Drug Case Study

Introduction

Substance abuse refers to the excessive use of the material be they legal or not especially drugs and alcohol. The use of medication or not- medically indicated content that leads to repeated social consequences such as failure to meet work, family or school duties among others is substance abuse. The use of psychoactive substances, in the form of alcohol and other drugs, is an everyday human behavior. A large number of adults include use of some material in their lifestyle.

Substance abuse causes dependency and addiction after repeated intake of the toxins for a long time. To understand addiction, you must be thoroughly knowledgeable on the contributions of the drug, the individual who takes the material and the circumstance in which the person makes the substance. The socio-cultural and historical context in which the person takes the drug affects both the drug experience as well as the consequences of use for anybody (Galanter& Kleber, 2008).

The above pictures represent publications done in America on particular drug nicotine taken in by smoking. The first figure represents an announcement that warns the public of the effects of smoking on the health of a person. The second picture encourages the public to smoke Luckies strike, indicating that it is less irritating.

The substance abuse illustrated above refers to cigarette smoking. Cigarettes contain an addictive drug, nicotine as well as other substances like tar. Cigarette smoking has many adverse effects on the health of a person (Galanter& Kleber, 2008). Cigarette smokers are at greater risk of diseases that affect the heart and blood vessels. Such conditions include stroke, coronary heart disease and blockages that may cause reduced blood flow to the legs and skin. Smoking of cigarettes is also a major contributor to respiratory illnesses such as lung cancer. It also triggers asthma attacks or make existing respiratory illnesses worse. Smoking can also cause cancer to any part of the body (Galanter& Kleber, 2008). It prevents pregnancy as well as affecting babies before and after birth. Smoking can also reduce fertility in men. Smoking makes control of diabetes mellitus difficult. Smoking causes adverse effects on the body. Smoking can also harm any other part of the body that is not necessarily cancer (Galanter& Kleber, 2008).

Addiction to smoking cigarettes is curable through psychological techniques. Behavioral treatments for smoking are long lasting. Treatment for addiction to smoking and nicotine dependence requires both psychological and medical techniques to cure. It is a fact that when smokers try to quit without counseling or medication only a minuscule percentage succeeds. Some nicotine addicts can cure addiction by sheer willpower whereas others cannot. Overcoming habitual behaviors involves deliberate, repeated attempts to break old patterns of smoking (Munsey, 2008).

There are several techniques used to help smoking addicts by psychiatrists like distress tolerance resistance treatment for people unable to resist the urges for more than an hour that utilizes acceptance and commitment therapy (Munsey, 2008). An individual may also employ motivational interviewing by recognizing the pros of smoking for the person at the same time requesting reasons to quit from the individual. You can also encourage change of habits (Munsey, 2008). Another effective method is nicotine fading. It involves switching their brand of cigarette with a lower nicotine brand at intervals. Social support and pledging are another technique that remedies smoking (Munsey, 2008).

Reference

Munsey, C., (2008) A variety of research-tested behavioral tools boost success rates for smokers who want to quit journal of monitoring staff., Vol. 39, No. 10 page 38.

Galanter, M., Kleber, H., (2008). The American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Substance Abuse Treatment., Wilson Boulevard., American Psychiatric Pub.

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