“What have I learned in this class and how am I going to apply this information to my future life?”
Alix Heath
Professor Lindhardt
At the beginning of this class I had no idea what to expect. I knew that I would probably learn about the different drugs that are in the world, but I didn’t realize that we would go into depth and actually why people become addicted and the history behind each drug that can be used for good and bad. The main things I learned about drugs in this class are: the history, the reasons why people become addicted to drugs, and the effects they have on people. Each one of this I can use and apply to my daily life and be smart about the decisions I make for my future.
The history was interesting and important to learn about in this class. I learned how the drugs were developed and how people abused them in inappropriate ways. Like how alcohol use to be the drink of choice because is was socially acceptable and business deals were made in area where alcohol was primarily served. But people began to notice the adverse effects in the 1700’s and started to create temperance groups, which completely cuts out alcohol. I can apply this information to my life by just being careful around alcohol. Right now I am too young to drink alcohol and I don’t drink, but since I’ve learned more about the history and the consequences of too much alcohol, I know to keep it in moderation.
People begin to use drugs for different reasons and it was interesting to learn why people begin using different types of drugs like: marijuana, prescription drug abuse, alcohol, cocaine, and tobacco. While reading about why people try drugs I found has an impact by emotions and pear pressure. While there are other factors that come into play when people are abusing drugs, I found that those were the two that really stood out to me and seemed to be in common between all the drugs I learned about in class. I can apply this to my life by being careful. Life can be hard at times and we can’t just take drugs to make it all go away. I know that in cases of prescription drug abuse people probably didn’t abuse it intentionally but other factors probably came into play and it lead them to abusing prescription. I learned that we all have the potential of abusing drugs whether we want to or not. And I learned that we should just be careful how we handle situations.
Growing up I know that I was suppose to stay away from drugs because of the harm they can cause to you, your body, and your family. But I could never wrap my mind around why other kids would try drugs that can be harmful to their bodies and could even lead to them to dying from drug abuse. But I never realized how great the mental impact they make on people. Drugs affect the brain and it makes people feel good and forget about their worries. I think that is one of the reasons why people at my high school decided to try drugs. Not only can illegal drugs cause harm but also so do prescription drugs even when they aren’t being used inappropriately. Like how narcotics can give a person constipation, and that’s not really one to be worried about. I learned that we should be careful with drugs and how they affect out bodies.
When I first started this class I really didn’t know what to think or expect I would learn. I really learned a lot about drugs and how I can avoid abusing them and falling into situation that is hard to get myself out off.