Using the literature provided and outside research and/or literature, please create a design program to increase the education, intervention, and support for those who are struggling with addiction.
After synthesizing the information from all the sources you have examined (the assigned sources and your research), imagine a world in which you had the means and could use those resources to develop and implement a strategy based on the science available.
We know that drugs affect the body’s central nervous system. They affect how a person thinks, feels and behaves. The seven main types are depressants, psychedelics, stimulants, empathogens, opioids, cannabinoids, and dissociatives.
- Depressants slow down the messages traveling between the brain and the body. They can reduce arousal and stimulation, making a person feel relaxed or drowsy.
- Psychedelics affect all the senses, altering a person’s thinking, sense of time and emotions. They can also cause a person to hallucinate—seeing or hearing things that do not exist or are distorted.
- Stimulants are a class of drugs that speed up messages traveling between the brain and body. They can make a person feel more awake, alert, confident or energetic.
- EmpathogensLinks to an external site. increase a person’s feeling of empathy and kindness towards others, as well as feelings of being socially accepted and connected.
- OpioidsLinks to an external site. include any drug that acts on opioid receptors in the brain, and any natural or synthetic drugs that are made from or related to the opium poppy. Opioids slow heart rate and breathing and provide sensations of pleasure and pain relief.
- Cannabinoids are chemical compounds found in all parts of the cannabis plant. They are responsible for the psychoactive effect when cannabis is consumed. They can make a person feel happy, relaxed, anxious or paranoid.
- DissociativesLinks to an external site. (also referred to as ‘dissociative anaesthetics’) can cause people to feel separated or detached from reality. They can also cause hallucinations or other changes in thoughts, emotions and consciousness.
Drug use continues to be a serious health concern for youths, adolescents, and adults, with drug overdoseLinks to an external site. claiming 70,630 lives in the United States in 2019. Specifically, illicit substance use among school-aged children is a major, growing concern, as it imposes a significant burden on individuals, families, and communities. Prevention programs show potential but have conferred heterogeneous results. Programs that are formatted as one-time, zero-tolerance information sessions campaign slogans (e.g., “Just Say No”) or abstinence promoters have done little to reduce substance use. Knowledge dissemination and effective training instilled negative associations. They taught what to say or think rather than how to make a critical decision, thus having no effect on reducing drug use. Successful programs had highly individualized teaching methods, family involvement, and multiple follow-up sessions.
Schools are an appropriate setting for the delivery of drug, crime, and various disease prevention programs. Longitudinal school-based prevention programs incorporated into the school curriculum have shown positive results. School-aged children exposed to drug use at a young age due to home and peer influences can be deterred from beginning early drug use through these programs, ultimately decreasing the risk of negative outcomes. Stakeholders, such as teachers and social workers, are also trained to recognize potential or current drug use, intervene, and offer strong support.
Here’s an interesting article on the topic to help you understand the pathway as well.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3888960/