SUBSTANCE ADDICTION, EDUCATION, & PREVENTION

Devin's RX Awareness Story  
"Devin had his wisdom teeth removed when he was 16. After the surgery, he received a 30-day prescription for opioid pain medication and liked the way the pills made him feel. After three days, he had used the entire prescription. He soon realized it was easy to obtain prescription opioids from people’s bathrooms, from friends, or from people on the street." Source: Center for Disease & Prevention 

As you can see from Devin's story, opioids is can cause serious problems, and become very addictive as illegal drugs. You can abuse medicine if you:

• Take medicine not prescribed to you
• Take more doses than needed
• Take the drug for other reasons than medical 

Signs of Substance A Substance Use Problem
As you first start using a substance, you think you can manage how much you use. However, overtime, you start needed more of the substance to get the same effect.  For some people, the need to have this substance can go from abuse to addiction. Some signs that you may have a substance abuse problem includes:

• Not interested in the things you use to be
• Cannot hold on to the same friends
• Not taking care of yourself anymore
• Want to be alone more
• Eating habits change
• Sleeping patterns change  
• Mood changes

How to Get Help
NASC can help you stop, by providing counseling, medicine, or both.  If you have a substance abuse issue and would like to stop using, contact us today at 773.542.1150.  We can help figure out the best treatment plan for you together.  

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