20 Substance Abuse and Addictions

Introduction

A drug is a chemical substance that can change how your body and mind work. Drugs are substances that people use to get high and change how they feel. They may be illegal drugs- like pot, cocaine, or heroin. Or they may be legal for adults only, like alcohol and tobacco.

Medicines that treat illness can also become abused when people take them to get high, not because they’re sick and following their doctor’s orders. People can even abuse cough or cold medicines from the store if they ignore the directions and take too much at one time.

People abuse drugs for many reasons:

• They want to feel good. Taking a drug can feel really good for a short time. That’s why people keep taking them—to have those good feelings again and again. But even though someone may take more and more of a drug, the good feelings don’t last. Soon, the person is taking the drug just to keep from feeling bad.
• They want to stop feeling bad. Some people who feel very worried, afraid, or sad abuse drugs to try to stop feeling so awful. This doesn’t help their problems and can lead to addiction, which can make them feel much worse.
• They want to do well in school or at work. Some people who want to get good grades, get a better job, or earn more money might think drugs will give them more energy, keep them awake, or make them think faster. But it usually doesn’t work, may put their health at risk, and may lead to addiction.

According to the University of Arizona Police Department, the common drugs encountered on the University of Arizona campus are marijuana, alcohol, cocaine, mushrooms, prescription drugs, ruffies, methamphetamine, and fentanyl. There are serious consequences to drug use on campus.

Cigarettes and Tobacco

It might surprise you to learn that cigarettes and other forms of tobacco are drugs. According to Arizona Tobacco Law, it’s only legal to use tobacco once you’re 21 years of age in Arizona. But it’s not healthy for you at any age.

Electronic cigarettes: Read the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s Vaping Devices (Electronic Cigarettes) DrugFacts for information about electronic cigarettes (sometimes called “vaping”), including how safe they are compared to tobacco cigarettes.

Addiction: The nicotine in tobacco is what makes you addicted. When you smoke, the effects wear off quickly. This makes you want to keep using tobacco again and again throughout the day. The more you do this, the more your body and brain get addicted to the nicotine. Fortunately, there are medicines, other treatments, and hotlines that can help people quit tobacco.

Alcohol

It is normal and a positive decision to decide not to drink in college. There are many ways to enjoy life while not partaking. However, many students do make the choice to drink, so we’ve provided some important information so that you can make an informed choice. In the State of Arizona, you must be 21 years of age to purchase or consume alcohol legally. See Arizona drinking law. 

Drinks like beer, malt liquor, wine, and hard liquor contain alcohol. Alcohol is the ingredient that gets you drunk.

Hard liquor—such as whiskey, rum, or gin—has more alcohol in it than beer, malt liquor, or wine.

The following drink sizes contain about the same amount of alcohol:

• 1 ½ ounces of hard liquor
• 5 ounces of wine
• 8 ounces of malt liquor
• 12 ounces of beer

Being drunk can make a person feel very silly, angry, or sad for no reason. It can make it hard to walk in a straight line, talk clearly, or drive.

Marijuana

Marijuana is a green, brown, or gray mix of dried, crumbled leaves from the marijuana plant. It can be rolled up and smoked like a cigarette (called a joint) or a cigar (called a blunt). Marijuana can also be smoked in a pipe. Sometimes people mix it in food and eat it. Marijuana is legal in AZ, but only for those 21 years of age and older, and NOT in a public place. You may only possess one ounce or less. A dorm room is considered a public place as it is a place that falls under Federal laws. Therefore, having marijuana or paraphernalia in your dorm room is a violation of the law and can land you in jail, with a fine, or both.

Marijuana can make you feel silly, relaxed, sleepy, and happy—or nervous and scared. It may change your sense of sight, hearing, and touch. It can also make it hard to think clearly.

• Addiction: Although some people don’t know it, you can get addicted to marijuana after using it for a while. This is more likely to happen to people who use marijuana every day, or who started using it when they were teenagers.

Cocaine (Coke, Crack)

Cocaine is a white powder. It can be snorted up the nose or mixed with water and injected with a needle. Cocaine can also be made into small white rocks, called crack. It’s called crack because when the rocks are heated, they make a cracking sound. Crack is smoked in a small glass pipe. Cocaine is not legal in the State of Arizona and can carry fines and jail time.

Cocaine can make a person feel full of energy, but also restless, scared, or angry.

• Addiction: It is easy to lose control over cocaine use and become addicted. Then, even if you get treatment, it can be hard to stay off the drug. People who stopped using cocaine can still feel strong cravings for the drug, sometimes even years later.

Meth (Crank, Ice)

Methamphetamine—meth for short—is a white, bitter powder. Sometimes it’s made into a white pill or a clear or white shiny rock (called a crystal). Meth is not legal in the State of Arizona, and can carry fines and jail time.

Meth powder can be eaten or snorted up the nose. It can also be mixed with liquid and injected into your body with a needle. Crystal meth is smoked in a small glass pipe.

Meth at first causes a rush of good feelings, but then users feel edgy, overly excited, angry, or afraid. Their thoughts and actions go fast. They might feel too hot.

• Addiction: Meth use can quickly lead to addiction and hurt different parts of your brain. It can cause thinking and emotional problems that don’t go away or that come back again even after you quit using the drug. For instance, you might feel, hear, or see things that aren’t there. You might think that people are out to get you, or start believing strange ideas that can’t be true.

Prescription Pain Medicine (OxyContin, Vicodin)

Pain medicines relieve pain from surgery or injuries. You need a prescription from a doctor to buy some strong kinds of these medicines. Prescription pain medicines are legal and helpful to use when a doctor orders them to treat your medical problem.

But people sometimes take these without a doctor’s prescription to get high or to try to treat themselves or their friends. Drug dealers sell these pills just like they sell heroin or cocaine. Some people borrow or steal these pills from other people. It is illegal to take these without a prescription, and being caught can result in jail time.

Some people think that prescription pain medicines are safer to abuse than “street” drugs because they are medicines. Prescription pain medicine abuse can be as dangerous as heroin or cocaine abuse.

Oxycodone is one pain medicine that people often abuse. Sometimes it goes by the brand names OxyContin^® or Percocet^®. Another one that is often abused is hydrocodone. One of its brand names is Vicodin^®.

Pain medicines are usually white, round, or oval pills. They can be taken whole, smoked, or crushed into a powder that is snorted or injected.

Like heroin, pain pills can cause a rush of good feeling when they’re first taken, but they can also make you want to throw up. They can make you very sleepy, and you can get addicted to them.

• Addiction: Prescription pain medicines can be as addictive as heroin—especially if they are smoked or injected. Then, even if you get treatment, it’s hard to stay away from the drug. Fortunately, some medicines can help someone recover from prescription pain medicine addiction.
• Overdose: Signs of a pain medicine overdose are cold and sweaty skin, confusion, shaking, extreme sleepiness, trouble breathing, and coma.
• Death: Many people die from pain medication overdoses. More people overdose on pain medicines every year than on heroin and cocaine combined.

Other Drugs of Abuse

There are many other drugs of abuse, including:

Ecstasy (X, E, XTC) is a pill that is often taken at parties and clubs. It is sometimes called the “love drug” because it makes people feel very friendly and touchy. It also raises body temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure, and can make you feel sad for days after its effects wear off. Learn more about ecstasy.

Club Drugs
Some drugs are called “club drugs” because they are sometimes passed around at nightclubs and parties:

• GHB is a liquid or powder that can make you pass out. It’s called a “date rape” drug because someone can secretly put it in your drink. This means that you can’t fight back or defend yourself. Then they will have sex with you without your permission.
• Rohypnol (roofies) is a date rape pill and can also be put in a drink.
• Ketamine (K, Special K) makes you feel far away from what’s going on around you and can feel scary and unpleasant. It is usually taken by mouth, snorted up the nose, or injected with a needle.

While there are drink covers, “test strips,” and bracelets you can use to test your drinks at the club, these are not foolproof, so a person must be vigilant. Also, you are not safe just because you ordered directly from the bartender. There have been many instances where the bartender was responsible for putting the roofie in the drink. Many bars in Tucson are part of the “Safer Bars” movement, but it’s not foolproof. You are safest when you pour your own drink or opt for a single-serve drink that you open yourself. Never leave your drink unattended.

Mushrooms (Psilocybin)

Magic mushrooms (shrooms) look like regular poisonous mushrooms, or can look like a dried material in capsules. Synthetic mushrooms appear as a white crystalline powder that can be in tablet or capsule form, or it can be dissolved in water. People on psychiatric medications may cause a relapse or worsening of their condition if they take mushrooms (learn more about magic mushrooms).

Fentanyl

Fentanyl is a completely synthetic drug, meaning it has no natural ingredients in it. It is extremely potent and dangerous. It is the most powerful opioid drug. Just a small amount, 2mg (or less for some people), can kill a person. It can look like many things because it is being put into many other drugs. It might be in pill form, a powder, or a spray, or some other pill you are taking could have been injected with fentanyl, making it surprisingly deadly. Fentanyl is the leading drug responsible for most of the opioid deaths.

Addiction: Fentanyl can lead to opioid use addiction. Read Facts About Fentanyl and learn more about its addictive nature.

Drug misuse often leads to situations you cannot control, consequences that you don’t want to be affected by, and disappointments that you don’t want to deal with. “Data from the 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) indicates that among young adults aged 18 to 25 (which includes most college students), 27.1% had a substance use disorder (SUD) in the past year.” Also, “Despite the significant percentage of college students with a substance use disorder, only approximately 5% end up attending rehab for it. This shows a notable gap between those who would benefit from treatment and those who seek it out and receive it. Reasons for this gap include a lack of awareness about addiction treatment for college students, perceived stigma, and worries about missing classes if treatment were to be obtained.”^[1]

If you feel you have a problem, get help right away. Missing a few classes, or even a semester, is better than continuing down a dark and dangerous path. Talk with someone at the University of Arizona’s CAPS right away.

Gambling

Gambling is growing in popularity on college campuses because of the advent of online gambling. However, you must be 21 years of age to gamble legally, whether sports betting online, online gambling in some other form, gambling in a casino, or playing the lottery.  According to the Addiction Center, “College students in particular are at a higher risk for developing sports betting or gambling addictions. This is due to what researchers from the University of Buffalo refer to as ‘the 5 A’s.’ The 5 A’s are availability, acceptability, advertising, access, and age.” Learn more about gambling addiction among college students.

When and Where to Get Help

Here’s a simple way to think about gambling and substance use and abuse: If your gambling and/or use of drugs or alcohol is interfering with your life—negatively affecting your health, work, school, relationships, or finances—it’s time to quit or seek help. People who are addicted to an action or a substance continue to abuse even though they know it can harm their physical or mental health, lead to accidents, or put others in danger. The following video dispels some myths about who is at risk of addiction.

Video: Watch “Anyone Can Become Addicted” by Gila River Health Care:

The following video explains addiction to gambling.

Video: Watch “What Is Gambling Addition” by the American Psychiatric Association:

Know that the first couple of weeks during the first semester of college are an especially critical and vulnerable time for most first-year students. Because lots of students get into the habit of drinking heavily and partying during these early days of college, there’s a risk that excessive alcohol consumption will interfere with successful adaptation to campus life. The transition to college is often difficult, and about one-third of first-year students fail to enroll for their second year.

If you are concerned about your gambling, drug, or alcohol use, or if you need help quitting, schedule an appointment with a counselor at CAPS. These folks are there to help you—it’s their job to provide information, support, and referrals.

If you need additional resources or help, the following are good places to check:

• Campus Health
• Drugs.com’s Drugs & Medications A to Z
• Prevention Hub
• Drug and Alcohol Treatment Hotline: 1-800-662-HELP
• Gambling Hotline: 1-800-522-4700 or 1-800-GAMBLER

License & Attribution

Adapted from College Success Strategies by Rosie-Carbajal-Romo, which is licensed CC BY SA 4.0. Any changes to the original chapter can be found in the Appendix.