Today, more than 4 million women in this country use drugs. Women of all ages, races and cultures..... Women just like your best friend, your sister, your co-worker, or your daughter....Women just like you.
Drug abuse is a serious, continuing illness. There are no easy cures.
Women who try to quit sometimes fail at first. But help is available to overcome the illness of drug abuse. Women who use drugs do not have to face the problem alone.
Facts about women and drug abuse
- 9 million women have used illegal drugs in the past year.
- 3.7 million women have taken prescription drugs nonmedically during the past year.
- More than 28,000 (70%) of the AIDS cases among women are drug-related.
Almost half of all women age 15-44 have used drugs at least once in their life. Of these women, nearly 2 million have used cocaine and more than 6 million have used marijuana within the past year. Most women drug abusers use more than one drug.
To understand drug use by pregnant women, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has been studying treatment for women to develop the most effective approaches. One project, "Perinatal 10," is looking at the effects of treatment, medical care, and support services for pregnant women.
Women can have special risk factors for drug abuse.
Also, women can become addicted quickly to certain drugs, such as crack cocaine. therefore, by the time they seek help, their addiction may be difficult to treat.
Women who use drugs often suffer from other serious health problems, sexually transmitted diseases, and mental health problems, such as depression.
Many women who use drugs have had troubled lives. Studies have found that at least 70 percent of women drug users have been sexually abused by the age of 16. Most of these women had at least one parent who abused alcohol or drugs.
Often, women who use drugs have low self-esteem, little self-confidence, and feel powerless. They often feel lonely and are isolated from support networks.
Women from certain cultural backgrounds or who have difficulty with the English language may not know how to find help for their addiction.
Women who use drugs risk becoming infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. The virus can be spread through needles used to inject drugs. Therefore, women who inject drugs and share needles are especially at risk.
The AIDS virus is also spread through sexual contact. Women who have sex with men who inject drugs are at great risk. Between 1990 and 1991, AIDS cases among women rose 17 percent. Today, almost 70 percent of AIDS cases in women are related to either injecting drugs or having sex with a man who injects drugs.
AIDS is now the fourth leading cause of death among women.
A mother who uses drugs risks her life and her baby's.
When a pregnant woman uses drugs, she and her unborn child face serious health problems. During pregnancy, the drugs used by the mother can enter the baby's bloodstream. The most serious effects on the baby can be HIV infection, AIDS, prematurity, low birth weight, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, small head size, stunted growth, poor motor skills, and behavior problems.
A mother's continuing drug use puts her children at risk for neglect, physical abuse, and malnutrition. However, NIDA research shows that providing care and treatment to the pregnant drug abuser can reduce many of the negative effects on her baby.
Health risks associated with drug abuse
Mother:
- Poor Nutrition
- High Blood Pressure
- Rapid Heart Beat
- Low Weight Gain
- Low Self Esteem
- Preterm Labor
- Sexually Transmitted Disease
- Early Delivery
- HIV/AIDS
- Depression
- Physical Abuse
Baby:
- Prematurity
- Low Birth Weight
- Infections
- Small Head Size
- Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
- Birth Defects
- Stunted Growth
- Poor Motor Skills
- HIV/AIDS
- Learning Disabilities
- Neurological Problems
Studies have found that more than 4 million women need treatment for drug abuse. Unfortunately, there are many important reasons why women do not seek help. Some women may not be able to find child care. Or they fear that the authorities may take away their children. Some women fear they will be punished if they admit their drug addiction. Many women fear violence from their husbands, boyfriends, or partners.
Friends and family can help relieve these fears for the woman who uses drugs. They can support her by helping her find good drug abuse treatment and by providing child care and transportation.
NIDA research shows that women drug abusers get better when treatment takes care of all their basic needs.
Some women need the basic services of food, shelter, and clothing. Other women also need transportation, child care, and parenting training. Women may need medical care, mental health therapy, and legal assistance. Good treatment also teaches reading, basic education, and skills to find a job. Treatment programs aimed at men often do not provide all of these services.
Treatment is especially effective when women can live at a treatment center with their children.
It is hard to beat drug addiction. But the woman who uses drugs CAN get better with the right kind of treatment... even if she has tried to quit before and failed.
Women who get treatment can rebuild their lives.
After completing drug treatment and getting off drugs, women need help from family, friends, and employers to stay off drugs.
Family education and counseling programs in the neighborhood help women return to their families or jobs. With good treatment and community support, women can recover from the illness of drug abuse and begin to build a better life. Treatment is available, often close to home.
The first step is to find out what kind of treatment a woman needs and where she can get it. Call the free National Drug Information Treatment and Referral Line. Call for yourself... or call for a friend.
Women can get help for their drug addiction.
1.800.662.HELP
Source: National Institutes of Health; National Institute on Drug Abuse
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This information is provided by the Cleveland Clinic and is not intended to replace the medical advice of your doctor or health care provider. Please consult your health care provider for advice about a specific medical condition. This document was last reviewed on: 5/30/2006...#5573
