When it comes to people falling prey to drug addiction, a lot of things are blamed upon. Our education system, society, the political environment, social media and what not–it’s all considered to be a direct catalyst to drug addiction. Although these reasons are fairly obvious for a person to fall under the wrong influence of drugs, one should understand that there are a lot of unknown reasons that we frequently forget about.
There are plenty of prevalent reasons due to which even the toughest and most unshakable of souls succumb to drug addiction. Some are more predictable than the others, while in some cases you can hear a person’s story and go “this one’s going downhill if we don’t act fast”. But the problem of drug abuse isn’t just for the most general of reasons–there are some very specific reasons which are driving a certain age group into this deadly cyclone of destruction.
We’re not talking something that’s already being talked about–being bullied or suffering post-breakup depression which might’ve struck you when you thought of specifics. But this is about an act of benevolence and goodness that sometimes brings catastrophe for the one who’s on the providing end of good deeds.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we are talking about the age-old circle of life–one where people take care of their beloved–and fall prey to substance abuse. One of the reasons why nearly every middle aged person in America and beyond is falling into the wrong influence of drug addiction is–you couldn’t get this one right–caring for family members.
The Curious Case of Care-giving & Despair
There are plenty of relationships that we come across in our lives where one person takes care of the other for no other reason but the emotional attachment between the two. A caregiver can be a mother taking care of her babies, children caring for their beloved elderly parents and guardians and so on.
A family member who takes care of children, elderly or the disabled has lots of responsibilities. If anyone in your family has fallen sick, you might be able to comprehend the feeling of taking care of not just yourself, but that other person too.
This new epidemic is spreading across all countries as more of the population of the world as a whole ages. Care giving takes a toll on caregivers. Problems can arises when the caregiver stops paying heed to their own personal care, gets hooked on caring for others or when caring becomes long term, with no end in sight, that’s where trouble can begin.
“Caring is so Tough, I had to Resort to Drugs…”
Sure, life throws curveballs, but a drug addiction for something as simple as taking care of someone who is very much our own blood or someone who taught us how to hold a spoon? Is not the answer no matter how hard caring for someone else is.
When we get overwhelmed in something as serious as caregiving is, many seek an easy way out. Research has shown that, caregivers are more likely to smoke and fall prey to obesity rather than their counterparts. It is reported that caregivers between the age of 45 to 62 show more binge drinking behavior, and the reason has something to do with their failure in keeping up with caregiving duties.
That’s where the problem begins and we all know what drugs do–they throw us into a wicked mayhem of depression, hallucinations, terror and heartbreak. And when people resort to drugs as an easy escape, you know that there’s no easy way out.
Self care is one of the most crucial elements in a caregiver’s life–no matter at what stage of caregiving she/he is. Remember the basics of staying away from drugs–if you take care of yourself, you won’t need drugs to take care of you (also, drugs DON’T take care of you).
How to Get Out of the Vicious Web of Drugs?
This can go two ways– a) either you know somebody who’s into drugs at any stage (the person might be starting it, adapting to it or she might as well be a drug-pro–doesn’t matter); or b) you know someone who looks to be in a troublesome situation and you sense that something might go wrong.
In both of these cases, you have to understand that you can help. Talk to the person, because sometimes that is all that’s needed to open a dialog for determining a good course of action for the near future. If any of your close buddies are taking care of someone at the moment, ask them how you can help them or assist in caregiving.
There are cases that alternative addiction treatment centers have come across of caregivers coming forward with serious substance and drug abuse problems. That is why NAD in Georgia takes care of addiction treatment in a very systematic manner for special cases like these. Self care is crucial and one has to be on top of his/her game to take care of someone else.
But that’s Just a Needle in a Haystack… of Needles
But the problem doesn’t end here. There are a gazillion other reasons for people to resort to drug and substance abuse. Let’s go over a few of them to understand why these circumstances make people take the “high” road.
The Genetic Connect
To simply put it, you might’ve heard of the expression “an alcoholic’s kid has a better chance to be an alcoholic as well”. In many cases, genetics plays a pivotal role in deciding whether the person will be a victim of substance abuse or not. This is very much related to the parent’s past experiences with substance abuse–something which tweaks the offspring’s genetics in the wrong ways.
Are You in Good Company?
This is the most prominent factor of skyrocketing number of substance abuse cases. A person’s community has a strong influence and the person or group of persons she/he hangs out directs how she/he turns out in the future. One bad fish often soils the whole pond.
Where are My Pills?
Self medication is dangerously common. How often have we seen people popping pills for headaches and common cold? When we use drugs to “treat” ourselves, this habit doesn’t go away that easy. Not only does this raise the risk of side effects from popping pills, but if we refrain or abstain from taking them, disastrous withdrawal systems follow up.
Let’s Kick Out Drug Abuse!
Drugs are an epidemic that has to be taken care of. The addiction monster affects everyone from school-going kids to middle-aged caregivers that are devoted to care for others. Whatever you do, whoever you care for, don’t forget that self-care is extremely important. Let’s end the drug abuse epidemic with NAD Georgia!
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