It is imperative that you understand how to determine that one of your loved ones or a close friend is using drugs or alcohol. In this video you will learn how to recognize signs of substance abuse. For example, did you know that alienation from others, or severe changes in behavior or even increased defensiveness could all be signs of substance abuse.

Video Transcription

Hello! My name is Jimmy Oakley. Welcome to my new Health Education video series. This is video number 4 in the Addictions category. The first 20 videos or so that I am producing or produced in conjunction with addictioneducation.net. This is the website for a new book that I have produced and released called Addiction Education. You Have Questions, I Have Answers! This is a way for me to not only deliver some helpful information about the content of my book, but also perhaps to help some people out along the way as well. This video title is Discover of the 22 Crucial Signs of Drug Use in People Around You. Before I start let me just say I am not a professional voice over artist. I am just a regular person like you are and I will make many mistake, just like that one. So if I do, hey! Please forgive me, okay. A substance abuse involved repeated and excessive use of prescription drugs, alcohol, narcotics, street drugs, club drugs, stimulants and more. These are about a few of the addictive substance is our society is dealing with today. One definition of drugs might be, chemicals that have profound impact on the petrochemical balance in the brain which directly affects how you feel and how you act. In other words, if you do drugs or alcohol or other substances, your brain chemistry is going to get screwed up pretty badly and you won't even be aware that it is happening to you. Almost all drugs over stimulate the pleasure centers of the brain flooding it with the neurotransmitter dopamine which produces the feeling of euphoria. This heightened sense of extensive pleasure can be so compelling that the brain demands to have the feeling back over and over again. With each drug and the changes in the brain chemistry it produces, it will also cause different signs and different symptoms, where you can recognize the signs and symptoms of your have alcohol abuse in those around you by paying attention to there behavior. Listen as I review some of the sign and symptoms of drug and alcohol abuse. See if you can identify any of the symptoms of drug or alcohol addiction in someone you know. To start with, you might notice them showing an alienation from other people or they might show sever changes in their behavior or increase defensiveness. Drug or alcohol addicts will give up previously enjoyable activities that they would otherwise participated in. Their lives will become consumed with getting drugs and using them. Their physical appearance will change often drastically depending on their drug of choice and they will start missing work and school and their life and work will suffer. Other signs, symptoms, and signals that someone around may have an addiction is using alcohol or drugs to relax or to forget about their problems and they may display a loss of interest and activities that were once important to them. You may see them begin to keep secrets from family and friends. They may start withdrawing and wanting to spend more time alone or they may start missing school or work with unexplained absences or if in school, their grades begin to fall sometimes rapidly. They make different friendship that aren't always healthy for them and their spending time finding ways to get drugs or alcohol or they will begin to steal money or they begin stealing items from loved ones and friends and selling them for cash, or they will show a failed attempts at addiction recovery and they will also show signs of anxiety, depression, anger, and they will display a severe mood change. If you suspect that someone around you is abusing drugs or alcohol, I may highly recommend that you urge them to seek medical assistance as soon as possible. Or if they are in denial, I would suggest that you seriously look into and consider staging and intervention with the abuser. Well, that brings the close video number 4. Thanks for watching. I hope you have benefited from these 22 signs and symptoms of drug use. If you require more information on this matter, try to get a hold of the copy of my new book Addiction Education. You Have Questions, I Have Answers! Or click on one of the links below this video and sign up for my new free 10-part addiction e-course. This is very informative and it might provide you with the information that you are looking for. I will see you on addiction video series number 5, Discover the Seven Signs That Someone Around You is Using Depressants. Well , I am Jimmy Oakley saying thanks till next time.