Prescription Drug Abuse

The television show House is a well known medical program. The show is about Dr. Gregory House who prescribed his own medication for immense leg pain. Dr. House ultimately fell into addiction; furthermore, he would lie, steal, and even went to the extreme measures to write his own prescriptions illegally (Legally). Prescription drug abuse (PDA) is the use of prescribed medication using it in a way not intended by the prescribing doctor such as for the experience or in the sense of being provoked. Prescription drugs come in various configurations and perform an assortment of purposes. Pain relief medications can be prescribed for minor strained muscles or traumatic surgical procedures. Abusing prescription drugs can cause negative effects such
as addiction, adverse health effects, various symptoms, and death, thus, anyone taking medication needs to actually be prescribed to the medicine. (NIDA) Prescription drugs help patients manage pain, restore balance, control sleep disorders, and fight obesity.
The three most commonly abused prescription drugs are opioids, stimulants, and depressants. Opioids are narcotic pain medications. When taken appropriately, opioids can be used to regulate pain without unpleasant side effects. Rozenbroek and Rothstein stated that opioids are a type of prescription drug which are prescribed for pain relief and can produce euphoria or a sense of well-being when used non-medically. Commonly abused painkillers include OxyContin, Vicodin, Morphine and Demerol. What makes these so popular is the intense feeling of pleasure or rush people get from their effects (Schmidt). Their pleasurable effects often derive from their ability to stimulate the brain’s pleasure circuits, which are similar to the feelings of sexual pleasure or pleasure from eating a satisfying meal. Adding to the problem is that prescription opioids can become drugs of abuse when they are used illicitly as street drugs. Sedatives are drugs taken to induce sleep. The misuse of prescription drugs is undertaken by all age groups (Abuse). This Adults (ages 18-25) are the biggest abusers of prescription drugs such as opioid pain relievers, anti-anxiety drugs and ADHD stimulants. Almost 6% 12-17 year olds, 12% of 18-25 year olds, and 5% of 26 and older non-medically used prescription drugs in the past year. Teens are most likely to abuse drugs not prescribed for them. Usually,
teens will get the drugs from friends at school. They could also go as far as stealing them from their close friends. Dealers also sell at work and some individuals can get drugs if they are related to a dealer or they are very close friends with one. According to several nationwide inquires, prescription medications, often used to treat attention deficit disorders (ADD), pain, and anxiety, are being misused at a rate second only to marijuana among illicit drug users (Marijuana).
Addiction occurs when the power or frequency of the dosage is being used in excess of the advised prescription. Individuals can become addicted to an authorized substance, whether it was or was not legally obtained (American). Another reason why people get addicted is when there is a change in the body’s central nervous system (CNS) when the dosage is increased. The body’s tolerance will exceed for the medication for it to be able to meet the intended needs of the CNS. The most high-risk people susceptible to prescription drug addiction are teens, the elderly, and women. Teens go through many changes that can lead to experimentation, self-esteem issues, and individualism. This journey can lead to addictions to stimulants and painkillers. Not all teens who become addicts are “trying to find themselves”, some are athletes who are injured and become addicted to painkillers. In the teen years, acceptance is highly sought after among peers, leading to a high risk of addiction from peer pressure.
(Legally) National studies show that a teen is more likely to have abused a prescription drug than an illegal street drug. Many teens think prescription drugs are safe because they were prescribed by a doctor. But taking them for non-medical use to get high or “self-medicate” can be just as dangerous and addictive as taking illegal street drugs. There are very serious health risks in taking prescription drugs. This is why they are taken only under the care of a doctor. And even then, they have to be closely monitored to avoid addiction or other problems. It is also very unsafe to take a pill that you don’t know for sure what it is (Drug-Free). Many pills look identical; therefore, it is extremely dangerous to take any pill that you are uncertain about or was not prescribed for you. People can also have different reactions to drugs due to the differences in each person’s body chemistry. A drug that was okay for one person could be very risky, even fatal, for someone else. Prescription drugs are only safe for the individuals who actually have the prescriptions for them and no one else. Many people don’t realize that distributing or selling prescription drugs (other than by a doctor) is a form of drug dealing and as illegal as selling heroin or cocaine, with costly fines and jail time. When the drug dealing results in death or serious bodily injury, dealers can face life imprisonment (Foundation). It is illegal to sell someone prescription drugs or even give them prescription drugs that they are not technically prescribed for (Silverbach). Licensed health care professionals, such as doctors or pharmacists, cannot knowingly sell or give prescription drugs to someone who does not have either a valid need or valid prescription for the drugs. “Selling” does not necessarily mean a cash transaction; instead, “selling” can include giving or exchanging a prescription drug, as well as an offer or agreement to sell or exchange. There are several different ways that someone can sell prescribed pills illegally. For instance, a person who has a valid prescription can be convicted of illegally selling drugs if he sells or gives his drugs to someone else (Seeliger). Also, a doctor or health care provider can be guilty of a crime by writing prescriptions that are either not medically necessary or for an amount of drugs greater than a person actually needs (which sometimes takes the form of writing multiple prescriptions for one person using many different and fake names). Similarly, a pharmacist who knowingly fills an invalid prescription can also be charged with this crime. The penalties and A conviction for an illegal sale of prescription drugs carries rather heavy penalties. Selling illegally is treated much more serious than simply possessing a drug illegally. As a result, while a possession conviction could result in a fine or a misdemeanor record, an illegal sale conviction generally results in a felony record along with a prison term. Additionally, health care providers and pharmacists convicted of illegally selling prescription drugs face not only criminal penalties, but also the loss of their licenses (and livelihoods) (Seeliger). So, how serious is this prescription drug abuse problem? “The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has declared prescription drug abuse an epidemic in the United States, and all states except Missouri now have drug-monitoring programs. Over the past 10 years, PDA has become a crucial problem” (Health). In the year 2009, the amount of drug overdose deaths exceeded those due to motor vehicle accidents. Majority of these deaths had an involvement with prescription drugs. More than 35,000 individuals died from drug overdose; prescription drugs caused most of these deaths. In the year 2013, there was recorded 44,000 deaths from drug overdoses and fifty-two percent of them were related to prescription pills. Believe it or not, elder folks are the most vulnerable for getting prescription drug poisoning (Fox). This could happen when an elder person has dementia or fully developed Alzheimer’s disease, and they cannot remember when or if they took their medication that day. Their failing memory can worsen their situation because they could have taken way too many doses of a very powerful substance that can lead to death if too severe. There are two ways that most people think about medication: 1. The more medication you take, the sooner you'll be better. 2. The medication is free so get a lot to stock up and use whenever you feel the need to. This is the main way people overdose and become hospitalized and later die from the poison in their system from the many pills they consumed. The best way to stop the occurrence of this addiction happening is to sit down with a professional and discuss the dangers of taking too many or giving them to others and that the best way to keep your family safe from them is to keep the pills locked away and out of reach of small children (Family).