Prescription drugs are those medications that are legitimately prescribed by doctors to treat a variety of health problems, such as to control blood pressure, control pain or rid our bodies of infections. However, prescription drug addiction is very common, and there are many reasons behind it. Prescription drugs are an accepted part of our lives, and when used responsibly under the care of a doctor, they can be useful tools in the health and well being of our bodies. Sometimes a medicine may not work properly or quickly enough for its intended purpose or it may not be the right medicine for what is being treated. There are also instances when a patient may continue to take a medication when it is no longer needed. All of these can lead to patterns of abuse and/or addiction.
It is important to understand the difference between prescription drug abuse and prescription drug addiction. Prescription drug abuse is the use of a prescription medication in a way not intended by the prescribing doctor, such as for the feelings you get from the drug. Prescription drug abuse or problematic use includes everything from taking a friend’s prescription painkiller for your backache to snorting or injecting crushed pills to get high. Prescription drug addiction is defined as a behavioral syndrome characterized by the repeated, compulsive seeking (psychological dependence) or the use of a substance (the medicine) despite adverse social, psychological, and/or physical consequences. Additionally, it’s recognized as the physical need for an increased amount of a substance as time goes on to achieve the same desired effect. Addiction is often accompanied by tolerance, physical dependence, and withdrawal.
Prescription Drug Addiction: Reasons
To understand the reasons behind prescription drug addiction, it’s helpful to look at the medications that have the highest tendency toward addiction. The most widely abused pharmaceuticals fall into three categories:
• Opioids: are the class of medications that include painkillers. These create a euphoric effect and when paired with their painkilling effect, they can be quickly addictive. Because opioids don’t actually cure pain but only mask it, more and more medication is taken to try to dull the pain or achieve the affect the last dose of medication gave. Eventually, people feel they can’t make it through the day without the next higher dose.
• Central nervous system depressants: Also called tranquilizers and depressants, these include barbituates and benzodiazepines, some of the most abused drugs. They have a calming, relaxing effect, like a warm blanket on the brain. Depressants work by “depressing” normal activity in the brain and are most often prescribed to relieve anxiety or sleep problems. Anxiety is defined as frequently having intense, excessive and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Anxiety disorders often involve repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety and fear or terror that reach a peak within minutes known as panic attacks. When a person can’t get relief from this kind of anxiety or from sleep problems, they may increase their use of depressants to “feel better” or to try to “shut their brain down.”
• Stimulants: This class increases brain activity, thereby increasing alertness and energy. Stimulants, also known as “uppers”, commonly prescribed for the treatment of narcolepsy, ADHD, and depression, are used to counteract the drowsiness or “down” feeling that sleepiness or alcohol can cause. The up/down cycle this causes is extremely hard and dangerous on the body.
An increase in the use of any these medicines can cause physical dependence, leading to increased tolerance and possibly addiction. Coming off them suddenly will cause withdrawal. Each class of these medicines has their own set of withdrawal symptoms, which are problematic and potentially dangerous to the person taking them.
The reasons for prescription drug abuse and prescription drug addiction are as varied as the people and the medications involved. Understanding the difference and these reasons gives a different perspective on why some people depend on the medication they do.
If you have concerns about your use of prescription medications, reach out for help. It is the first step in the road to recovery.
