Action:
Substance abuse is an issue that plagues our country on macro and micro levels of the community.
Every level of relationship is affected through an individual's substance use, hindering growth and development and potentially leading to anxiety and depression, or worse: death. From direct relationships to the entire community, the use of substances is a large cause of suffering. It is an illness that can be prevented and should be addressed.
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Research:
From the big picture standpoint, abuse of tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drugs costs our nation more than $740 billion annually in costs related to crime, lost work productivity and health care. According to publichealth.lacounty.gov, substance abuse has total tangible costs of nearly $13 billion annually ($9.5 billion for alcohol and $3.4 billion for illicit drugs) in Los Angeles County alone and include medical costs, wage and household work, public services, property damage, and motor vehicle crash costs. Substance abuse prohibits productivity at work, provoke high health care costs due to disease, and lead to a large percentage of criminalization as well as driving under the influence which can lead to fatalities.
On the micro level, families are ripped apart due to substance abuse. Even individuals that want to quit have continuous internal struggles preventing them from quitting. The initial decision to take drugs is voluntary, but continued use can lead to changes in the brain that may result in challenges which interfere with the ability to resist the temptation to take drugs.
What happens to the brain when someone uses drugs?
According to drugabuse.gov, "Most drugs affect the brain's 'reward circuit,' causing euphoria as well as flooding it with the chemical messenger dopamine. A properly functioning reward system motivates a person to repeat behaviors needed to thrive, such as eating and spending time with loved ones. Surges of dopamine cause the reinforcement of pleasurable but unhealthy behaviors like taking drugs, leading people to repeat behaviors again and again.
As a person continues to use drugs, the brain adapts by reducing the ability of cells in the reward circuit to respond to it. This reduces the high that the person feels compared to the high they felt when first taking the drug—an effect known as tolerance. These brain adaptations often lead to the person becoming less and less able to derive pleasure form things they once enjoyed."
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*(SUD is Substance Use Disorders)
Annually in Los Angeles County, there are:
- 2,916 AOD-related deaths
- 92,511 AOD-related ED visits
- 82,342 AOD-related hospitalizations
- $44,310 charge per AOD-hospitalization
- $3.7 billion total AOD-hospital charges
In California (CA): 65% of inmates meet criteria for a SUD
- 109,118 (34%) AOD-related arrests annually in Los Angeles County
- 25% of incarcerations were for drug law violations
- 43% were under the influence at time of crime
- $7.7 billion in SUD-related justice spending
Annually in Los Angeles County, there are:
- 40,186 DUI arrests
- 7,210 DUI collisions
- 4,556 DUI injuries
- 79 DUI fatalities
- $7,000+ cost per DUI case in CA
Among US workers:
- 9% of full-time employees are illicit drug users
- 14% of part-time employees are illicit drug users
Among US workers who use AOD:
- 3.5 times more likely to have workplace accident
- 2 times more likely to miss work
- 15% of the adult US workforce were alcohol impaired at work in the past year
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There are many warning signs to look out for in someone you think may be abusing drugs or alcohol. Every victim of addiction is different and every case of substance abuse is unique. Some may be more obvious about their struggle with alcohol or drugs while others may go to great lengths to make sure their substance abuse stays hidden.
Because there are many indicators that can be a sign of substance abuse or addiction, many can also be red flags for other problems in a person's life. Try to understand before you judge. Confronting a victim of substance abuse can be both intimidating and may often do more harm than good if you are not properly informed. It is important for you to know that you are not alone and neither is your loved one. Showing them love and the ability to grow from the past is one of the most important steps to recovery. We are not products of our past and it's never too late to get better.
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"Smoking is the perfect way to commit suicide without actually dying."
-Cris Mata
"Substance abuse tears families apart. It's really sad to see the amount of people affected."
-Diether Baliola
"Drug use doesn't only affect you and the ones you love. It hurts everyone involved."
-Ruben Balsells
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Personal Reflection:
The reason I chose substance abuse as my civic
engagement project is because I've had my family nearly broken up due to drug addiction.
A close relative of mine was so heavily affected by drugs that he stole rent
money from the family multiple times without our knowledge and got us
evicted from the apartment we were living in. That relative of mine had spent
months to years in and out of jail since the age of 20; they just turned 30. My
biggest fear of addiction is that they have kids and were still able to do
that, so in my eyes, it demonstrates the type of evil that substance abuse possesses.
I remember them always sneaking away late at
night and being very secretive. If any of us asked where they were going, they
would be defensive and confrontational. It was scary and it almost felt like
there was no way to get through to them under that state; the drug had really
taken over their mind because it had become the only thing they cared for.
My family still to this day has a fear of anyone
using substances because we’ve been through hell and back for that person. They
are a better now due to us continuously being there for them, as well as spending
time in jail and having to rehabilitate the hard way.
When I asked a family member if they would like
to say anything about this topic, they almost started to tear up because it
brought back those difficult times and emotions. I don’t want anyone in this
world to have to suffer what my family has been through, so I would like to
shed some light on a topic that hits close to home.
Substance abuse is
preventable and should be an issue that is brought to our attention. We as a
community are losing too many people due to addiction and it starts with us
being more proactive amongst each other. We have to do better.
Look out for the signs and symptoms of substance
abuse. Ask questions.
Love each other!
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References
SUBSTANCE ABUSE PREVENTION AND CONTROL MEDICAL DIRECTOR’S BRIEF. (2016, August). Retrieved November 5, 2018, from http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/sapc/MDU/MDBrief/CostBriefFinal.pdf
NIDA. (2018, June 6). Understanding Drug Use and Addiction. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/understanding-drug-use-addiction on 2018, November 5
NIDA. (2017, April 24). Trends & Statistics. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics/trends-statistics on 2018, November 5
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