Drugs: Are They Worth It??

Drugs; Are they worth it?

http://www.thestate.com/2009/10/05/968672/francis-recovery-is-an-everyday.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Goldstein

This article, from TheState.com is about how celebrity disk jockey, Adam Goldstein, aka DJ AM, lost his life-long battle of drug addiction. Goldstein grew up with an addicted father who was in and out of prison and who eventually died from complications from AIDS which he developed because of his drug use. Goldstein started using drugs, mainly crack cocaine, in his late teens/ early twenties. After fighting his addiction, Goldstein remained drug-free for years until he got caught back up into the vicious cycle of drug use and abuse. The article from Wikipedia mentioned how his broken home while he was growing up is what influenced his personal drug use and eventual death through overdose (www.wikipedia.org-linked at top). The article goes on to describe how “addiction is a chronic disease” and how “those in recovery are constantly confronted by challenges” (www.thestate.com- linked at top).

Many drug users believe that drugs only affect the mind for short periods of time and don’t do any harm to either the mind or the body. Sadly, this is very untrue.

I work in a hospital in the midlands area in the medical intensive care unit. Drug overdoses and alcohol poisoning are very common in my department. I have had patients who drank their whole lives and come to us with yellow eyes, yellow skin, hair falling out, and dying because their liver is shutting down.

I have had other patients that have come to the ICU because they have tried to kill themselves while high. These patients end up on suicide precautions and depending how violent they are while detoxing, they must be restrained and detained. Long-time drug users that come to us usually must be sent to a facility that handles mentally handicapped people. Some get help at these facilities and leave them to live productive lives in our society. Yet others must live at these handicapped and mental facilities for the rest of their lives because they are too much of a danger to themselves and to others to release them.

Drugs may not seem too bad when you light up that joint or open another beer, but that then leads to addiction which could either lead to a life in a psych ward or a slow and very painful death. So ask yourself the next time you’re in that situation; is it worth it?

Please take the time to look at the links below. They are very short videos but they show a shocking view of some drugs and their effects on the body.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJIjWlLa8MU&noredirect=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=af3RjDntlhs&feature=fvwp&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WZig2DYx58&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhyUogSrtvU&feature=related