Charting it All Up - To Pill or Not to Pill?

Legal drug addiction could be affecting anyone in your neighbourhood - your elderly grandmother, your history teacher at school and even your religious uncle.

It is important to understand that in most cases, the addicted individuals are literally unaware
of the degree of reliance their body is on the drugs. It is also important to understand that addiction is not just a chronic use of the drug; it includes the initial compulsion to consume the drug, followed by a continued consumption crave, even after being aware/affected by negative consequences.

These adverse consequences can include speech impairment, physical deformity, emotional distress, psychological and cognitive effects as well as a handicap in spiritual health. Even though
drug addicts are aware that excessive drug usage can do harm, they are not informed enough to know to what extent long term internal and external bodily damage can be done. Obviously, the danger is subjective depending on the drug, dosage, method of consumption, age, extent of use and other environmental and medical factors.

The following is a link to an informative chart published by the National Institute of Drug Abuse, United States, and is complete with all the medical jargon, street names and intoxication effects that different classes of legal drugs can have on the body. It is a must read for educating yourself on the dangers that are involved in overusing prescribed medication.

NIDA National Institute of Drug Abuse