Drug Abuse, Essay Example

Before taking this course, I had a completely negative opinion of substance abusers. In my mind I always felt that it was a conscious choice that the person was making. With all the information that one sees and hears about the consequences of drugs, I couldn’t understand why anyone would take such a risk. Nonetheless, I have come to realize that addiction is a sickness that the addict really doesn’t have control of. Once they have fallen victim and tried the particular drug, they become a slave to it. They will do whatever is needed to get the drug and rarely care about who they hurt in the process.

In my own life, I know people who are substance abusers. I tried to steer away from these people because I felt they were just ignorant. Now I have realized that a person can become a substance abuser after using a substance only one time. I know people who have lost everything due to substance abuse. Their families are torn about by divorce and the children are left in disarray. I couldn’t understand how one would keep using after seeing the stress it was bringing to his family. Nonetheless, the person kept using drugs. Eventually, the person checked into a rehab, but relapsed. This process has been ongoing.

Yes, my view of the addict has changed. I can now see them as real people with feeling and goals in life just as nonusers. I don’t believe any person ever woke up one morning and said I think I want to be a drug addict. These are real people who just made bad choices in life. Sometimes just one bad choice has led them down a road of destruction. I know that they are trying to get their lives back, but often the addiction is just too strong for them to break away from it on their own. Many times there are other underlining reasons for the person trying the drug in the first place. So, in order to break the addiction, the person has to come to terms with the reason of the addiction.