This Is What Prescription Drug Addiction Looks Like

Signs and Symptoms of Prescription Drug Addiction

If you’re using prescription drugs to get high or using them in a way your doctor didn’t prescribe them, you may be living with prescription drug addiction. Read on to discover why prescription drug addiction happens and what you can do about it. Know that if you or a loved one is living with a substance use disorder, you’re not alone. There is hope.

Many Americans take their prescription drugs as intended by their doctor every day without issue. But prescription drug misuse is the nation’s second-highest form of drug use, following marijuana. Almost 20 million people used prescription drugs either without a prescription themselves or in larger amounts or ways outside the recommended use, according to a survey in 2015. Out of that group, the most commonly misused prescription drugs were painkillers, tranquilizers, stimulants, and sedatives. This is not surprising, given that all of the drug types listed are classified by the DEA as Schedule II drugs, meaning they have a high potential for abuse even though they’re considered therapeutic and therefore legal. A person can develop a substance use disorder, also called addiction, even if they’re using drugs prescribed to them by a doctor.