Addiction on Prescription Drugs in the Addicts Point of View

Addiction is a chronic relapsing brain disease that compels the affected individual to seek usage of substances such as drugs. Drug addiction is so far the most common form of addiction. Consideration of addiction as a disease is as a result of the drugs ability to modify the brain structure either permanently of temporary. As such, the addicts gain harmful behaviors that characterize them. Globally there is a wide range of abused drugs. The classes include opioids, central nervous system stimulants, central nervous system depressants, tobacco, inhalants, cannabinoids, psychedelic, anabolic and steroids among others. The categories are derived from their method of action on the nervous system, their origin and their mode of administration. Furthermore, the categories can be classified further into three categories which are prescription drugs, legal drugs, and illegal drugs. Prescription drugs are pharmaceutical drugs that legally require a prescription from a medical practitioner to be dispensed. However, another class of prescription drugs called over the counter drugs can be obtained from a pharmacy without any form of prescription (Hoffman & Froemke, 2007) . This paper discusses addiction of prescription drugs from the addicts’ point of view.

Addiction on Prescription Drugs in the Addicts Point of View

Prescription drugs are currently the leading source of drug addiction in the United States. The rate of addiction has risen to an alarming rate of over 15 million people becoming addicted every year. Further research indicates that despite the fact that the USA represents only 5% of drug addicts, it consumes 75% of the abused prescription drugs. Some of the common causes of the high rate of addiction include patients using drugs that they don’t need availability of the drugs and medical practitioners over prescription. Some of the commonly abused subscription drugs include pain management drugs, flue and common cold treatment drugs and mental health management drugs ("How People Get Addicted to Prescription Drugs", 2018) . This section discusses some of the major causes of addiction to prescription drugs, the effects to the addicts and methods employed by addicts in their recovery.

One of the leading motivations of addiction to prescription drugs is the massive advertisement the drugs enjoy among the media channels. In fact, the large number of prescription drugs abuse has prompted the American Medical Association to call for a ban on their advertisement. The advertisements as presented in the media encourage the users to seek the advertised quality of the drug in a manner not intended by the medical practitioner. Nevertheless, individual users have unique factors that encourage them further to drug abuse, in the long run, become addicted. The reasons include feeling good or high, relaxation of tension, increasing alertness, increasing concentration and peer influence ("How People Get Addicted to Prescription Drugs", 2018) .

Most of the pain management drugs such as opioids have a feel-good effect on users. Therefore, users enjoy the feeling of being high that is derived from their administration. As such, they either take the recommended dose of the drug they are not supposed to be taking or a slightly higher dose. Secondly, many users find themselves in tense situations that include seating for exams. Therefore, they seek usage of the prescription drugs to relax their tension. Most sought relaxation drugs are obtained from pain management drugs. Further to anxiety and feel-good effect, many users have a craving of enhanced performance. Therefore, they seek drugs that either increase alertness or concentration. Common areas of affected addicts include those who seek to improve academic performance, reduce sleep to gain longer working hours especially at night and an enhance sex performance. Other motivating factors among drug users include, experimenting the mental effect of the drug, adhering to peer pressure and maintaining the dependency to the drug after they have become addicted (Ries, 2009) . Despite the positive results gained by patients, when abused, the prescription drugs have a different, adverse effect.

According to (Hoffman & Froemke, 2007), different drugs have different specific negative effects and risks to the abusers and addicts. For instance, opioids are prescribed mainly for pain relief. Most of these drugs achieve their function by changing the central nervous system response to pain. However, abusers and addicts exhibit symptoms such as drowsiness, confusion, headaches, change in vision, lethargy, nausea, vomiting, constipation and personal change in behavior. In the long run, the addicts have reduced blood pressure, significantly reduced rate of breathing and are a constant risk of death as a result of overdose. On the other hand, abuse and addiction to sedative and antianxiety drugs such as oxycodone that sold under the brand name Oxycontin and codeine among others have a range of effects. Most sedative and anti-anxiety drugs are mainly for pain management. However, abusers seek them for their euphoric and seductive effects. Their abuse and addiction pose the user to the risk of having: fading memory slowed breathing and low blood pressure and imminent risk of death as a result of an overdose. The last category of prescription drugs is stimulants. This category is mostly sought for enhanced performance and alertness. Even so, abuse and addiction pose the users to a high risk of having heart complications, abnormally high body temperature, hallucinations, tremor, aggressiveness, high blood pressure and paranoia. Evidently, despite the abuse of prescription drugs having a negative effect on the users, addiction makes addicts crave their usage even when they are making their lives worse. Therefore, there is a need for preventing the abuse and addiction to the drugs. Some of the preventive strategies that Seek to avert the misuse and overall addiction to prescription drugs include making sure the user is getting the right medication. As earlier mentioned, wrong prescription or over prescription is one of the major causes of prescription drug abuse. Therefore, it is vital for the patient to make the medical practitioner understand their medical conditions including the over the counter medication and usage of other drugs such as cigarette and alcohol. As a follow-up, it is also prudent for the user to seek the medics advice on whether the prescription is working or not and if there is any need for change. This information can be obtained through a revisit or from merely seeking an understanding of what the medication does. Even after the correct prescription, it is prudent for the patient to use the drugs as prescribed. Undesirable behaviors such as not following the set dosage, stopping, skipping or changing the dosage amounts to abuse and consequently can result in an addiction. One common wrong practice among prescription drug users is the increased administration of pain management medication when they feel that the recommended dosage is not adequately alleviating the pain. Furthermore, it is not recommended to use another person’s prescription because everyone is unique hence the correct dosage differs with the person and the condition. Finally, all drug purchases should be made from trusted sources. Trusted sources alleviate the possibility of buying counterfeit drugs which pose a high risk of the discussed negative effects (Ries, 2009) . Once one becomes an addict, they can still be treated.

According to ("How can prescription drug addiction be treated?", 2018), treatment of prescription drugs addiction is achieved through two main methods; behavioral treatment and medical treatment. In behavioral treatment, users are encouraged to engage in strategies that prevent relapse. Such strategies include advice on how to control cravings, offering incentives for abstinence and teaching on stopping unhealthy practices. This treatment is conducted through group counseling, individual counseling, and overall family intervention to improve one's interpersonal relations. Even so, addiction to some prescription drugs such opioids calls for medical treatment. The medication is used to alleviate the negative withdrawal effects that make it hard to quit using behavioral treatment only. Some of the conventional medical treatment includes the use of methadone, naltrexone, and buprenorphine. Nonetheless, the medication is in most instances combined with behavioral treatment for maximum desired effects (Hoffman & Froemke, 2007) .

A large population is at risk of becoming prescription drugs addict. Some of the factors that pose the threat, as discussed include wrong prescription, availability of counterfeit drugs, wrong usage of prescribed drugs and utilization of other people’s prescription. As such, abusers and addicts are exposed to the many negative effects that come with the addiction. The negative effects include increased blood pressure, reduced blood pressure, abnormal body temperature, reduced breathing rate, compromised memory, and an imminent death threat in the event of an overdose. Despite all the risks, users can ensure they obtain the correct prescription from their doctors. Strategies for providing right prescription include clearly explaining the user's symptoms, seeking to understand what the prescribed drugs do, usage of the drugs as prescribed and never using other people’s prescription. However, in the event of an addiction, users have a chance of recovery through behavioral treatment and medical treatment.