People abuse substances to get high or intoxicated. It is the high that causes the person to continue or increase their use, often to the point of sacrificing other areas of their life in favor of the substance. Substance abuse can lead to a variety of consequences, including relationship conflict, health problems, job loss and death or suicide.
Alcohol
According to HelpGuide.org, there are a number of factors that contribute to one person abusing alcohol while the other person maintains her drinking at moderate levels. These include genetics, how she was raised, her social environment and her emotional health. The line into abuse of alcohol is crossed when a person’s drinking contributes to significant problems in her life. Signs of alcohol abuse include continuously neglecting responsibilities, consuming alcohol in dangerous situations, getting in trouble with the law due to alcohol and continuing to drink despite the relationship problems it induces.
Prescription Drugs
When a person abuses prescription drugs she is using them in a way that was not intended by the doctor who prescribed the medication. She may consume another person’s prescription or take her own prescription, but in ways that it was not intended for. According to the MayoClinic.com, prescription drugs that are commonly abused include painkillers, sedatives for anxiety and sleep disorders and stimulants for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. There are general signs of prescription drug abuse such as stealing, selling prescriptions, taking higher doses than prescribed, excessive mood swings, changes in sleep, poor decision making, going to more than one doctor to get a prescription and appearing high, notes the MayoClinic.com. It is easy to become addicted to some prescription drugs because they stimulate the brain's reward center, making a person constantly crave more, reports the MayoClinic.com.
Cold and Cough Medicine
Over-the-counter medicines containing dextromethorphan or DXM can produce a high if taken in large doses, reports Kid’sHealth.org. DXM is found in tablets, capsules, gel caps, lozenges and syrups that are used for the treatment of cough or cold, notes Kid’sHealth.org. Teenagers are one of the primary population groups that are abusing DXM. DXM has a number of different street names including Candy, C-C-C, DM, Drex, Red Devils, Robo, Skittles, Tussin, Velvet and Vitamin D, according to Kid’sHealth.org. Side effects of taking DXM in large quantities include impaired judgment, nausea, vomiting, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, numbing in fingers and toes, hallucinations, loss of consciousness, seizures, brain damage and death, reports Kid’sHealth.org. People get this drug by buying it off the Internet, walking into a drug store and buying over-the-counter medicines that contain it and by raiding medicine cabinets. When mixed with other drugs and/or alcohol the side effects of DXM will be even worse.
Illegal Drugs
Illegal drugs that are commonly abused include marijuana, hashish, cocaine, amphetamines, methamphetamine, LSD and PCP, notes the MayoClinic.com. Each one of these drugs has physical and behavioral signs associated with their use, which may help identity abuse. The signs can range from red eyes and poor memory to paranoia, flashbacks and aggressive behaviors. When a person abuses illegal drugs he generally have a particular drug he likes the most, but he may abuse other drugs when he cannot get any of his choice drug.
