The Cause of Substance Abuse

Sara Sands
Dr. Finnley
ENGL 1010
21 October 2013
The Cause of Substance Abuse Substance abuse affects many people in all walks of life. It is more common than one might realize. Substance abuse causes all sorts of negative effects in the affected individual. Substance abuse can be caused by several factors, including genetics, depression or anxiety, and performance apprehension. Genetics is believed to be an extremely strong cause of substance abuse. As stated in an article from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, “Alcoholism runs in families, and children of alcoholics are four times more likely than other children to become alcoholics themselves.” Although the probability of the existence of a theoretical “alcoholic gene” in the individual’s genetic makeup is exceedingly unlikely; there may be some truth in the idea. The body is created simply by reinterpreting the parents’ genetic codes into one code for the child. Some individual’s neurotransmitters are more likely to respond to a certain stimulus or substance than others. This characteristic may be passed on to the child from the affected parent, meaning that there is a good possibility that addiction may be, indeed, genetic, but in a more circuitous manner than originally believed. Depression or anxiety affects millions of people around the world. Coping with these dangerous conditions has been known to make the sufferer more susceptible to substance abuse. When people are feeling low and down in life, they discover substances. The substance makes them feel happy again, and they will do anything to feel that internal peace or excitement that they felt before. These individuals are actually harming themselves further rather than stopping the condition at the root by seeking professional counseling or talking to a family physician about medications meant for these conditions. As stated in an article from the website psychcentral.com, “It is tempting, if medications aren’t being prescribed or used properly, for people suffering from depression to self-medicate.” In the process of self-medication, an individual could overdose on a substance or become hopelessly addicted. In some cases the actual medication that is prescribed to help with the depression or anxiety becomes the substance that is abused. Also, some elements that we use in everyday life could become the target of abuse in individuals with depression or anxiety, such as food, caffeine, or physical exercise. The pressure that some athletes and students feel may lead to substance abuse in performance apprehension. When athletes compete professionally, they are met with unattainable expectations unless they take performance-enhancing drugs. Some of these enhancing materials are legal( powders and over-the-counter pills) and others are technically legal, but attaining them from a doctor for recreational use would be almost impossible, so most of these athletes using steroids or human growth hormones are getting these drugs illegally. Also, the pressure put on most high school and college students to perform well in academics may lead to substance abuse of Adderall and other central nervous system stimulants. When these drugs are acquired without a prescription, they can become dangerous and potentially deadly. All of these causes reveal that substance abuse is easily acquired. The negative effects associated with them could affect anyone, anywhere. The thought of close relatives developing a dependency on a substance to the point where it takes over their entire life and becomes a life threatening problem is terribly frightening. Although some individuals may refuse treatment or deny their problem, recovery is still a strong possibility if sought in time. Works Cited
Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, The. Children of Alcoholics. The Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. December 2011. Web.
ZWOLINSKI, RICHARD. Depression and Substance Abuse: The Chicken or the Egg? 2010. Web. 15 October 2013.

Cited: Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, The. Children of Alcoholics. The Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. December 2011. Web. ZWOLINSKI, RICHARD. Depression and Substance Abuse: The Chicken or the Egg? 2010. Web. 15 October 2013.