By George A. Boyd ©1991
Drugs and Their Uses
There are many types of drugs. Drugs are sought out in cultures around
the world for their ability to alter mood and awareness.
Purified and used in medicine, these substances have been used as analgesics, anesthetics, soporifics, muscle relaxants, central nervous
system stimulants, anti-psychotic and anti-anxiety medications. When used
strictly for these purposes under medical supervision, they have been
a boon to suffering patients. After trauma, during acute illness, pre-
and post-operatively, and during convalescence, they have relieved pain,
quelled anxiety, lowered depression.
They have been used socially in cultures outside the medical setting
to release inhibitions, to lubricate social intercourse. In ritual settings,
they have been used to commune with the collective unconscious, as in
the Peyote rites of Native Americans of the American Southwest.
Different drugs have become the culturally accepted substances for altering
mood, energy levels, and awareness. For example,
In many of the industrialized countries of North America, Europe and
Asia, coffee, alcohol and tobacco are widely used.
Among the Native American tribes of the high Andean villages of South
America, chewing coca leaves, that contains the active alkaloid, cocaine,
is an accepted stimulant to help overcome the strain on the heart and
lungs of living and working at high altitudes.
In the Middle East and Asia, tea, opium and cannabis have been enjoyed,
occupying a central role in these cultures as the preferred intoxicants
and social lubricants.
Among Native Americans of North and South America, a series of hallucinogenic
substances have been used to alter mood and awareness. They have ingested
fungi such as Fly Agaric or Psilocybin mushrooms; plants of the Datura
family such as Jimson Weed or Tolache; cacti such as Peyote from the
American Southwestern and Mexican deserts; and native vines such as
yagé or cohaba from the tropical South American rain forest.
Among Polynesians and Melanesians, kava kava is used.
In fact, one is hard pressed to find a culture among the world's people
that has not adopted one form or another of a drug or beverage as their
social lubricant.
The pharmaceutical industries that serve the medical establishment in
industrialized countries have developed a large number of alternatives
to the natural preparations used traditionally throughout the world. Today,
as modern medical and public health outreach throughout the world have
introduced these powerful forms of psychoactive substances throughout
the world, they are beginning to emerge as new drugs of use, abuse and
addiction.
Heroin, morphine and a host of other narcotic opioids have produced
addicts throughout the world who inject, sniff, eat, or smoke these
preparations to savor its dreamlike euphoria.
Highly purified cocaine, as cocaine hydrochloride powder, as basuco
paste, as crystallized "rock" or "crack" is sniffed, smoked and injected
to enjoy the swift, intense rush of energy and elevation of mood, coupled
with anaesthetic effects.
Amphetamines such as Benzadrine, Dexadrine and Methamphetamine, and
newer stimulants such as Ritalin and Preludin have been eaten, sniffed
and injected to produce a state of increased energy and hyperalertness.
Depressant, hypnotic and sedative drugs have been utilized as alternatives
to alcohol to produce states of disinhibition and intoxication. Barbiturates
(such as Amytal, Luminal, Nembutal, Seconal and Tuinal), barbiturate-like
agents (such as Doriden, Noludar, Placidyl, and Quaalude), benzodiazepines
(such as Librium, Valium, and Clonopin), carbamates (such as Miltown),
and other depressants (such as Chloral Hydrate or Paraldehyde) have shown their potential for abuse and addiction. 1
Hallucinogens such as d-lysergic acid diethylamide tartrate (LSD),
Phencyclidine (PCP), psilocybin (Psilocyn), peyote (Mescaline), dimethyltryptamine
(DMT), diethyltryptamine (DET), dimethoxymethylamphetamine (DOM), ketamine,
and the amphetamine derivatives MDA and MDMA have been widely sought
out for their ability to alter sensory perception, awareness and thinking.2
Other substances of abuse include inhalants (such as airplane glue,
gasoline, ether, or nitrous oxide), scopolamine-containing medications
(including belladonna), caffeine-containing beverages and tablets, and
even over the counter medications such as decongestants (ephedrine and
others), and antihistamines.
Recovery becomes necessary when drug use causes personal problems or
addictions. Drug use progresses from infrequent social use, to social
use with behavioral problems (problem drug use), to voluntary habitual
use (habituation), and to involuntary habitual use (addiction) replete
with psychological and physiological withdrawal symptoms.
From Trial to Addiction
There are many reasons why people try drugs. Curiosity based on what
other people say about a drug may influence some people to start using
it. There may be peer pressure to do what is forbidden by some social
groups, or normative in others. Drugs or alcohol have been used as an
initiation into peer groups such as fraternities or youth gangs. Upon
observing the effects in other people, some people may try the drug to
feel less depressed, inhibited or shy, as a kind of self-meditation. Others
try them to experience altered states of consciousness or mood, to explore
the mind's potentials.
Whatever starts people using drugs, for the majority of people, drugs
do not cause them problems. They manage to control the ill effects of
drug taking by moderating their intake, by taking them ritually with mutually
agreed-upon limits and guidelines, and controlling the set and setting
of drug use so that emotional and behavioral problems do not arise.
For other individuals, however, these social controls do not halt them
progressing into habituation to drugs. Habituation is marked by regular
use without the craving, tolerance effects, and withdrawal syndromes that
characterize addiction. People become habituated to drugs because it has
become a reliable way to feel "good", relaxed, or "high" upon demand.
It helps them to forget the pain and shame of the past experienced with
family, significant other, or friends, or in school, military or employment
settings. It may make them feel they are being accepted by peers who are
doing the same thing.
People progress from habituation to addiction because there are changes
in the chemistry of the brain and other tissues that create an artificial
need for the drug, as psychoactive substances taken over an extended period
of time begin to substitute for, replace or mimic naturally occurring
neurotransmitters. Addiction is further characterized by the experience
of dysphoric withdrawal symptoms, which range in severity from a cold
or flu-like syndrome to a life-threatening illness coupled with alarming
psychiatric symptoms. It is further marked by an obsession or craving
for the drug; the addicted person's entire life can become focused upon
obtaining the drug to stave off withdrawal symptoms to feel "normal"again.
Once a person becomes addicted to drugs, he or she can cause multiple
problems for him or herself and for other people.
Health risks range from mild to life threatening. Withdrawal symptoms
may be uncomfortable but relatively tolerable. More serious diseases transmitted
by contaminated hypodermic needles can cause damage to the heart, lungs,
liver and kidneys. Cancers of the mouth, larynx, esophagus, pancreas,
stomach, and bladder may be produced by carcinogens absorbed when smoking
drugs, Long term drug use may lead to permanent brain damage resulting
in loss of memory, dementia, and other cognitive deficits.
There can be legal consequences leading to imprisonment or fines by using
illegal illicit drugs or by using pharmaceutical drugs in illegal ways.
Drug users will often neglect to pay their parking tickets, and these
will go to warrant. It is not uncommon for an active drug user to drive
under the influence of alcohol or drugs, be arrested, and place his or
her driver's license in jeopardy. Addicts who have developed a high tolerance
often must come up with hundreds of dollars per day to support their habit,
and they will commit crimes of burglary, robbery, and prostitution to
earn the money to obtain drugsthey may be arrested for any of these
illegal activities.
There may be social costs, as well. The addict's parents, relatives,
spouse and children, or friends may come to mistrust the addict and even
abandon contact with him or her. The addict's social network becomes reduced
to contacts with active users, and he or she becomes more enmeshed in
the drug subculture.
There may be problems that affect the family. Active addiction and alcoholism
may lead to child abuse or incest, spouse battering, sexual problems,
breakdown of communication, constant arguments and tension. In this highly
dysfunctional family environment, the children and spouse suffer because
of the insanity and abuse that they experience on a daily basis with an
addict or alcoholic in the home. Many of these children, at a rate two
and one half times that in homes where one or more parent is not an alcoholic
or addict, go on to become alcoholics or drug addicts themselves.
Then there is the cost to society. In addition to the crimes against
property, and the involvement in prostitution or other vice crimes, drug
use has other deleterious effects. Intoxicated people are at greater risk
of traffic accidents. Gangs and syndicates that bring illegal drugs into
the country may commit murder, often of innocent bystanders. Drug dealers
spread drug use through active sales to established users and solicitation
of new users. The net cost to society is an atmosphere of fear and tension,
the reduction in the quality of life, and the investment of billions of
dollars in attempts to intradict and control this rampant epidemic.
Drug use may lead to financial problems. Addicts readily deplete their
savings, pawn their possessions, take out second mortgages on the house,
charge credit cards to the maximum, or spend an inordinate portion of
the monthly pay on drugs or alcohol. They may go through financial resources
to the extent where housing and nutrition are compromised.
There are problems at work. Besides reduced productivity, increased absence
from work, higher utilization of sick time and disability that are seen
in alcoholics and addicts that are employed, the employee may come to
work intoxicated, or drink alcohol or use drugs while on the job. There
may be theft of property or embezzlement of company funds to obtain extra
money for drugs. If the employee is operating machinery or driving a vehicle,
he or she is at a higher risk for accident or injury. This may lead to
confrontation of the employee by the company management, threatening or
even terminating employment.
There may be psychological problems which develop, ranging from minor
personality changes such as withdrawal, defensiveness, irritability, secretiveness,
and moodiness to disordered thinking, bizarre behavior, hallucinations,
delusions, paranoia--symptoms of severe mental illness. Parents may witness
their "A" student active in school extracurricular activities over a few
short months' involvement with alcohol or drugs begin being absent from
school, his or her grades plummet, his or her cheerful extroversion become
moody, introverted, secretive and defensive withdrawal. Drugs and alcohol
can bring out a latent psychological condition: many people who have used
hallucinogenic drugs or stimulants like amphetamines or cocaine have often
precipitated a full-blown psychotic condition. Long term drug or alcohol
use may damage the brain, leading to deficits in the ability to remember
and in intellectual functioning.
There may be spiritual or moral deterioration. When using drugs or alcohol,
a person may lose his or her inhibitions and engage in behavior that formerly
would have been unacceptable. The rejection of moral values together with
the adoption of a hedonistic and narcissistic lifestyle leads to profound
changes in a person's character and behavior. When addiction has totally
possessed a person, he or she may wantonly disregard the rights and property
of other people, resorting to criminal or violent behavior to obtain his
or her desires. This further leads to a deadening of the higher sensibilities,
coupled with the abandonment of faith and religious values, produces a
disconnection from one's spiritual nature and higher potentials. The end
result of this downhill slide is spiritual death—the lack of any
sense of meaning or value in a person's life.
From Denial to Recovery
Once an addicted person comes to recognize he or she has a problem with
drugs or alcohol, many of these problems may have become exaggerated,
and create many pressures for him or her. During the active course of
addiction, a person develops many protective defenses to deny responsibility
and to not face the impact that drugs or alcohol have on his or her life.
This denial of any problem, with attempts to explain the problem away,
to minimize it, to blame others for the problems, to withdraw into fantasy
only prolongs the period of active drug or alcohol use and hastens the
deterioration of the individual. Unless this denial is broken and the
problem confronted head on, the individual will continue to deteriorate
and cause pain and misery for him or herself and those around him or her.
The Way Back
The way to rebuild an addicted person's life, health and self-respect,
and to begin the process of reintegrating him or her back into the family
and the larger community is called recovery. Since alcoholism and drug
addiction are progressive, chronic, and if untreated, deadly diseases,
they will inevitably lead to debilitation, deterioration and death if
unchecked. Unless the individual chooses, or is pressured into recovery,
it is highly likely that he or she will end up in a prison, a hospital,
a mental institution or the graveyard if the disease is allowed to run
its course.
Recovery, to be effective, must address each aspect of the individual.
Physically – the person's nutrition must be improved, with supplementation
of vitamins used as necessary to correct long term vitamin and mineral
deficits or electrolyte imbalances. A program of regular exercise will
be helpful, and attention must be paid to restoring normal sleep patterns
and ensuring adequate rest.
Emotionally – the person must learn how to feel his or her emotions
again, how to relate intimately and honestly with others, how to communicate
his or her feelings and needs to others without manipulation and deception,
and how to cope with frustration, betrayal and loss.
Mentally – the person needs to learn about chemical dependency
and the process of recovery. He or she must learn to overcome deficits
in memory and cognition caused by long term drug use by utilizing strategies
such as keeping notes, recording thoughts in a journal, or learning
mnemonic tricks. Further, the individual may have neglected his or her
education in the course of his or her active addiction, and he or she
may wish to continue his or her education or train for a new career.
Volitionally – the person must learn to take responsibility
for his or her own life, to face his or her problems courageously, to
set goals for him or herself, and to live with honor, self-respect,
excellence and integrity.
Spiritually – the person must learn to reconnect with his or
her higher potentials. Spirituality must be reawakened. He or she needs
to develop or renew a relationship with a Higher Power, to rebuild a
morality and ethical value system, to fellowship with others in meditation,
prayer and worship, and to express his or her spirituality through loving
service and charity to others.
Socially – the person needs to learn how to rebuild his or her
relationships based on trustworthiness, honesty, integrity and intimacy.
The injuries that have been wrought must be gradually healed by genuine
behavior change, honesty, sincere contrition and humility, and by relating
to others with kindness, love and respect.
Legally – the person's legal obligations must be discharged
as required by law: fine paid, community service commitments fulfilled,
and jail time served. Further legal complications need to be avoided
by scrupulous observance of community and traffic laws. In a larger
sense, the person must repay his debt to the community by making amends
to others he or she has harmed. This may take the form of personal or
written apologies, paying back money owed, restoring property damaged,
paying child support, or by doing charitable or volunteer service to
in some way make up for the injury he or she has caused.
Financially – the person must learn to budget and to set financial
goals. The budget must be adhered to strictly, and where possible, some
of the income must go to discharging debts or other ongoing obligations
and to rebuild creditworthiness where prodigality has strained the goodwill
of lenders. The habit of saving for the future, investing for retirement
and other financial goals must be re-established.
Vocationally – the person must strive to discharge the duties
of his or her job with diligence, efficiency and excellence. The person
should arrive punctually, observe employment rules and policies, and
strive to perform his or her job duties with cheerfulness, with an aim
to make the customer happy and help the company prosper. In some cases,
job retraining or securing a new career may be necessary where employment
has been lost and the former employer is unwilling to rehire the person,
even on a probationary status.
The addicted person has two major obstacles to deal with in the recovery
process:
- The acute withdrawal from alcohol or drugs and the protracted post-addiction
period where the body must regenerate itself from the effects of long
term drug or alcohol use.
- The maintenance of sobriety and his or her rehabilitation through
the practice of recovery measures.
Supportive modalities that help the person through these two stages are
summarized below.
Supportive Modalities for the Acute and Post-Withdrawal Phase
Hatha Yoga or other stress relieving exercises to promote relaxation
and improve health.
Neuroelectric therapy (NET), including electric acupuncture, biofeedback
and psychotronic devices to build up neurotransmitters and train the
individual to relieve the symptoms of physiological stress and to access
healing and creative states of mind.
Nutritional supplementation, systemic detoxification and purification
using vitamins and minerals, special diets, or herbal formulations to
build health and eliminate toxins from the system.
Hypnosis or autosuggestion to change self-defeating beliefs in the
subconscious mind
Behavior modification and aversion therapy to extinguish the craving
for drugs
Individual and/or group psychotherapy to teach coping skills and promote
emotional growth.
Psychiatric and medical treatment as necessary to address psychological
and physical sequelae to active substance abuse
Massage or bodywork therapy to relieve stress and facilitate body-mind
integration.
12 step programs to build an ongoing support group for sobriety and
to work the steps of personal recovery.
Meditation and prayer to help reconnect with spirituality and to experience
a spiritual awakening. Fellowship with a spiritual or recovery group
to rebuild supportive and positive interpersonal relationships.
Acupuncture to build endorphins and improve flow of life energy in
the body to promote health
Herbs, Bach Flower remedies, and homeopathic remedies (where naturopathic
approaches are preferred by the individual) to address other emotional
and physical symptoms that arise during the post detoxification period
Practices that Lead to Long Term Maintenance of Sobriety
Stay away from people who use drugs, places where drugs are used at
present or where a recovering person has used drugs in the past. Stay
away from objects that remind one of drug or alcohol use, such as hypodermic
needles or alcohol bottles.
Have an ongoing personal recovery program and work it daily.
Create a network of non-using friends and talk to them when you feel
depressed or lonely.
Attend counseling, therapy or 12 step recovery groups regularly.
Contact your Higher Power daily through prayer and meditation and spiritual
fellowship.
Make a commitment to do whatever it takes to maintain sobriety.
Pursue ongoing personal growth, self-discovery and the adventure in
everyday living. There are too many interesting and worthwhile things
to do instead of using drugs and alcohol.
Drugs and Their Role in Society: What Must Be Done
People are attracted to consume drugs because drugs make life appear
less difficult, boring or painful. Whether drugs are legal or illegal,
they have been used in some form in most cultures of the world throughout
mankind's history. Drugs are so widespread in their use that some researchers
have theorized that there may be a built-in drive to alter our state of
consciousness.
For millennia, people have been fascinated and obsessed with drugs. People
will continue to use and abuse drugs, creating problems for themselves
and other people whether society declares them legal or notas long
as people desire to use drugs, they will find a way to get them.
Cultural beliefs about drugs and the laws that grow out of those beliefs
condition how a society perceives and responds to drugs in each generation.
One generation's sweetheart drug becomes another generation's bogeyman.
It is interesting to note that two of the drugs that the industrialized
countries of North America, Europe, and Asia have chosen to legalizealcohol
and tobaccohave the greatest amount of health risks, account for
the greatest loss of productivity, traffic accidents and homicides than
any other drug.
Drugs are substances that humans extract from natural plants or synthesize
in the laboratory from other substances. In and of themselves, drugs are
not good or evil. It is rather the use to which they are put which determines
whether they benefit or harm individuals and society.
If individuals are going to continue to use drugs, and going to cause
themselves and other people problems by doing so, Society's response must
be to make these individuals accountable for their actions and to require
that they address the problem with a personal recovery program. Further,
Society must make an effort to keep future generations away from destructive
drug use by substance abuse education. It must be able to offer them viable
and meaningful alternatives within the community to engage them, instead
of losing them to the siren of drug abuse with all of its associated costs
to the individual and the community.
Footnotes
1. Donlon, pages 113 - 115.
2. Cohen, pages 195 to 200.
Bibliography
Cohen, S. The Substance Abuse Problems. Volume Two.
New York, NY: The Hayworth Press. 1985.
Donlon, P. T., et. al. A Manual of Psychotropic Drugs.
Bowie, MD: Robert J. Brady Co. 1983.
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