Even though the government has allocated significant resources towards curbing the substance abuse menace, this vice continues to thrive. Moreover, new substance abuse related problems keep emerging. This essay explores substance abuse and its general impact on the society and on individuals.
Substance abuse has been a major concern for all governments over the last century. Governments around the world dedicate a sizable amount of their economic resources towards eradicating this vice. The United States’ government estimates the cost of substance abuse to be over half a billion dollars annually. The amount of money spent on combating substance abuse has been on the steady increase over the last few decades. However, an increase in spending has not coincided with a reduction of the vice. For example, research indicates that “3 per cent of the people born between 1940 and 1994 had used cannabis by age 21, as opposed to 59 per cent of people born between 1975 and1979” (Spooner & Hetherington, 2005). In addition, several new practices that are related to substance abuse continue to emerge. For instance, ecstasy abuse was largely a rare practice in the past but it has since become a common practice. The current statistics indicate that twenty per cent of youths between twenty and twenty four years of age have abused ecstasy (Berkman, 2010).
Substance abuse has also been blamed for the deteriorating psychological health among abusers. Experts also blame substance abuse for the increasing instances of suicide. Suicide rates are higher among drug and alcohol abusers. Substance abuse is also to blame for the increase in delinquency, crime-rates, and other mental health problems.
There are several factors that contribute to substance abuse. These factors can be environmental or individual and they include a changing society. The society in the west is changing at a fast rate and this might be overwhelming to certain individuals. Most people have had to contend with being working parents, changing family structures, and long working hours. These pressures have the tendency to push individuals towards substance abuse. Therefore, environmental and individual factors become determinants of substance abuse trends. There is also the concern of substance abuse fuelling crime rates in areas where the vice is prevalent. Research indicates a close relationship between the rates of crime and substance abuse.
Substance abuse is also associated with several risky behaviors. These behaviors are associated with either substance dependence or substance abuse. For instance, substance dependence can contribute to reduced productivity while substance abuse promotes dangerous behaviors such as drunk driving. A study revealed that fifteen percent of Americans engage in drunk driving at least once a year (Berkman, 2010).
Dynamics of Addiction- Defense Mechanisms
Defense mechanisms refer to the psychological tendency of human beings to protect their egos from painful realizations, facts, and ideas (Schacter, 2011). Defense mechanisms are not necessarily detrimental to the well being of human beings. However, their maladaptive abilities are the main cause of concern. A healthy defense mechanism helps individuals to stay sane. Substance abusers employ a variety of defense mechanisms in a bid to maintain their addictions. The defense mechanisms that are usually employed by substance abusers include denial, avoidance, paranoid projection, rationalization, isolation of effect, and intellectualization.
Unlike lying and dishonesty, denial involves a diminished lack of reality that makes an individual lose touch with actual reality. Denial drives substance abusers to create their own form of reality. The version of the afflicted individuals’ reality is not subject to change because these substance abusers completely believe in it. Individuals that are affected by denial remain aware of the differences between their own version of reality and the actual reality. Paranoid projection is another defense mechanism that is closely related to denial. Paranoid projection involves substance abusers coming up with their own version of statistics and data that they deem relevant to their plight. This defense mechanism usually ends up being a burden to the afflicted individuals because they think their habit fulfills a certain quota.
Rationalization is another defense mechanism that is common among substance abusers. This mechanism involves addicts explaining their habits in a manner that tends to make sense. For instance, some pill abusers claim that the only way for them to get sleep is by using/abusing prescription pills. Rationalization is common among substance abusers who are in the initial stages of addiction.
Reaction formation is acting in a manner that is the opposite of an individual’s actual behaviors. For instance, some people attend rehabilitation facilities while they continue abusing drugs. Reaction formation complicates matters for those who might be interested in helping a substance abuser. The conflicting behaviors that accompany reaction formation make it hard for a substance abuser to benefit from any outside help.
Intellectualization is another common defense mechanism. Intellectualization can occur in two different forms. The first form involves abusers explaining their deplorable behaviors using an intellectual and impersonal language. Cannabis abusers constantly use this defense mechanism. The other form of intellectualization involves intellectually delving into substance abuse research. This form of intellectualization has abusers venturing into an area of repressed wishes.
References
Berkman, L. (2010). Social epidemiology. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Schacter, L. (2011). Psychology. New York, NY: Worth Publishers.
Spooner, C. & Hetherington, K. (2005). Social determinants of drug use. Sydney, Australia: National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre.