Research Paper about The Problem of Addiction

Addiction is an illness that impacts over 300 million people throughout the world. At any given time approximately 10% of the US population is abusing drugs and alcohol. This disease interferes with the way neurons in your brain send, receive and process signals, leading to possible tragedy and death. Addiction is a mysterious illness and many addicts themselves do not comprehend why or how this disease develops. It has become a major problem in today’s society and has affected many people’s way of living, including the addict themselves. 

When looking into the development of drug abuse, many articles declared that the people you surround yourself with, influence your personal opinions and lure you into doing something you’re not comfortable with, this is called peer pressure. Peer pressure is one of the biggest causes of drug consumption, and it can be separated into two types, verbal and nonverbal. Verbal peer pressure occurs when a group of people are bullying or making fun of an individual do to the fact they won’t partake in a certain activity. As shocking as it is, this type of peer pressure is most commonly found in gatherings of close friends, and many individuals give in because the connection of friendship empowers the effect. Non-verbal peer pressure is more overlooked, because it can’t be seen, making it harder to attend to. It is more based around the environment and society an individual lives in. If experimenting with alcohol and stimulants is rumoured to be cool and fun, individuals are more likely to participate in drug abuse, due to the fact they presume drugs will make them more popular. Peer pressure has introduced many addicts to hard substances and has negatively impacted their futures and lives. 

Gangs also have an immense effect on the number of individuals using drugs. These two major criminological issues come together and create a dangerous and hostile environment. It has been evaluated that individuals who participate in gang behaviour use more illegal substances than non-gang members, this is mainly because drugs are normalized in these specific groups. Alcohol and marijuana are prime drugs to these individuals, although hard stimulants such as crystal meth, cocaine and heroin are still common. When consuming these intoxicants, gang members tend to inject, snort or smoke simultaneously, creating greater risk of polysubstance addiction. Not only do these groups engage in substance abuse, but they also encourage others to do it. 40% of all gang members are involved in drug dealing and sell to youths getting them hooked on life destroying prescribtions. Motivating young teens to ruin their lives with drug consumption, to improve the wealth and drug rates of specific gangs is repulsive and inhuman. 

Lastly, bullying and toxic relationships play a part in the development of substance use. This is mainly because the outcome of these behaviours are mental disorders, and individuals diagnosed with mental illnesses are more likely to have problems with addiction. Young people tend to use unprescribed drugs to escape or forget about personal problems and issues in their lives. 3 people were interviewed in 2017, and they each had their own story of the effects of toxicity in an environment on mental health and drug abuse. First was a teenage girl who turned to stimulants after being bullied by others due to her weight and being told she wasn’t good enough. She declared drugs made her feel confident and made her forget about the cruelty of society. Second was a women who turned to alcohol after being in a difficult and abusive relationship. She expressed alcohol made her forget about what she has been through. Lastly was a young boy named Alex who suffered from depression and anxiety and used drugs to feel secure and to build up his confidence, he also stated they made him feel happier. At the end of each interview, they all indicated that these drugs provided a small amount of relief, but the more they used them the less they felt the high, so they began using more, more often. Their bodies created a physical and emotional dependence on the substance, leading to their addiction. They became addicted to heal themselves from trauma others brought onto them. It truly is a disgrace to know that societies actions lead individuals to want to escape reality with drugs on a daily basis.

These drug addicts’ actions affect specific groups including their own families. Drug or alcohol abuse is the primary cause of more than 75% of foster child placements. These children are put into foster care mainly due to the lack of support, necessities and health care their parents give them. They don’t receive these resources because most often addicts choose hallucinogenic drugs over their own children. When this occurs older children in the family may have to take on the responsibility of the parental role and care for their younger siblings. This then creates difficult situations for teen children and affects their mental health. Not only do addicts’ actions abuse their children mentally, but most often children in households with addict parents are physically abused. Misdirect anger from children often cause their parents to become physical, and in rare cases sexually assault them. As well many addicts produce their own substances and law enforcements have seized about 10 000 meth labs in 2004; agencies reported that over 3 000 children have been affected by them. Children who inhabit such homes inhale toxic fumes and drugs, and some children have even tested positive for methamphetamine, this causes major short term and long-term effects on their health. This trauma most often leads teens to abuse drugs, and statistics say that children neglected or apart of families with drug abuse, are 8 times as likely to use then kids brought up in a stable household. These are just few of many consequences of substance abuse on families.