Drug and alcohol problems can and do affect people from all walks of life, religious affiliations, educational levels, and financial circumstances. If you, a family member or friend, are having problems with drugs or alcohol contact the Gibson Recovery Center. The disease of substance abuse is treatable. The first step is to seek treatment.

• Preoccupation with Chemicals
• Lying About Chemical Use
• Attempts to Quit or Control Use
• Effects on Your Physical Health
• Effects on Family
• Effects on Social Life
• Effects in School

• Effects on Work
• Legal Effects
• Sexual Effects
• Effects on Thinking and Feeling
• Other Moral Effects
• Spiritual Effects

• Often thinking about getting high
• Planning on getting high when you are supposed to be doing something else
• Your social life revolves around getting high
• Hiding and protecting your supply; keeping a stash and making sure you won't run out

Lying About Chemical Use

• Lying not only to parents, teachers, etc., but also to concerned friends
• Lying about kinds and amounts of chemicals used and making excuses for your behavior

Back to top

Attempts to Quit or Control Use

• Telling yourself you are not going to get wasted and getting wasted anyway
• Telling yourself you are going to quit altogether and continuing to use
• Telling yourself you'll cut down or switch the kind of chemical you are using to control the high or avoid getting sick

Effects on Your Physical Health

• Accidents or near accidents
• Overdoses
• Burnt-out feeling
• Hangovers
• Not enough or too much sleep
• Withdrawal symptoms
• Unable to work or have fun because of being high or hung over
• Changes in appearance (ex: weight loss, gain, etc.)

Back to top

Effects on Family

• Family arguments, physical fights relating to your drug use
• Not participating in family activities
• Loss of parent's trust
• Not following family rules
• Running away

Effects on Social Life

• Dropping non-users and activities that don't include chemicals
• Social life revolving around using, buying, or selling chemicals
• Your drug of choice becomes our best friend

Back to top

Effects in School

• Getting high in school
• Getting caught with drugs in school
• Getting suspended
• Fights with teachers
• Not caring about doing well in school
• Skipping school to get high

Effects on Work

• Getting high at work
• Calling in sick when you feel burnt out or hung over
• Getting caught with chemicals at work
• Getting fired because of a chemically-related incident

Back to top

Legal Effects

• Committing crimes (whether or not you got caught)
• Possession
• Selling
• Driving while intoxicated
• Curfew violation
• Running awayAbsences from school
• Burglaries and robberies
• Parents declaring incorrigibility

Back to top

Sexual Effects

• Being promiscuous
• Not remembering who you were with or what you did
• Having sex for chemicals
• Using other people for sex purposes

Effects on Thinking and Feeling

• Blackouts
• Loss of memory
• Confusion
• Poor judgment
• Isolating yourself
• Thoughts of suicide
• Suicide attempts
• Low self esteem

Back to top

Other Moral Effects

• If you believe its wrong to lie, and you lie anyway
• If you believe it's wrong to steal, but you steal anyway
• If you've done things while you are high that you feel guilty about

Spiritual Effects

• Using chemicals for relief rather than your spiritual belief
• Forgetting about other ways to get high without chemicals