Narcotics abuse is a growing problem in the United States. According to the Mayo Clinic, most drug abuse starts with people experimenting with drugs. They unfortunately do not realize all of the consequences associated with narcotics. Most people live under the impression that it cannot or will not happen to them. Unfortunately, anyone who is addicted to narcotics runs the risk of serious health, mental, and social consequences.

For help finding treatment for addiction call 800-934-1582(Who Answers?) toll free anytime.

1) Long Term Disease

Long term disease is a common consequence of abusing narcotics. Most narcotics reduce inhibitions. This causes people to take risks that they ordinarily would not dream of taking. Some of these risks lead to long term health consequences such as HIV and Hepatitis. These are products of high-risk sex and needle sharing. Most people do not realize that their decisions sometimes can have serious health consequences. Some drugs affect every system of the body wreaking havoc with the heart, stomach, lungs, kidneys, and brain.

2) Problems at School or Work

Taking drugs inevitably consumes your life. You wind up trapped in an endless cycle of seeking the drug and taking the drug. After a while, this starts to interfere with normal obligations. This leads to tardiness and absences. Many narcotics also affect your personality over time. This leads to fights with coworkers, customers, professors, and classmates. All of this can cause problems with work or school. Unless you have a very understanding employer or professors, your behavior due to the drugs may cause you to lose your job.

3) Birth Defects

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the consequences of narcotics addiction do not just end with you. Most drugs lead to some form of birth defect or interfere with prenatal development. Many people believe that this is only a consequence when a woman is carrying a child. This is not true. Some drugs carry genetic damage to a child no matter which parent is using the narcotics. Cocaine and crack are two types of narcotic that are currently being studied for the genetic damage they might cause later on.

4) Neglected or Deteriorating Appearance

Using drugs makes you neglect more than your job. Many addicts neglect their appearance as well. Since the drug takes your time away from you, there is no time to shower, brush your hair, or look after your appearance. Narcotics can also destroy your appearance. Most of them have an effect on your skin, body weight, and generally appearance. You might develop sores, pick at your skin, lose or gain weight, or lose your teeth.

5) Financial Issues

The loss of job due to the drug and the fact that most narcotics are extremely expensive, leads to financial issues. You may find yourself borrowing money that you cannot pay back. The compulsion to obtain your drug of choice can become so powerful that you will do anything to get it. This includes things that you ordinarily would not do.

6) Homelessness

Once the financial issues start, you stop being able to pay your bills. Any money that you get goes directly into the addiction. You might lose your home or you family might ask you to leave. Many of the people living on the street wind up there due to their drug use.

7) Legal Issues

Living for a drug causes you to do things that you never would consider doing otherwise. This includes dealing drugs, stealing for money to buy drugs, and prostitution to earn the money to buy drugs. Most people do not ever consider the depths that they will go to once addicted. Unfortunately dealers generally do. Some are perfectly happy to use your desperation to accomplish their own ends.

For help finding treatment for a narcotic addiction call 800-934-1582(Who Answers?) toll free anytime.

8) Destruction of Friendships and Family Relationships

Most people who are addicts wind up destroying both their friendships and family relationships. Drugs change your personality. Most drug users are anxious, irritable, easily set off, and unstable. This causes people to act out or become aggressive. Family and friends who may want to help you cannot always deal with these changes in personality. These behaviors become progressively worse as the drug use goes on. Family and friends have a difficult time dealing with drug use in general but the emotional instability that goes along with it can tear families apart.

9) Mental Issues

Drug use often causes euphoria and a feeling of mental wellbeing. Unfortunately, it can also cause paranoia, anxiety, psychosis, and a host of mental and emotional disturbances. Most drugs cause permanent changes to the brain. These changes usually have long term consequences. Memory loss, learning disabilities, as well as cognitive and behavioral impairment are not unusual with most of the harder narcotics. These issues can become permanent if the drug use continues.

10) Death

Although some drugs have a higher mortality rate than others, most narcotics have the ability to kill you. Many people overdose on narcotics. This can happen by combining drugs and alcohol, multiple drugs, or by taking too much of a drug. Since people develop a tolerance to many drugs, it is possible to take too much. When this happens, the drug turns deadly.

Narcotics addiction leads to many possible consequences, none of them good. Many more crop up during an addiction. Some of the consequences are obvious while others are less apparent. The only way to stop these consequences from happening is getting help for the addiction now, before it is too late. For more information on the clinical signs of substance abuse, see: 10 Signs of Drug Addiction.