Question

Impact of drug addiction on emotional anf physical wellbeing

Answer 1

Drug addiction exacts an emotional toll on sufferers and their family members. Addiction grows in a bed of pre-existing emotional turmoil, and the feelings of anxiety, shame, guilt, and worthlessness that increase risk for addiction will only become worse as the chemical dependency deepens. Drug abuse also creates fresh emotional complications for everyone it affects. Emotional pain and disruption is inevitable for drug addicts and their loved ones, and only through treatment and recovery can families escape the pernicious effects of chemical dependency

Drug use can affect short- and long-term health outcomes. Some of these health outcomes can be serious, and possibly irreversible.

Drug use can lead to risky or out of character behaviour. When affected by drugs:

You are more likely to have an accident (at home, in a car, or wherever you are).

You may be vulnerable to sexual assault or you may engage in unprotected sex. Either of these could lead to pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection.

You could commit a sexual assault or other violent act.

You may find it hard to sleep, think, reason, remember and solve problems.

Drug use can also result in long-term health outcomes that include:

harm to organs and systems in your body, such as your throat, stomach, lungs, liver, pancreas, heart, brain, nervous system

cancer (such as lung cancer from inhaling drugs)

infectious disease, from shared injecting equipment and increased incidence of risk-taking behaviors

harm to your baby, if you are pregnant

acne, or skin lesions if the drug you are taking causes you to pick or scratch at your skin

needle marks and collapsed veins, if you inject regularly

baldness

male pattern hair growth in women, such as facial hair

jaw and teeth issues due to clenching and grinding your teeth; or bad breath, teeth cavities and gum disease

mood swings and erratic behavior

addiction

psychosis (losing touch with reality)

accidental overdose

higher risk of mental illness, depression, suicide and death.

Answer 2

Drug abuse also creates fresh emotional complications for everyone it affects. Emotional pain & disruption is inevitable for drug addicts & their loved ones.

The more a person uses drugs, the more they feel dependent on them in order to cope with everyday situations. Because of this, long-term drug abuse can spark a problem with anxiety. It is common for users to spend more and more time thinking about using, planning how and when to use again. Eventually, this fixation becomes an unmanageable anxiety in between times of using.

Over time your loved one may need more drugs to find the same “good” feeling. At the same time, the lows in between the highs get lower. Depression is another common side effect.

Tobacco is not the only substance which can harm the lungs; meth, crack cocaine and marijuana all can damage the lungs.

Kidneys are filters for the human body. Whatever goes into the body passes through the kidneys for safety treatment. Long-term drug abuse repeatedly pushes toxins through the kidneys and can ultimately lead to kidney failure.

Heart problems can happen the first time a person uses some drugs. It can also be weakened by repeated drug use.

These are not comprehensive lists. But you can see how long-term drug abuse can affect both your physical and your emotional health. At Family Guidance Center we can help you to plan an intervention. Call us today, our addiction treatment services program is the only local program offering outpatient and inpatient treatment along with a social detoxification treatment program.