Which Do You Love More: Your Family or Drugs and Alcohol?

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Which Do You Love More: Your Family or Drugs and Alcohol?

To any rational person the question would be laughable and instantly dismissed, but if you hesitate, try to justify the need for drugs and alcohol before family, then you could well be on a path to self-destruction. At the end of the road lies dependency, the overwhelming need to get high on a drug or lost in a bottle of alcohol. Stop for a moment and think, deliberate with what may be the last of your clarity and judgment, over what will be lost by giving in to addiction.

The Spread of Drugs Throughout the US

Every state in the country is under assault from drug trafficking. Home-brewed substances are trending, eliminating the need for a distribution network and law enforcement agencies are scrambling to close down new outlets before they can spread their illicit wares. It’s a world where substances are being created with greater ease, finding new ways into the country, and even being over-prescribed by exhausted physicians. You can walk the crowded rooms of a party or college hallway and see opiates being sold, or listen to tales of your closest friends being hooked on crack cocaine. It’s so easy to be tempted, to give in to peer pressure and experiment with a substance that fades the grind of life and replaces it with a euphoric high, but the high is transient and has no basis in reality. Additionally, keep taking the drugs and alcohol, and the brain begins to alter its chemical structure, adapting to accept the drugs and alcohol. As a result, more of the illicit substance is needed to maintain the high. A user becomes trapped, locked in a tightening cycle of abuse.

The Loss of Sobriety and the Need for Drugs and Alcohol

Alcohol presents just as great a threat to health as illegal substances. For starters, alcohol is available everywhere. Alcoholic beverages are served at parties, at social gatherings, and cheaply available from any convenience store. What may have begun as a social evening drink with friends has quickly turned into morning and afternoon binge drinking sessions with bottles hidden throughout the home. Excuses are being made for why you couldn’t come into work today, and a fun experience has transformed into extreme need. Unfortunately, sound reasoning is compromised and alcoholics sink to any depth to find the cash for just one more drink. Theft becomes acceptable; after all, the money is just being borrowed. This kind of justification will become standard in your thinking processes.

Stop Addiction Today

  • Become self-conscious of your behavior.
  • Stop hanging out in groups where people enable addictive patterns.
  • Try, to be honest with yourself about how close you are to dependency.
  • Research online. There are many help groups and resources for help on the internet.
  • Consider joining a local help group.
  • Seek out professional treatment.

Statistically Supporting Harsh Truths on Drug and Alcohol Addiction

Over 1.9 million Americans are recognized as being addicted to cocaine. Of that number, more than 395,000 use the drug in the highly addictive crack cocaine freebase form. Adding another layer of complexity to the issue of substance abuse, prescription drugs, incautiously spread by doctors, are spiraling out of control, trending upward to meet other addictive substances such as methamphetamine and heroin. Statistics show that close to 50 percent of Americans, including young teens, have taken some form of prescription pills within the last month.

Modern society contains pressures and anxieties that force Americans to cope in the best ways they can. Some of those methods include turning to alcohol to ease the pressure of the current economic climate. Shocking statistics prove self-evident in illustrating the problem of alcohol, an issue that breaks the stereotype of drunks, showing that alcoholism is raging across every demographic, claiming victims in young teens as well as mature adults. The United States may be built upon a nation of abstainers, but alcohol is still destroying lives across the country.

Get Help and Don’t Deal with Dependency Alone

Arguably the greatest single piece of advice is, “Never try to handle the situation on your own.” Get help by talking truthfully with close friends and family, and discover how empowering this simple action can be.

Consider an inpatient treatment center. This place of sanctuary can be checked into for a short period, allowing you to find solid ground in the battle against drugs and alcohol. In this time you can be assessed for mental and physical symptoms and receive dedicated medical care. You isolate yourself from the outside world for a short time, minimizing contact with people that may be acting as a trigger, and remove your thoughts until recovery seems possible once more.

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