Substance Abuse Rehabilitation Centers
According to the National Institutes of Health, substance abuse costs the government over 600 billion dollars every year (“Best in Treatment.”). Consequently, substance abuse and addiction are not something to take lightly. Addiction to substances is very serious brain disease that affects both the brain and the body. Addiction is considered to be a chronic disease, in the same way asthma is, that needs to be treated in the long-term in order to help individuals to be able to fully recover (“The Truth About “Rehab” & Drug Addiction.”). Although the path of addiction may begin with the initial decision of using a substance, after so long, the individual’s ability to say “no” diminishes. Substance abuse and addiction requires treatment, and while there are many rehabilitation centers all around the United States, there are many different approaches used to treat addiction, as well as new discoveries on the different treatment options, and problems with relapse throughout the recovery process.
There were 23.2 million people over the age of twelve that needed substance abuse treatment in the year 2001, but only 2.4 million people actually got the treatment they needed, leaving about 20 million people without any treatment at all. The problem with so many people not getting the help they need is many of these individuals do not admit to having a problem in the first place (“The Truth About “Rehab” & Drug Addiction.”). The Treatment Episode of Data Set reports that there were about 1.8 million people admitted for treatment of substance abuse to facilities in 2008. About 41% of those admissions were due to alcohol addiction, about 60% of the admissions were Caucasian, and 14.8% were between the ...
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When we view substance use disorders, alcohol is the most widely used drug within the United States and 11 percent of workers have drinking problems (Frone, 2006). Over 20 million people used illegal substances in 2006 and 7 million people abused prescribed medications. Of the 18 million drug abusers, 18 years or older in 2006, 13.4 million (74.9 %) were employed full or part time (SAMHSA, OSA). These addiction problems have an expenditure of $276 billion dollars per year with most of this cost from loss of productivity and health care (H. Harwood, D. Fountain, and G. Livermore, 1992).
Understanding addiction is a complicated subject that inspires controversy and debate. Not only do people want to understand addiction because of the curiosity to understand human beings and human nature, but there are factors that go into the defining of addiction such as public policy and health care coverage. There are two theories that are on the opposite spectrum when it comes to addiction which include the “disease concept” and the “choice theory”. One defines addiction as a disease, something that is out of one’s control, while the other thinks of it as a choice or a moral deficiency that resides in a person. The consequence of this gap is the delay in gaining control over drug abuse. While the people who support the choice theory see
Many people dislike the term ‘addiction’ in relation to drugs or other substances, particularly as it infers that a person is powerless over their use of a particular drug or in some circumstances, a number of substances. Whilst others maintain it is this powerlessness that is the foundation of diagnosis and treatment – that treatment is not possible without recognition of addiction itself as the ‘problem’ being addressed. The professional and public perception of addiction is complicated. There are many approaches and models to explain addiction, the role of the addict, and their environment. This essay will compare and contrast two of these approaches, the medical/disease and the social model. Initially this essay will describe the origins of each model, and follow by explaining their respective strengths and weaknesses, and finish with an overview of the key differences between them. This essay will conclude by demonstrating that a holistic approach, and a cross-pollination of these models is the most successful approach to treating addicts. As is the case for all diseases, there are multiple treatment options, and as ever person is different, the results in each individual cannot be predicted.
According to Leshner, drug addiction is a chronic brain disease that is expressed in the form of compulsive behaviors (Leshner, 2001). He believes that drug addiction is influence by both biological, and behavioral factors, and to solve this addiction problem we need to focus on these same factors. On the other hand, Neil Levy argues that addiction is not a brain disease rather it is a behavioral disorder embedded in social context (Levy, 2013). I believe, drug addiction is a recurring brain disease that can be healed when we alter and eliminate all the factors that are reinforcing drug addiction.
(2011, October 17). Research Examines Approaches to Treating Substance Abuse Among African-Americans. Retrieved October 20, 2014, from http://www.uc.edu/news/NR.aspx?id=14425
In conclusion, there are many different characteristics, descriptions, and resources out there for substance abusers. If one educate this population on the resource that is available and making it affordable then substance abuse treatment centers would increase like Health People 2020 would want it to be. The community needs to be willing to promote awareness for substance abusers.
According to President Barak Obama there are over 20 million Americans who struggle with substance abuse. (OBAMA, B. 2014). Although addiction is rampant in the United States there are intervention programs available for those who are seeking out recovery. Researchers explain that addiction is a
It has become one of the major social problems of our day, leaving a great number of families and communities within our country devastated and without hope of recuperation for any of their afflicted members and loved ones. Growing to become a big social challenge affecting all aspects of the American society, addiction rates have escalated to enormous proportions within the country as reported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). Addiction has been described as a chronic brain disorder,” resulting from adaptations in the brain that leads to changes in behavior”, according to Dr. Nora Volkow, who also assert that it can be treated (NIDA 2006).
Addiction is a complex psychiatric disorder that consists of social and psychological factors, but at its most basic level it is a biological process. Addiction may come in many forms, but its primary choice of substance is drugs. In particular, prescription medications in the form of pills have become a major health problem, not only to those addicted but the clinicians who prescribe them. In order to fully understand this disorder, considering what brain mechanisms and functions are involved with addiction, the next area to look into is the factors that make the prescription drugs so addictive, along with long term effects, and to discover any new treatment options out in practice today, whether it be through medicine and/or counseling.
There are many contributing factors and political issues that address substance abuse. Throughout the years, many researchers have designed many interventions and social policies designed to treat people who have used, abused, and became addicted to substances. Today, there are many new studies that address substance abuse at the individual, group, family, and community or policy levels. Today, there are many services that are effective for decreasing recidivism in youth who have completed a substance abuse program. A substance abuse treatment program or center is the best way to treat individuals who have abused substances.
The repeated use of drugs often causes both physical and psychological dependence, as mentioned in an article by the Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia (“Drug Dependence”). In order for an individual to truly be set free from their addiction, seeking treatment is necessary. Rehab centers are a great place with scientifically proven methods to cure those addicted to drugs. It is important to try to end drug use in our country, rather than allowing it to continue longer than it already has. While funding for rehabilitation facilities could become an issue, drug users may continue their addiction without proper treatment, and therefore those arrested for drug use should be sent to a rehabilitation center instead of prison.
So, it is clear that addiction is all around us and can attack anyone of us at any given time. Even studies conducted show that people neglect to speak around their dependency for two primary reasons. Foremost, because people do not comprehend, or they bear a total misconception to their addiction, that they do not realize that addictions can be critical to their overall wellness. Moreover, second, many people believe being an addict will never happen to them, but, in reality, most addictions start off as simple little habits. Such as starting with one drink after dinner and before you know it you are drinking several drinks a day. However, one does not opt to be addicted to a substance, because addictions are physical defects in the brain, a disease, and not one’s choice.
Drug abuse and addiction are issues that affect people everywhere. However, these issues are usually treated as criminal activity rather than issues of public health. There is a conflict over whether addiction related to drug abuse is a disease or a choice. Addiction as a choice suggests that drug abusers are completely responsible for their actions, while addiction as a disease suggests that drug abusers need help in order to break their cycle of addiction. There is a lot of evidence that suggests that addiction is a disease, and should be treated rather than punished. Drug addiction is a disease because: some people are more likely to suffer from addiction due to their genes, drug abuse brought on by addictive behavior changes the brain and worsens the addiction, and the environment a person lives in can cause the person to relapse because addiction can so strongly affect a person.
Drug abuse and addiction not only has negative effects in the lives of the people involved, but also in the lives of their close relatives, friends and immediate society. It leads to disintegration, failure in school, loss of employment and violence. Although intake of drugs is a voluntary and conscious decision initially, continuous intake of drugs changes the brain and challenges the self-control of the “addicted person” and inhibits the ability to resist extreme desire for drug intake.
Drug addiction is a very big problem in today’s society. Many people have had their lives ruined due to drug addiction. The people that use the drugs don’t even realize that they have an addiction. They continue to use the drug not even realizing that their whole world is crashing down around them. Drug addicts normally lose their family and friends due to drug addiction.