Drug addiction is a major concern not only for parents, but for society as well. Millions of people go to rehabilitation centers and clinics all over the world to kick substance dependence, especially for controlled and illegal drugs. What seem to be “harmless” ways to have fun and enjoy end up to be the chemicals that wreck families, ruin careers, and destroy lives.

The good news is that not all of us have to deal with drug addicts. Yet with the increasing strains of daily life and the availability of controlled substances, drug addicts are getting a bit closer to home. You may have a friend or a family member who has a serious drug-related problem. Drugs can severely alter a person's physical, mental, and emotional state, so much so that people become completely changed after even a short time of drug dependence. Not only does a drug addict pose a danger to himself or herself, but his or her relationships with other people are also changed for the worse.

Dealing with a drug addict, especially if he or she is a friend or a family member, can be one of the most painful, stressful, and life-changing episodes of your life. Here are some ways to get that person to kick the bad habit, and put everyone back on track to that long road to coping and recovery.

Get In The Know

Prevention is better than the cure, and this rule certainly applies to drug addiction. Get yourself, friends, and family actively involved in drug awareness and drug education campaigns. Educate your children on the harmful effects of drugs. While you're not in control over the decisions your children will make when they do get exposed to drugs, you're rest assured that they're equipped with the right knowledge to make the correct decisions.

It's also important for you to get to know the many common drugs used and abused by drug addicts. Here's a short list of common illegal and controlled substances and their effects:

• Stimulants, also known as “uppers,”are drugs that excite a user, and temporarily increase alertness. Stimulant drugs directly affect the nervous system. Caffeine is one form of stimulant, and it is possible to overdose on coffee. Other stimulants include amphetamines (like crystal meth and Dexedrine), cocaine, and nicotine.
• Sedatives, also called “downers,” do the exact opposite function of a stimulant. Sedatives like barbiturates (phenobarbital and Nembutal), hypnotics, and the excessive consumption of alcohol can lead to drug dependence and long-term health problems.
• Opiates and narcotics like cough syrups, painkiller, morphine, and heroin are some of the most common substances abused by drug addicts.
• Cannabis, simply known as marijuana, is a commonly-used recreational drug. Marijuana is often smoked, but it can also be ingested (usually through baked goods like cookies, cakes, and sometimes in pasta dishes), or infused with alcohol.
• Hallucinogens and psychedelics like lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), MDMA (“Ecstasy”), and psilocybin (“magic mushrooms”) are often considered non-addictive, although they are still very dangerous drugs.

Drugs are a perfect case of how things you don't know can – and will – hurt you. You can read about other drugs and their effects in books at the library, or you can consult your family doctor about the harmful effects of drugs.

Don't Play It Too Lightly

Some people think that “experimenting” with drugs is normal, and is part of growing up. It's definitely not OK to try drugs, much less use them. Almost everyone knows that using drugs is harmful to health and to society. While some drug addicts emphasize the “benefits” of drug use, there is little to no scientific and medical proof that the use and abuse of drugs have health benefits. Once a person is hooked on drugs, it becomes extremely difficult for him or her to go back to a healthy lifestyle.

The soonest you realize that your child, a friend, or a family member is doing drugs, do the best you can to reason out with him or her. Anyone who uses drugs once, even just to “experience” a mild high, has the potential to become a drug addict. Do everything in your power to make sure that the drug experimenting phase does not happen again.

Find the Cause, and Resolve It

For many drug addicts, drugs serve as a coping mechanism for the problems of everyday life. There are many reasons why people turn to drugs. Here are three of them:

• Family and personal problems. Many drug addicts come from broken families, or turned to drugs to cope with problems that they face in life. Some may have become addicted to illegal and controlled substances because they're dealing with divorce, a failed career path, or financial problems.
• Peer pressure. There's an old saying that goes, “Curiosity killed the cat.” Many addicts started using drugs because of curiosity. When your child or a friend starts hanging out with people who are recreational drug users or exert a bad influence upon other people, chances are he or she will turn into a drug addict if you do not intervene.
• A past history with other substances. Many drug addicts have problems with other substances as well, not just for illegal or controlled drugs. To add to the mounting physical and psychological problems of drugs, a drug addict may also be a chain-smoker and/or an alcoholic.

As soon as you tracked down the reason why your loved one is addicted to drugs, try to resolve the problem as best and as quickly as you can. Drug addictions are critical problems, and only get worse over time. You have to fix up the cause of the problem before your friend or family member turns into a full-blown addict.

Plead and Reason

Sometimes, a heartfelt plea can snap a drug user back into his or her senses and start living a clean, drug-free life. As soon as he or she realizes how much the addiction destroys his or her relationships with other people, and how he or she lives life, then there's hope for him or her to stop. Like any addiction, recovery is a process that an addict has to go through every day.

Like many other addicts, drug addicts are people with real problems that they do not address and solve with a realistic solution. Rehab facilities, clinics, and hospitals are more equipped and more capable of treating and rehabilitating an addiction problem than you could ever do at home.

Many addicts will feel resentful, angry, or reluctant to go to rehab, because it may feel like a hospital or a prison block. Don't make any twist to make rehab seem like a theme-park or a wonderland: rehabilitation clinics and facilities are places where drug addicts are helped and transformed into productive members of society. While you should emphasize the point that a drug addict goes to a rehab center to be treated for an addiction, you should not make made-up stories to make withdrawal symptoms, isolation, and loneliness sound good.

Call for Help

When a drug addict does not budge, threatens violence, or does hurt somebody because he or she does not want to go to rehab, then you can call the hospital and the authorities to dispatch personnel who can forcibly bring your addicted friend or family member to a rehabilitation facility. Violent addicts may need to be tranquilized or restrained, especially if they start inflicting harm on other people. It will definitely look and feel painful to watch an addicted friend or family member having to be restrained and whisked away to rehab, but it's all for the better.

A line of cocaine, a roll of marijuana, or a few pills of amphetamines may look harmless, but drugs represent a failure of society to address some of the needs of its members. You should do your part in the cause for a drug-free, healthy, and harmonious society.