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• Feeling that you need the drug regularly and in some cases many times a day.
• Making certain that you maintain a supply of the drug.
• Failure in your attempts to stop using the drug.
• Doing things to obtain the drug that you normally wouldn't do, such as stealing.
• Feeling that you need the drug to deal with your problems.
• Driving or doing other activities that place you and others at risk of physical harm when you're under the influence of the drug.

The particular signs and symptoms of drug use and dependence vary depending on the type of drug.

DESIGNER DRUGS SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS

Signs and symptoms of using designer drugs vary depending on the drug. You might be able to tell that a family member or a friend is using or abusing a drug based on the physical and behavioral signs and symptoms associated with the drug. If you think a family member or friend has a drug dependency, encourage that person to talk with a doctor or another health professional who is knowledgeable about addiction.

The best way to prevent an addiction to an illegal drug is not to take the drug at all. Your doctor may prescribe narcotics to relieve pain, benzodiazepines to relieve anxiety or insomnia, or barbiturates as a sedative. Doctors prescribe these medications at safe dosages and monitor their use so that you're not given too great a dose or for too long a period of time. If you feel you need to take more than the prescribed dosage of a medication, talk to your doctor.

DRUG ABUSE AND AIDS

Behavior associated with drug abuse is now the single largest factor in the spread of HIV infection in the United States. HIV is the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, which causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, or AIDS. AIDS is a condition characterized by a defect in the body's natural immunity to diseases, and individuals who suffer from it are at risk for severe illnesses that are usually not a threat to anyone whose immune system is working properly. Although many individuals who have AIDS or carry HIV may live for many years with treatment, there is no known cure or vaccine.
Using or sharing needles, cotton swabs, rinse water, and cookers, such as when injecting heroin, cocaine, or other drugs, leaves a drug abuser vulnerable to contracting or transmitting HIV. Another way people may be at risk for contracting HIV is simply by using drugs of abuse, regardless of whether a needle and syringe are involved. Research sponsored by NIDA and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism has shown that drug and alcohol use interfere with judgment about sexual (and other) behavior, making it more likely that users have unplanned and unprotected sex. This places them at increased risk for contracting HIV from infected sex partners.

FOR PARENTS AND TEACHERS
Recognizing drug abuse in teenagers

Possible indications that a teenager is using drugs include:

• School performance. Your child suddenly shows an active dislike of school and looks for excuses to stay home. Contact your school officials to see if your child's attendance record matches what you know about his or her absent days. A student who experiences a drop in performance, possibly failing courses or receiving only minimally passing grades, may be using drugs.
• Physical health. Listlessness and apathy may indicate your child is using certain drugs.
• Appearance. How they look is extremely important to adolescents. A sudden lack of interest in clothing, grooming or looks may be a warning sign of drug use.
• Personal behavior. Teenagers enjoy privacy, but exaggerated efforts to bar you from entering their room or knowing where they go with their friends might indicate drug use.
• Money. Sudden requests for money without a reasonable explanation for its use may be a sign of drug use. You also may discover money stolen from previously safe places at home. Items may disappear from your home because they're being sold to support a drug habit.

These steps might help prevent drug dependency in your children:

• Communicate. Talk to your children about the risks of drug use and abuse.
• Listen. Be a good listener when your children talk about peer pressure and be supportive of their efforts to resist it.
• Set a good example. Don't abuse alcohol or addictive drugs. Children of parents who abuse drugs are at greater risk of drug addiction.
• Strengthen the bond. Work on your relationship with your child. A strong, stable bond between you and your child will reduce your child's risk of using or abusing drugs.

Narcotics Anonymous

Is a nonprofit fellowship or society of men and women for whom drugs had become a major problem. They meet regularly to help each other stay clean. They are not interested in what or how much you used, but only in what you want to do about your problem and how they can help.
Membership is open to all drug addicts, regardless of the particular drug or combination of drugs used. When adapting AA's First Step, the word "addiction" was substituted for "alcohol," thus removing drug-specific language and reflecting the "disease concept" of addiction.
There are no social, religious, economic, racial, ethnic, national, gender or class-status membership restrictions. There are no dues or fees for membership; while most members regularly contribute small sums to help cover the expenses of meetings, such contributions are not mandatory.

ASK FOR HELP!!

For Treatment Referrals, please call

1-800-662-HELP
or visit
findtreatment.samhsa.gov

A Service of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

More information may be obtained by contacting:
NA World Service Office

Telephone: (818) 773-9999 - Fax: (818) 700-0700
OR
800-TODAYNA

www.NA.org

FOR SPIRITUAL HELP !
1866-467-3669