Welcome
It seems odd to speak of the dangers of prescription addiction, when our society has benefited so much from what they are able to accomplish.
Prescription medications can work miracles for people with a variety of symptoms. Illnesses can be cured, symptoms can be alleviated, and pain can be relieved. But prescription drugs can also have a dark side. All drugs—even the kind that come from the pharmacist—can be harmful under certain circumstances, particularly when intentionally misused or abused.
Prescription medications can work miracles for people with a variety of symptoms. Illnesses can be cured, symptoms can be alleviated, and pain can be relieved. But prescription drugs can also have a dark side. All drugs—even the kind that come from the pharmacist—can be harmful under certain circumstances, particularly when intentionally misused or abused.
Why? Maybe it’s because they are relatively easy to acquire. Or maybe it’s because there isn’t the same level of “taint” associated with prescriptions, as there would be with street drugs. Whatever the reason, the result is the same: fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, even grandmothers and grandfathers are misusing prescription medications in the highest percentage in history. “There is no typical abuser,” says Joseph Autry, MD, acting administrator of the US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, commenting on studies that show how widespread this problem has become.
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, an estimated 48 million people (ages 12 and older) have used prescription drugs for non-medical reasons at some point in their lives. In terms of the scope of the problem, this represents approximately 20 percent of the U.S. population.
Most people use prescription medications responsibly and as prescribed. But when it comes to certain types of drugs, the potential for misuse and abuse is higher, and the problem is growing. With individuals who take medications regularly to treat an illness or control a chronic condition, combining the drugs that have been prescribed for them with other drugs that are used for the pleasurable effects they provide, can be a life-threatening situation.
This site will focus on three medications that are widely abused, discussion both the pharmaceutical purpose of the drug, as well as the potential negative effects brought about by abuse. Two prescription medications discussed here (Lortab and Percocet) are prescribed for the treatment of pain caused by surgery, accident, illness or chronic conditions such as cancer. The third drug, Xanax, is prescribed for the short-term treatment of anxiety, panic disorder and agoraphobia.
All three of these medications have crossed the line between appropriate and illicit distribution. Intended to be sold through pharmacies to those with prescriptions and a legitimate need, they are now sold on street corners to anyone with cash and a desire to get high. The proliferation of Internet pharmacies, where these medications can be obtained with a forged prescription-or no prescription at all-has created a new source for drugs purchased intentionally for abuse or "recreational" use.