Substance Abuse in India
India has seen a shocking increase in drug and alcohol use by young people. It's one of the most important issues facing the country today. This is attributed in part to changing cultural values, broken bonds between people, high stress from increased economic uncertainty, and mental distress experienced by this generation. In addition, urbanization, migration, and industrialization have led to a weakening of traditional social sanctions of control over individuals leading them to adopt drug and alcohol addiction as their new lifestyle.
India is no stranger to drugs. Statistics show that cannabis has gained popularity within the country since 2005, contributing at least 23% of the country's drug-related arrests each year for trafficking, along with heroin making up 33% and pharmaceutical pills coming in close behind at 28%. India has unofficially about five million users of heroin alone; one million registered ones; according to a UN report. Data also shows that the higher availability of low-cost medications containing narcotics like Oxycontin (basically an extended-release form of morphine) is gaining more recognition among addicts, who typically replace prescription opiates with this cheaper synthetic drug due to its closer similarity to heroin.
Mental Health and Substance Abuse
It can be difficult to work when you have major problems in your life. Depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder are all mental health issues that take over one’s life. Having a co-occurring disorder means that someone has trouble functioning at work or school, maintaining relationships with others due to constant clashes, handling life’s difficulties, and maintaining a stable home life. Co-occurring disorder issues also impact each other because when there are untreated mental health problems the substance abuse tends to get worse, but if the substance abuse gets worse then usually so will the issues associated with mental health disorders.
The Importance of Raising Awareness
The statistics above prove that substance abuse, especially in India among young people, is a real epidemic. It’s no coincidence therefore that the beginning of the movement is to educate our youth, so they can understand how all these substances can affect them so perniciously once they ingest them. Perhaps this will keep their lives from coming to an untimely end. Now here lies the question - is it also our responsibility as parents and guardians of our children to present them with this kind of information? While government institutions are chiefly responsible for protecting all citizens within their borders, it's up to each individual parent to make sure their spouse and child stay aware of what they read online. We would like to ask you to help spread the word about this issue because, in reality, we are all in one way or another affected by it - either directly or by virtue of the presence around us within our community.
How You Can Help a Person with Addiction
Establishing trust with them can be the first step that allows an individual with an addiction to confide in you and consider the idea of change. If you make them feel like they can trust you, they might be more willing to confide in you about any addictive behavior. Even if an addicted person is aware that they are doing something wrong or unhealthy, they might not be able to bring themselves to stop if their external support system is not heavily involved in trying to help them quit too. It's best not to push the topic on your own, rather than nag or try to convince them of anything. Instead, just listen and avoid making any judgemental statements that would work against your relationship with this person.
Letting your loved ones know your negative feelings about their addiction is tempting, but you have to refrain from forcing your personal opinions on them. Let them know they have a choice to make and that they’re probably more committed to change if you tell them without a threat of repercussions or pressure. You can also use a patient voice when talking with them, even when sharing the devastating news about the potential risks associated with addiction. People who suffer from addiction need to be informed of all the facts instead of just hearing “scarred-for-life” horror stories.
Addiction is unlike any other bad habit. It's a serious problem with roots in human physiology and neurology, thus, taking professional help becomes a necessary method of treatment. Your loved one can approach a professional counselor who specializes or deals with addicts or addiction rehabilitation that have psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, and counselors on hand where they will have access to continuous care and support to treat this vicious condition. You can also consider joining a local support group such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) or Narcotics Anonymous (NA).
Knowing the importance of asking to speak to an individual with addiction about their problem behavior might be lost on many people. Rather, focusing on what makes this difficult for addicts to heed should be understood - having a habit that ends up getting in the way of their better judgment. For this reason, proper ways to get through are needed for asking for support to end their addictive actions. One has to make sure they are showing great understanding whether it's at home or even in the workplace because addicts care very much about how others view them. Remembering this before approaching one with addiction is always useful.
Additionally, because addiction is an all-consuming habit, it is important to not undermine the role of an addicted person’s friends and family members in providing support and caregiving, which can speed up the recovery process.
Help them follow all treatment recommendations. Regardless of the choice of treatment method whether it is medications, individual or group therapy, or rehabilitation facilities your loved one may feel demoralized, unmotivated, skeptical about the value of treatment services deny their problem or have difficulty keeping track of appointments which may make following treatment recommendations difficult for them.
A lot of people have a hard time being in control when seen with these substances. That is why the best way to promote them is by helping them stop using altogether.
If you have a loved one with a Substance Use Disorder and a Mental Health Disorder, it's important to be able to accurately spot signs of relapse when they occur in order to facilitate the best response possible. It's also super important for this person to receive consistent social support, especially during times of crisis.
Rehabilitation for addiction is an important step in seeking change and recovery.
Best rehab centers in India can be found by accurate information resources such as the RehabsIndia website.