About Illegal Use of Prescription Drugs

Overview

Prescription medications are written for a specific patient to address a certain medical need. The act of willingly seeking out another person's prescription or manipulating one's own prescription to feed a habit or achieve some personal gain is illegal. People who become addicted to prescription drugs often find illegal ways to obtain drugs to fuel their habits and addictions.

Commonly Abused Prescription Drugs

Although most prescription drugs can be illegally used, some have become more commonly abused than others. Certain painkillers or opioids can be extremely addictive. Generally, people obtain legal prescriptions from their physicians for legitimate medical conditions, but if they are not properly weaned off of the drugs, addiction can occur. These medications include morphine (MS Contin), oxycontin and oxycodone (Percocet) and methadone (Dolophine). Amphetamine drugs such as methylphenidate (Ritalin) and dextroeamphetamine (Adderall) used to treat behavioral problems such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can also be abused in an attempt to enhance one's concentration level.

Obtaining Prescription Drugs

The easiest way for a person to illegally acquire prescription medication is to borrow or steal the drugs from friends or family members. This may also include the theft of written prescriptions from other patients that they have filled at pharmacies. Prescription drugs can also be illegally obtained from drug dealers or from people who are willing to sell their unused prescription drugs.

Side Effects

All prescription drugs have potential side effects. Stimulants such as amphetamines and methylphenidates can cause sleeplessness, nervousness, increased pulse and respiratory rates and cardiac arrest. Anti-depressants such as diazepam, phenobarbital and alprazolam suppress the central nervous system. They can slow brain activity to the point where a patient may become comatose and present irregular vital signs. Opioids work with opiate receptors in the brain to block pain. When a person abruptly halts using the opiate, the body craves it even more. Side effects to opiate abuse include lethargy, sleepiness and overall detachment from surroundings.

Dangers of Illegal Use

Dangerous drug side effects are less likely to occur when a medication is used by the patient for whom it is prescribed and for its intended purpose. Danger occurs when a unauthorized person takes the drug without receiving proper dosing instructions. Drug dosages are prescribed based on a person's weight, height and other underlying medical conditions. Someone who illegally uses prescription drugs could have an allergy to a drug that may cause serious injury or death. Mixing certain prescription medications with over-the-counter drugs could have similar lethal consequences.

Legal Ramifications

Possession of unauthorized prescription drugs can accrue many legal ramifications. If drugs are present in a person's system after being pulled over for suspicion of driving under the influence, and no prescription exists to prove that the drugs were legally obtained, that person may be charged with a high-end misdemeanor or even a felony. Willingly obtaining or stealing prescription drugs is a felony that is punishable by prison time.