There are times when life feels overwhelming and one problem just seems to follow another.  While having a glass of whiskey after a hard days work may be okay every now and again, turning to alcohol or any other drug isn’t a solution.  Often times it may seem like the easiest way to forget about what’s happening or dull the pain, but in the end whatever the problem is, it will still be there.  Alcohol and drugs to not in any way provide constructive help in dealing with problems and they will often, in fact, only make the problem or problems exponentially worse.  Here’s just a few reasons that drugs and alcohol aren’t the answer to any problems.

Drugs & Alcohol Have Health Risks

Across the country there are currently millions of people in rehab centers undergoing treatment for drug and alcohol abuse issues.  While some drugs are less serious than others or even legal to consumes, as in the case of alcohol, they are not good for either short or long term health.  They can work disaster on internal organs and contribute to serious diseases like cancer while others are even strong enough to kill from just one wrong dosage.  Drug and alcohol abuse also comes along with multiple mental health issues that deepen overtime.  Rather than solving the problem, substance abuse will only add more to the load.

It’s A Form of Avoidance

Drugs and alcohol are merely a manner to momentarily escape from problems, not solve them.  No matter how much one drinks or smokes or shoots up, there’s nothing being done about the problem at hand.  It might feel good to escape from fears and stress for a while, but the high always ends and when it does, people still have to face their problems.  It’s better to meet things head on than try and run away.

Substance Abuse Multiplies Problems

However improbable it may seem that the problems could be any worse, drugs and alcohol are the surefire way to make them exactly that.  Dealing with an issue is going to be infinitely worse while trying to manage a drug or alcohol addiction.  They add more misery into the life of the abuser but have huge societal costs as well.  There’s already countless professionals and former addicts that will attest to substance abuse multiplying problems, so there’s no need to test it out to see.

They Provide No Educational Value

Though in the moment problems can seem grand and overwhelming, looking back on them most people acknowledge that overcoming said problems is a huge learning opportunity.  People often grow the most when facing struggles and they can be great educational opportunities.  Turning to drugs and alcohol not only means running away, but the user doesn’t learn anything the act.  They do not provide growth or beneficial experiences to the lives of abusers.

Nothing Actually Gets Resolved

Drugs and alcohol may provide a comfortable momentary escape, but the problem will always be there when the high is over.  It is only by facing problems and tackling them head on through time and effort that anything will be resolved.  Maybe the problem still calls for outside help, but in such cases it is better to look to professionals than trust to alcohol or drugs.