Drug Essay: Drug Use And Abuse

Drug Use and Abuse
CRJ124
NICC
Sara Nelson

I Intro
Drug use as well as drug abuse is on a constant rise. There is a wide spread misunderstanding about drugs. Many believe a drug is something that the government has said is illegal to use or consume. However this is not entirely true. A drug is any chemical you take that affects the way your body works. Alcohol, caffeine, aspirin and nicotine are all drugs. A drug must be able to pass from your body into your brain. Once inside your brain, drugs can change the messages your brain cells are sending to each other, and to the rest of your body. They do this by interfering with your brain's own chemical signals, I will discuss this further later on in the paper.
I chose Drug use as my topic because since my early years as a child I can remember someone in my life always being addicted to drugs or using drugs. Because of this I have seen many of the trends of what drugs are out on the streets, in schools, and in our own homes. Having a child of my own I have made it a goal of mine, as many other have, to make sure my daughter know right from wrong and to say no! When I was in school they did not impliment drug awarness programs, talk to us much about drug use or even show us in our classes the war America is facing when it comes to drugs.
Many fads come and go. However it seems one fad has been around far to long. Substance abuse of any kind is all to common among most populations.

II Literature
In America there is are an estimated 12.8 million Americans who use drugs. Out of the 12.8 million 6 percent of the population are kids ranging from 12 years of age and older. This number shows the number for people who have used drugs in the last 30 days. Th...

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...pamine release, or pleasure from things they once did. The drug user is only able to experience pleasure if the drug is in their system. This is how a drug addict or drug dependents brain works. This lack of pleasure does not last forever. Through a detox period the person will regain those normal feelings of pleasure. However many can not last long enough to realize the sensations do come back on their own after a time.

http://www.helpguide.org/mental/drug_substance_abuse_addiction_signs_effects_treatment.htm http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/whoami/findoutmore/yourbrain/howdodrugsaffectyourbrain/whatisadrug.aspx http://www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/emerging-trends https://www.ncjrs.gov/htm/chapter2.htm http://www.drugabuse.gov/sites/default/files/rrprescription.pdf
http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/846099/dr-drew-talks-teen-prescription-drug-abuse