleasurable effects. The newly created substance, cocaethylene, increases the risk of sudden death from cocaine use substantially.

These are Addiction Recovery Basics to 7 posts (out of approximately 900). They were determined by the number of other blog owners linking to them.

Some of these were written quite some time ago and the urge to edit and modify was almost overwhelming. I resisted (for the most part).

Here art the most linked to posts:

1. What Is A Dry Drunk?

2. Social Drinker, Alcohol Abuse, or Alcoholic: Where Do You Fit In?

3. 10 Tenets of Effective Drug Addiction Treatment

4. Why Are So Few People In Drug Rehab Now?

5. 10 Sure Fire Self Esteem And Self Improvement Tips

6. Improving Spiritual Awareness: 7 Steps To Increase Spiritual Awareness

7. Definition Of Addiction

This video has some pretty scary statistics on teen use of prescription pills.

Abuse of prescription drugs by teenagers is an emerging epidemic, Teri Christensen of Partnership for a Drug-Free America and U.S. Attorney McGregor Scott said Thursday.

Marijuana studies have shown that the regular use of marijuana may play a role in cancer and problems of the respiratory, immune and reproductive systems. Heavy marijuana use can affect hormones in both males and females.

The Truth About Marijuana / Anti-Marijuana Educational Video

The National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA), sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Department of Health and Human Services, has shown that since 1992, the rate of past month marijuana use among youth has more than doubled, going from 3.4 percent in 1992 to 7.1 percent in 1996. Similar trends are evident among both boys and girls; among whites, blacks and Hispanics; and in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas (SAMHSA 1997a).

Other studies have also shown a doubling of marijuana use between 1992 and 1995 among 8th graders, and significant increases among 10th and 12th graders (NIDA 1997). At the same time, the rate of 12 to 17 year olds perceiving great risk in using marijuana has decreased. In the 1992 NHSDA, 39 percent of youths reported that smoking marijuana once a month is of great risk to people compared with 33 percent in 1996. Similarly, in 1992, 64 percent of youths reported smoking marijuana once or twice a week was of great risk to people compared with 57 percent in 1996 (SAMHSA 1997b). The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has reported that marijuana can be harmful both from immediate effects and damage to health over time.

Specifically, studies have shown that marijuana can hinder the users’ short term memory and ability to handle difficult tasks (Schwartz et al. 1989). Students may find it difficult to study and learn. While many of the long-term effects of marijuana use are not yet known, studies have shown that daily marijuana smokers who did not use tobacco had more sick days and doctor visits for respiratory problems than a similar group who did not smoke either substance. A person who smokes marijuana regularly may have many of the same respiratory problems that tobacco smokers have (Tashkin et al. 1987). Other studies have shown that the regular use of marijuana may play a role in cancer and problems of the respiratory, immune and reproductive systems. Heavy marijuana use can affect hormones in both males and females. Both animal and human studies have shown that marijuana impairs the ability of T-cells in the lungs’ immune defense system to fight off some infections.

Because of the drug’s effects on perceptions and reaction time, users could be involved in automobile accidents (NIDA 1995). According to the 1996 NHSDA, nearly one million 16-18 year olds (11 percent) reported driving at least once within two hours of using an illicit drug in the past year (most often marijuana) (SAMHSA 1998). Although it is not yet known how the use of marijuana relates to mental illness, some scientists maintain that regular marijuana use can lead to chronic anxiety, personality disturbances, and depression (NIDA 1995). Some frequent long-term marijuana users show signs of lack of motivation and tend to perform poorly in school (Pope 1996).

A recent study demonstrated similarities between marijuana’s effect on the brain and those produced by such addictive drugs as cocaine, heroin, alcohol, and nicotine (Volkow 1996). There is substantial interest in the co-occurrence in the general population of illicit drug use with other kinds of behavioral patterns, mental syndromes, and psychiatric disorders (Bourden et al. 1992, Kandel et al. 1997, Kessler et al. 1996, SAMHSA 1996). A number of descriptive studies have demonstrated that people who use drugs are more likely to have mental disorders, physical health problems, and family problems (NIDA 1991). In addition, a recent study (Crowley 1998) was conducted with 165 boys and 64 girls between the ages of 13 and 19 who had been referred by social service or criminal justice agencies to a university-based treatment program for delinquent substance-involved adolescents.

Based on interviews, medical examinations, social history, and psychological evaluations, the study showed that marijuana use by teenagers who have prior serious antisocial problems can quickly lead to dependence on the drug. Most of the youths reported that their behavioral problems predated, and were not initially caused by, their drug use. The 1994, 1995, and 1996 NHSDA incorporated the widely used Youth Self-Report (YSR) Checklist which ranks adolescents on a variety of clinically validated scales of behavioral and emotional problem behaviors (Achenbach 1991). In this paper, the relationship between marijuana use among those age 12-17 and various problem measures, as reported on the YSR, is shown. This paper concentrates primarily on the reported frequency of marijuana use and its relationship with self-reported behaviors.

Most parents are in the dark regarding the popularity and dangers of inhalant use. But children are quickly discovering that common household products are inexpensive to obtain, easy to hide and the easiest way to get high.

Here is part 2, a basic checklist of drug abuse frequently used by counselors to see if alcohol and other drugs may be an issue in someone’s life.

6. Health problems

Are there medical conditions which decrease tolerance or increase the risk of substance abuse problems?
Are there medical situations which are aggravated by repeated alcohol or other drug use?
Did the person ever suffer an accident or disability while under the influence, even if it is denied by the person?

7. Job problems

Is the person underemployed or unemployed?

Has the person missed work or gone to work late due to use of alcohol or other drugs?
Does the person blame the drinking on work related problems?

8. Problems with significant others 

Has a family member or friend expressed concern about the person’s use?
Have important relationships been lost or impaired due to chemical use?

9. Problems with law or authority

Has the person been in trouble with authorities or arrested for any alcohol or drug related offenses?
Have there been instances when the person could have been arrested but wasn’t?
Does the person seem angry at “the system” and at authority figures in general?

10. Financial problems

Is the person’s spending money easily accounted for?
Does the person frequently miss making payments when they are due?

11. Belligerence

Does the person appear angry or defensive but doesn’t know why?
Is the person defensive or angry when confronted about chemical use?

12. Isolation

Does increasing isolation suggest heavier substance abuse?
Is the person giving up or changing social and family activities in order to use?