Drug abuse Flashcards
Drugs
Any chemical, natural or man-made substance, which, when taken in, it causes a change in which the person acts and feels.
Social factors that contribute to drug abuse
Media
Peer pressure
Domestic circumstances
Bad social circumstances and poverty
Social factors that contribute to drug abuse: Media (name 2)
The media makes it look ‘cool’ to use drugs, especially the use of tobacco and alcoholic drinks.
Statistics show that a third of teenagers who start using tobacco and alcohol at an early age later experiment with drugs.
The media also uses strong men to form a picture of the ‘ideal’ man. This leads to young boys using steroids to also build muscles.
Girl are portrayed by the media as very thin and gaunt. It is seen as the ideal. A lot of models turn to drugs to measure up to these images.
Social factors that contribute to drug abuse : Peer pressure
Teenagers that want to belong to a group are scarred they will be ostracized. They will do anything to belong to the group.
This is why you must choose friends with the same norms and values as yourself and family.
Social factors that contribute to drug abuse: Domestic circumstances
Teenagers that grow up in unhappy and difficult circumstances can easily fall into a drug hell. Teenagers who don’t get attention and love at home will go seek it in other wrong places.
Drug dealers are very sly and target teenagers who are vulnerable and lonely.
Social factors that contribute to drug abuse: Bad social circumstances and poverty
The use of drugs dulls the pain of the person’s circumstances.
The person in the poorer circumstances don’t have money for his/her need to ‘fix’ and will turn to crime like robbery, stealing, prostitution and fraud.
Dangerous behavior
Physical violence
Sexual misconduct
Risky behavior
Physical violence
The person can get emotionally dulled that they don’t have any feelings of guilt or sympathy towards other people.
They will even physically attack family members over the smallest things. They are therefore very aggressive.
Sexual misconduct
The person loses all control over his/her sexual needs. This can lead to serious crimes like rape.
Risky behavior
The person exposes themselves to potential life-threatening situations.
Drugs let them lose contact with reality and they can feel invincible and that they can’t die.
Damage drugs do to a persons brain
It destroys part of the brain that controls self-control, judgment, emotions, motivation, memory and the ability to learn.
The person undergoes a whole personality change.
The person only has a permanent craving for the use of the drug.
The person can’t focus or give attention to anything and is very forgetful.
He/she appears hyperactive and talks constantly without anything making sense.
The person is aggressive and moody.
The person is paranoid and thinks everyone is out to ‘get them’.
Physical symptoms (name 7)
Person has weak physical coordination and may walk slowly or staggers.
The person’s eyes are always red and watery and he/she regularly uses eye drops. Their hands and feet shake and are cold and sweaty.
The person appears pale and the face is very puffy.
The person’s nose is permanently running. He/she coughs a lot and regularly vomits. There are dark circles around the eyes.
The person is constantly tire and exhausted.
The person’s nose cavities are infected and the nose is constantly running.
They don’t take care of personal hygiene anymore.
The person constantly coughs and gets chronic colds.
The person’s skin is affected and they get bad acne.
The person’s eating and sleeping patterns change
They sometimes have jerky bodily movements.
The person gets a serious skin rash.
The person smells of alcohol or other drugs especially those that are smoked.
The person shows sudden and drastic weight loss.
The person often faints and their hands are constantly shaking.
Emotional changes
The person’s mood change within seconds.
The person wants to spend more time alone and withdraws from family and friends.
The person doesn’t make good choices and sometimes expose themselves to dangerous situations.
The person has a very low self-esteem.
The person is totally narcissistic, in other words they only focus on themselves.
The person blames everybody for things that go wrong.
The person’s personality changes from social and friendly to depressive and a-social.
Fitting behavior to stop drug abuse
The only way to stop drug abuse is by saying NO.
It is important to carefully choose your friends. Choose friends with the same upbringing, values and norms as yourself.
The drug dealer pretends to be your ‘friend’ and therefore you may think he is only there to help you.
Lies people proffer teenagers regarding drugs
- Drugs will make you feel better.
- It makes you more creative and people will like you more.
- Marijuana is not as dangerous as tobacco smoking.
- Drugs don’t have permanent repercussions on your body.
- Drugs give you endless energy.
- Drug given to you by prescription can’t do you any harm.
- Alcohol is not addictive.
