1) Alcohol is a drug. IT is not a fruit or a vegetable. Does this sound dumb? Well, there are a lot of people in this country who don’t get it.
2) You can be charged with DUI/Drugs while driving under the influence of your medication prescribed by your doctor, especially if you are taking 4 times as much as you are supposed to. Especially if you are mixing medications. Especially if you are not eating properly. You absolutely can kill someone while driving under the influence of the medication that you are prescribed by your doctor. And you will be charged with a felony. The police/judicial system used to be undereducated as to how to deal with prescription drug abuse, but by golly we aren’t now.
3) The abuse of Ambien, a prescription drug used for sleep problems, is a growing problem in America. When taken at bedtime Ambien is a wonderful aid for individuals with difficulty sleeping. But, when taken with other medications such as alcohol or God forbid with street drugs, it can be a problem. People who take 2 to 100 times the dosage of Ambien just to have a good time can definitely have problems. Plain old individuals will have problems with sleep eating, sleep sexing and sleep driving on Ambien even if taken correctly.
4) Possession of even a crumble of a hydrocodone without a prescription is a FELONY! Surprise! If your Aunt Effie gives you a Oxycodone for your killer migraine headache and you get pulled over for speeding, you can and probably will be charged with a FELONY.
5) People who start taking narcotics or opiates who have pain and those who start taking those medicines who never had pain can end up at the same place. Narcotics (are the same as opiates for the purpose of this article) are physically addicting, even when taken as prescribed. Physical withdrawal symptoms can include feeling like you have the flu, muscle aches, problems sleeping and sweating. They last from 4-30 days. Withdrawal from narcotics is usually not life threatening.
6) Overdose from narcotics can be life threatening. In our county, we have been averaging (roughly) one deadly overdose per month from prescription medication for the past 8 years.
7) Overdose from benzodiazapines (Xanax) is usually not deadly, but when mixed with a few pain pills, a few Somas, a cold beer or 12 beers, it is frequently deadly.
8) Withdrawal from Xanax can be deadly. You should not attempt to stop taking any medication without the direction of your medical professional, but especially Xanax. Symptoms can lead up to and include seizures.
9) Withdrawal from alcohol can be deadly. Isn’t that silly? The legal and socially acceptable drug can cause physical withdrawal symptoms leading up to and including seizures. Do not stop drinking abruptly after long periods of steady use without consulting a medical professional.
10) Alcohol abuse during pregnancy causes the most damaging birth defects of all of the usually abused drugs.