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    Alcohol, Drugs, and Teens
    Alcohol, Drugs, and Teens
    Alcohol, Drugs, and Teens
    Ebook135 pages2 hours

    Alcohol, Drugs, and Teens

    By TeenSoulPower

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    About this ebook

    Addiction is one of the most poorly understood phenomena in America today. Most people believe that it is a lack of willpower. Most people think that it is full physical addiction to a drug. And most people think it can never happen to them. But addiction itself is a spectrum disorder, and can be anywhere along any point in the disease process - early, middle, or late stage.
    Nine-out-of-ten addicts began using alcohol or drugs before age 18, and not one of them ever said, "When I grow up I want to be an addict." But that is the nature of drugs.
    Addiction is definitely a process of morbidity, of making people sick. It is definitely a disease. It affects mind, body, emotion and soul. And addiction always begins with simple use. If one never smokes one does not develop addiction to nicotine. It is the act of using a substance that potentiates the addiction potential.
    Addiction is the Number One Public Health Problem in America. One estimate is that addiction affects 16 percent of Americans ages 12-and-older - some 40 million people. That is more than the number of people with heart disease (27 million), diabetes (26 million), and cancer (19 million.) And addiction always begins with simple use.
    The purpose of this book is to help people improve the quality of their lives by avoiding one of the greatest health problems this country - and this world - faces: drug abuse. Just in one study of premature deaths they found that the majority of premature deaths were drug related, and the average years of life lost (YLL) from the point of death until the average life expectancy - was 46 years, i.e, all of these drug related individuals died an average of 46 years earlier than non-drug using individuals. In addition, the quality of life that these individuals experienced was much lower, ex., multiple relationships and divorces, increase in poverty and homelessness, increase in lost jobs, unemployment and under-employement, low degree of quality relationships with children, low degree of family satisfaction, and overall low degree of life fulfillment.
    Alcohol and drugs remain one of the great puzzles of the world. These are powerful pharmacological substances. They are substances that attract people to them like bees to honey, except that in this case the honey is a poison that can hurt, maim and eventually kill.
    This book spells out the major problems with alcohol and drugs and young adults and recommends that as with many other social issues, the best medicine is "Prevention First". And the best prevention message for everyone, is, simply, do not use alcohol and drugs.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTeenSoulPower
    Release dateFeb 18, 2017
    ISBN9781370256167
    Alcohol, Drugs, and Teens
    Author

    TeenSoulPower

    TeenSoulPower is interested in providing inspiration and support for young adults and adults, during the trials and tribulations of life. We are interested in helping YOU enhance the quality of your life. For each phase of life you enter, the quality of your life should strengthen, not weaken. It should increase, not decrease. It should expand the positive features and attributes of your life, not shrink or contract them. This book is about helping everyone find the path to a better Quality of Life. We, at TeenSoulPower, want to help you to identify what makes a happy and healthy life. More importantly, we want to help you to make a fulfilling life. Most of us think we know how to do this, but the truth is that if you do not know how then your life is in free-float. It is moving ahead - but may not be making any progress. In fact, your life may even be headed in the wrong direction! Your life can be "free floating", aimless, drifting, with neither rhyme nor reason, with neither purpose nor goals, set adrift and vulnerable to the whims of fate instead of the destiny you were designed for. We at TeenSoulPower are dedicated to helping people find a road map to a better Quality of Life with advice, guidance and support to help young adults avoid the unnecessary pitfalls of life and to maximize their potential for a fulfilling and successful life experience and life journey. Life can be a beautiful journey, but sometimes we need a little help along the way.

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      Book preview

      Alcohol, Drugs, and Teens - TeenSoulPower

      ALCOHOL, DRUGS and YOUTH

      TeenSoulPower

      Published by TeenSoulPower at Smashwords

      Copywrite 2017, TeenSoulPower

      Thank you for downloading this ebook. This book remains the copyrighted property of TeenSoulPower, and may not be redistributed to others for commercial or noncommercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy from their favorite authorized retailer. If you share a nonsubstantial portion of this book, i.e., an article or chapter of this book for educational purposes or for personal growth purposes only, you may do so without modification and by giving full credit to TeenSoulPower, and again, by encouraging your friends to download their own copy. Thank you for your support.

      TABLE OF CONTENTS

      Addiction and Youth

      I Am

      The Prevalence of Addiction

      What is Addiction?

      Alcohol, Drugs, and Teen Suicide

      The Brain's Reward System

      Danger

      Recovery Steps

      The Real Prevalence of Alcoholism

      Ten Reasons to Stay Alcohol/Drug Free

      Today's Drugs are More Dangerous

      Signs and Symptoms of Drug Abuse

      Signs of Teen Drug Use

      Signs of Addiction or Dependency

      Effects and Side-Effects of Drugs

      Intoxication and Overdose

      Addiction is a Family Disease

      The Ten Laws of Drug Abuse

      Treatment and Recovery

      The War on Drugs

      Summary

      About TeenSoulPower

      ADDICTION AND YOUTH

      Myth:

      Just try it - a little won’t hurt!

      Truth:

      "The three primary causes of death for teenagers are

      homicide, suicide, and accident fatalities,

      and alcohol and drugs are

      the primary causative factor in each category of death!"

      I AM…

      I am more powerful than the combined armies of the world;

      I have destroyed more men than all the wars of the nation;

      I have caused millions of accidents and wrecked more homes

      than all the floods, tornadoes and hurricanes put together;

      I am the world’s slickest thief. I steal billions of dollars each year;

      I find my victims among the rich and poor alike,

      the young and the old, the strong and the weak;

      I loom up to such proportions that I cast a shadow over

      every field of labor;

      I am relentless, insidious, and unpredictable;

      I am everywhere – in the home, on the street, in the factory,

      in the office, on the sea and in the air;

      I bring sickness, poverty and death;

      I give nothing and take all;

      I am your worst enemy;

      I am alcohol.

      THE PREVALENCE OF ADDICTION

      Addiction is the Number One Public Health Problem in America.

      One estimate is that addiction affects

      16 percent of Americans ages 12-and-older - some 40 million people.

      That is more than the number of people with:

      heart disease (27 million),

      diabetes (26 million),

      and cancer (19 million.)

      WHAT IS ADDICTION?

      No teenager ever said, When I grow up I want to be an Addict,

      but the reality is

      that 9-out-of-10 addicts started using drugs before the age of 18.

      Addiction is from the Latin word, addicere, to give or bind a person to one thing or another. It is generally used in the field of alcoholism and drug abuse to refer to chronic, compulsive, or uncontrollable drinking or drug use to the extent that a person (referred to as an alcoholic or addict or dependent) cannot or will not stop the use of that or those drug(s). It usually implies to either-or-both, a strong psychological dependency or to a physical dependency resulting in both the buildup of a tolerance to the substance as well as a withdrawal syndrome when use of the drug is stopped.

      Addiction is one of the most poorly understood phenomena in America today. Most people believe that it is a lack of willpower. Most people think that it is full physical addiction. And most people think it can never happen to them. But addiction itself is a spectrum disorder, and can be anywhere along any point in the disease process - early, middle or late stage. Addiction is the progression from the use of certain substances or behaviors, to the abuse of those substances, into an area characterized by the loss of control over the use of those substances. It also demonstrates an entire battery of growing negative behaviors and consequences from the use of those substances especially as the addiction progresses or grows. And it is no respecter of race, religion or socio-economic status. Addiction is an equal opportunity destroyer.

      In simplest form, alcohol is a drug and alcoholism is addiction to that drug - either psychological dependency or actual physical addiction. In simplest form, tobacco contains nicotine, a drug of addiction - and nicotine addiction is dependency upon that drug - either psychological or physical addiction. In simplest form, street drugs are drugs of addiction - and addicts are those people dependent upon those drugs - either psychologically or physically addicted. In simplest form, many prescribed medications are drugs of addiction - and addicts are those people dependent upon those drugs - either psychologically or physically addicted.

      Addiction is most often characterized by compulsion or degree of need. But while compulsion is the most recognized symptom it is most often found in the third stage or end-stage of addiction. Loss of control grows rather slowly so that by far, most addiction by the time we recognize it, has already been going on for about 5 years, however the addict was expert in hiding it or masking or medicating the symptoms, the results, or the consequences.

      "When you can stop you don't want to…

      And when you want to stop, you can't…

      - Luke Davies -

      Addiction is definitely a process of morbidity, of making people sick. It is definitely a disease. It affects mind, body and soul. It is a definite morbid process having a characteristic chain of symptoms affecting the entire body or any of its parts. Its etiology, pathology, diagnosis and prognosis may be known or unknown. As a disease, there is a host (the person), an environment contributing to the effects of the disease, and an causative agent (the alcohol or drug.) And it is one of the most misunderstood of all diseases. It seems to violate the natural laws of medicine and psychology, so even doctors, psychiatrists and researchers don't understand it. And it is truly cunning, baffling and powerful.

      "One of the youngest alcoholics brought into treatment was a 12 year old boy,

      who was diagnosed with alcohol related cirrhosis of the liver,

      a late stage symptom of alcoholism at only 12 years old.

      His father taught him young, 'How to drink like a man.'"

      There are three primary dynamics to addiction:

      One of the first dynamics of addiction is loss of control. Early on it may be occasional, a type which is more impulsive drinking or drug use. But it can rapidly progress, and eventually it becomes unpredictable as to when, where, and how much one will drink or use a drug. Here, a person also increasingly begins to lose control over their behaviors. Perhaps they become more argumentative when under the influence, or more irresponsible, apathetic, unorganized, or even verbally abusive or physically violent. An addict cannot tell how, when or where he/she will use or how much they will use, or when they will lose control of the alcohol or drug use. Certainly the definition of dependency includes when someone cannot consistently predict the effects or the outcomes. Finally, the addiction has grown to the point of compulsive use including binge drinking or repeated drug use throughout the day. Over a course of time the pattern of drinking or drug use progresses from occasional use, to a pattern of use, to a habitual use, to a dependent use, to compulsive use. The time factor does vary with the individual as does other factors including the substance and factors surrounding use. Some people for instance remain weekend drinkers and will use that as evidence that they can't be alcoholic, but because of the loss of control phenomena exhibited when they do drink they are every bit as alcoholic as daily drinkers.

      Second, addiction is a progressive disease in that it usually goes from the lesser drug to the stronger drug, and from the lesser amount to the greater amount with the changes in the pattern of use paralleling the growing strength in the addiction itself. If left unchecked, addiction grows until it ends in 1-of-4 ways: the alcoholic/addict ends up in jail or prison; the alcoholic/addict ends up in and out of emergency rooms and hospitals; the alcoholic/addict ends up in and put of mental institutions and psychiatric centers; and finally, the alcohol/addict ends up dead. There is a fifth way, though, that addicts can

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