Substance Abuse Essay

Substance Abuse; noun, “overindulgence in or dependence on an addictive substance, especially alcohol or drugs.” Substance abuse has become more prevalent recently, grasping onto the lives of adults like you and I every day. Fisher, G. (2009) The overwhelming dependence becomes an addiction and forces the user to continue the habit, thriving on the substance, living for the high, and allowing the substance to overtake their lives. Do you even wonder, “why”, what provoked the thought of someone trying a substance known to be harmful and at any moment, often with the first use, becomes a downhill spiral to the lowest of places, destroying lives and tearing families apart. September celebrates Nation Recovery Month, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration. A study back in 2005 conducted by Healthy People 2020, suggested that over 22 million people living in the United States struggle with some sort of substance abuse. The more heart wrenching number noted is that only 5 percent of those people are not aware of their addiction. That means 95 percent of people who face substance dependence are aware of what is going on and know they struggle living without it on a daily basis but a large portion of those people continue to use. …show more content…
The need for education about such abuse should be available for kids at a young age and strong resources for those facing addiction can help to change the lives of those struggling with abuse and prevent others from choosing to try a drug that may become a lifestyle. Interventions applied with the knowledge of a community health nurse has the ability to make a big impact. Those interventions should be known, tested, and deemed beneficial. Questions the nurse should cover are “did it work”, “how well did it work”, and “can these interventions be improved