Phillips-Attitudes of the Culture

                                         Heroin & Athletes


                                   Attitudes of the Culture


                                                                
Attitudes of Athletes

 
(American Addiction Centers, 2021)
This particular group happens to be associated with addiction to drugs such as heroin majority of times due to the use of opioid prescriptions. Engaging in sports can be a fun and rewarding activity, but with this comes a higher risk of being injured depending on the amount of  physical contact within the sport. Looking at sports such as football for example, can be a risky chance to take because of the possibility of receiving an injury such as dislocating a shoulder or tearing an ACL. Overall, these injuries typically lead to athletes going to the hospital and eventually getting prescribed some form of painkiller to help relieve that pain. This then leads them to possibly wanting to continue receiving those painkillers due to how addictive they can become. When it comes to athletes, it appears that their attitude towards these opioid painkillers, which includes heroin is somewhat mixed based on the fact that they can accidently become addicted to drugs such as opioids (heroin included). In addition, youth who participate in high-injury sports may be surrounded by peers who are more likely to have leftover prescription opioids, making it easier to receive diverted prescription opioids to ease injuries without having to acknowledge to parents and coaches that they need medical attention (Veliz et al., 2016). Knowing that they want to participate as much as possible, athletes may start beginning to go above certain limits to get those prescription opioids in order to help relieve their pain while also making them appear well to play, despite the risks associated. With the need to play while also trying to manage the pain, it appears that there is more of a carefree attitude when it comes to using drugs but at the same time, it happens accidently to the point where they may feel like they have no other choice but to use a substance to help them play through the pain and unfortunately becoming addicted. 





General Public Attitude

When it comes to the general public's attitude towards addiction, it can be a mixed reaction at times, but it tends to be more of a judgmental attitude. When someone may see a person who is suffering from substance abuse, it appears that they go to the question of, "what's wrong with them?" This question can be seen as judgmental in a sense because it comes off as if the person suffering from an addiction just chose to go down the road of substance use for no reason when that is not the case. Looking at addiction cases such as heroin addiction, this can occur from many outside factors such as their environment, trauma or in other cases, starting out with prescription medications. Going back to the athletes for a minute, their addiction usually happens on accident due to being prescribed painkillers to help with their injuries. In the same way that stimulants target the areas of the brain that deal with pleasure and rewards, painkillers – chemically based on the same compounds that power heroin – have a similar effect, to the point that using such narcotics as a form of long-term pain management will become an addiction (American Addiction Centers, 2021). In other words, there is always a story behind the use of these substances that the general public may not fully try to understand and therefore making them appear with more of a judgmental attitude majority of the time. 



Myths
https://images.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/e7e6a71f7bea306a3ca3669eed18828439e12e67_heroin-myths-questioned.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&rect=&w=640&h=

     1. No one does heroin anymore-  According to research, 80% of heroin users in the 1970s reported that it was the first opioid they ever used. Nowadays, that number is flipped: 80% of heroin users report that they started with prescription painkillers. As a result, heroin has become a growing threat due to prescription drug abuse and addiction (Moawad, 2021).

      2. You instantly get addicted to heroin- While this is a common myth, this is not exactly true for someone to become dependent on heroin after trying it once and becoming a addict automatically

      
     3. Only homeless people use heroin- The population of heroin usage has changed over the past few decades, which means more people of different backgrounds are gaining access to heroin in various ways. It’s important to not stereotype every heroin addict as a homeless “junkie”. It can affect your family, friends, or coworkers. Because it’s so incredibly addictive, heroin takes no prisoners when it comes to addiction (Moawad, 2021).


  4. Smoking or snorting is safer than shooting up- While using needles for injection of heroin is common and can be a dangerous method, smoking and snorting can be just as dangerous. Heroin is incredibly addictive and dangerous, no matter how you take it. That’s because the drug disrupts your breathing, so regardless of how it is taken, there is no safe route. 












References

American Addiction Centers. (2021, December 20). Athletes & Addiction: Drug Abuse in Sports & Rehab Near Me. American Addiction Centers. Retrieved March 4, 2022, from https://americanaddictioncenters.org/athletes


Moawad, H. (2021, June 7). Heroin Addiction Myths & Facts: The Truth about Heroin Addiction. Bedrock. Retrieved March 4, 2022, from https://bedrockrecoverycenter.com/addiction/heroin/myths/ 


Veliz, P., Boyd, C. J., & McCabe, S. E. (2016, August). Nonmedical prescription opioid and heroin use among adolescents who engage in sports and exercise. Pediatrics. Retrieved March 4, 2022, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4960731/



Comments

  1. AubreyMarch 5, 2022 at 7:08 AM

    Ajanae, this is a perfect group choice, as they are so commonly affected. Doctors give out intense pain killers for everything now. My topic for my blog is opioids/prescription drugs/fentanyl, so our topics overlap quite a bit. The fact that they think it is safe to take these pills from their doctor, then getting addicted and getting into heroin, is heart breaking. It is interesting how our substances are like step one and two in that terrible way. I did a little research and the article said that 28-46% of high school athletes will experience lifetime opioid use and it goes up to 52% in professional players (Ekhtiari, S., Yusuf, I., AlMakadma, Y., MacDonald, A., Leroux, T., and Khan, M., 2020).

    References

    Ekhtiari, S., Yusuf, I., AlMakadma, Y., MacDonald, A., Leroux, T., and Khan, M. (2020) Opioid use in athletes: A systematic review. National Library of Medicine, Retrieved from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32758077/#:~:text=Opioid%20use%20among%20professional%20athletes,of%2028%25%20to%2046%25.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Megan HoopMarch 5, 2022 at 10:49 AM

    Hello Ajanae
    As a former athlete, I found your blog on the culture of Heroin and athletes very interesting and informative. I also appreciated how you organized the myths about Heroin into a numbered list making them easier to read.
    I found a blog post from the National Institute on Drug Abuse that I thought you might interesting in as it relates to your blog three topic. The blog post is entitled Student-Athletes the AntiOpiod. The article discusses how student-athletes are less likely to use opioids including Heroin since they produce a natural high from endorphins through physical activity. Endorphins can release a natural chemical called dopamine which many athletes will refer to as a runner’s high. This feeling can alleviate some of the pain from an intense workout, (National Institute on Drug Abuse,2016.)
    Reference
    National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2016). Student-Athletes. The Anti Opioid. https://archives.drugabuse.gov/blog/post/student-athletics-anti-opioid

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Phillips-Comorbidity & Addictions

Image
Comorbidity & Addictions With Heroin   https://sbtreatment.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/items-02.png Comorbidity and Heroin? Some people may wonder what comorbidity is in itself and how it relates to substances such as heroin. When a person has two or more health conditions at the same time, or if one condition occurs right after the other, this is known as comorbidity (Christiansen, 2021). For example, common comorbidities that individuals can have are diabetes and high blood pressure since those are two health conditions that one person has at the same time. When it comes to heroin, this is one of the deadliest drugs in America and continuing to be on the rise, there is sure to be a higher number of complications within individuals who are users unfortunately. Heroin is a highly addictive drug due to the euphoric feeling associated when being used by an individual and in order to keep having that sense of euphoria, one can become addicted quickly. While the euphoria keeps p...
Read more

Phillips-Treatment, Therapy, and Alternatives

Image
Treatment, Therapy, and Alternatives for Heroin  When it comes to the topic of heroin use, people typically mention how it impossible to stay clean since this is a highly addictive substance. Unfortunately this can be true for many people who are currently facing a heroin addiction and in order to get the most effective help as possible, there is the need for professional help. When receiving professional help, there can be a variety of effective treatments but there are two particular approaches that are commonly used for heroin use disorder. https://www.healthyplace.com/sites/default/files/images/stories/seroquel/8-drug-addiction-treatment-healthyplace.jpg Pharmacological Treatment (Medications) Scientific research has established that pharmacological treatment of opioid use disorder increases retention in treatment programs and decreases drug use, infectious disease transmission, and criminal activity (National Institute on Drug Use, 2021). Since heroin is a an opioid which peop...
Read more

Phillips-Family and Addictions

Image
  Family & Addictions                             https://www.sandyswenson.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/fullsizeoutput_2bda.jpeg Substance use cannot only have an effect on the individual themselves, but also affecting others around them such as family. With there being many substances out there to use and knowing that they can have a big impact on one's health and mental stability, it is important to discuss how families can also be affected when one struggles from addiction. Looking at one of the most commonly used substances which is heroin, this is a drug that is highly addictive and is sure to be a hard situation for people within a family to witness. Relationships may become broken, there is a higher risk of the parents outliving their child who is addicted to heroin and possibly facing issues such as an increase in violence. Parents Looking at the perspective from a parent and seeing how they may bec...
Read more