Prescription Drugs

General Facts about Prescription Drug Misuse: 

Prescription drugs are often strong medications, which is why they require a prescription from a doctor or dentist. There are three kinds of prescription drugs that are commonly misused:

• Opioids—used to relieve pain, such as Vicodin®, OxyContin®, or codeine

• Depressants—used to relieve anxiety or help a person sleep, such as Valium® or Xanax®

• Stimulants— used for treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), such as Adderall® and Ritalin®

Prescription drug misuse has become a large public health problem, because misuse can lead to addiction, and even overdose deaths.

Side Effects of Prescription Drug Misuse: 

• Opioids can cause you to feel sleepy, sick to your stomach, and constipated. At higher doses, opioids can make it hard to breathe properly and can cause overdose and death.

• Stimulants can make you feel paranoid. It can cause your body temperature to get dangerously high and make your heart beat too fast. 

• Depressants can cause slurred speech, shallow breathing, sleepiness, disorientation, and lack of coordination. People who misuse depressants regularly and then stop suddenly may experience seizures. At higher doses depressants can also cause overdose and death, especially when combined with alcohol.

Prescription Drug Misuse and the Body: 

• Brain: causes damage due to seizures, stroke, and direct toxic effects on brain cells. Drug use can lead to addiction, a brain disorder that occurs when repeated drug use leads to changes in the function of multiple brain circuits that control pleasures/reward, stress, decision-making, impulse control, learning and memory, and other functions.  

• Heart: Prescription drug abuse can cause adverse cardiovascular effects that can be life-threatening. This is because too much drug use is hard on the heart and can induce abnormal heart rates and other problems. This can lead to heart attacks, heart failure, collapsed veins and more. 

Signs of Prescription Drug Misuse: 

Opioids: 

• Constipation

• Nausea

• Feeling high (euphoria)

• Slowed breathing rate

• Drowsiness

• Confusion

• Poor coordination

• Increased dose required for pain relief

• Worsening or increased sensitivity to pain with higher doses (hyperalgesia)

Depressants: 

• Drowsiness

• Confusion

• Unsteady walking

• Slurred speech

• Poor concentration

• Dizziness

• Problems with memory

• Slowed breathing

Stimulants: 

• Increased alertness

• Feeling high

• Irregular heartbeat

• High blood pressure

• High body temperature

• Reduced appetite

• Insomnia

• Agitation

• Anxiety

• Paranoia

Signs of Addiction: 

• Stealing, forging or selling prescriptions

• Taking higher doses than prescribed

• Excessive mood swings or hostility

• Increase or decrease in sleep

• Poor decision-making

• Appearing to be high, unusually energetic or revved up, or sedated

• Requesting early refills or continually "losing" prescriptions, so more prescriptions must be written

• Seeking prescriptions from more than one doctor