The Cost Of Substance Use And Abuse - Free Essay Example

Many discussions are had about what the most damaging part of living the modern age is. Whether it is the economy or bilateral relationships with other nations, they often ignore one of the most underlying and conspicuous killers of the population, the abundance of substance abuse. Research and studies have shown that people who use and abuse substances are generally less healthy, are stigmatized by their peers and family, and have less money to spend on themselves due to supporting their unhealthy lifestyle. Â  People afflicted by substance abuse generally have poorer health than people who do not take any form of drugs, suffering from physical health issues and mortality, mental complications and suffer from a greater risk of catching diseases. According to a mortality report by the CDC (2005) during 19972001, cigarette smoking and exposure to tobacco smoke resulted in approximately 438,000 premature deaths in the United States displaying the shocking amount of deaths directly caused by smoking. Drug abuse not only affects the body in the long term, as there are also immediate negative effects incurred by drug usage. Additionally, a study by Wieczfinska, Kowalczyk, Sitarek, Skala, and Pawliczak (2018), the cells of the smokers are more sensitive to cigarette smoke ingredients, demonstrating that the longer a person is using cigarettes they will become far more predisposed to the negative effects of smoking. Physical effects usually are accompanied by mental effects, that are just as ba d if not worse than physical effects. In conclusion to their study Wieczfinska, Kowalczyk, Sitarek, Skala, and Pawliczak (2018) state Only a few years of smoking results in changes as deep as alterations of expression in blood cells.. Â  We can conclude with the various long-term and short-term effects of smoking usage that there is an unoptimistic trend physically affecting the body in continued or new users. In the same study, it is stated the study indicates that short-term smoking evokes changes that may lead to serious disorders, and possibly COPD. These changes are strictly connected with the oxidative status of cells, and more importantlythey, are so serious as to be visible in peripheral blood cells.. The physical changes that take place are devastating enough to affect the cells that are not even directly impacted by the substances in the smoke can reflect the damage. The evidence of long-term and short-term smoking usage and abuse show the extremely dangerous consequences that affect the human body. As horrible as the physical effects of abusing cigarettes are, they are seldom the only side effect a person can experience, there are also several mental effects that are synergistic with a bodily condition . The most common mental affliction seems to be an addiction and the inability to simply stop using or worse experiencing withdrawal symptoms. In a study by Ahrnsbrak et al. (2017) showed spent a lot of time engaging in activities related to alcohol use, continued use despite physical health or emotional problems associated with alcohol use, reduced or eliminated participation in other activities because of alcohol use, and experienced withdrawal symptoms when cutting back or stopping use, adding to the argument that using substances repeatedly and often begin to take a clear toll on the minds ability to wean off an abusive substance.

Identity Issues in The Phantom of the Opera - Literature Essay Samples

In the novel The Phantom of the Opera, by Gaston Leroux, characters Christine and Raoul both suffer from identity issues due to their connection with their childhood. Both characters go through many complicated obstacles trying to figure out who they really are, along with what they really want. However, as a result of the dilemmas that Christine and Raoul both face, they are able to overcome these issues as a result of the troubles the both of them experience throughout the novel. In this paper, I will focus on the identity issues of both characters as well as the connection to their childhood. First, the text will explain how Christine and Raoul have these issues and what factors presented connect to their childhood. Next, the text will explain why there is a connection between the two characters. Finally, the text will compare how the characters overcome the issues and how they both have matured in the end of the novel in comparison to the beginning. An important area to look at within the novel is how each of the characters are introduced, in order to create first impressions. When Leroux first introduces Christine in the novel, he writes, No gala performance ever equalled this one. All the great composers of the day had conducted their own works in turns. Faure and Krauss had sung; and, on that evening, Christine Daae had revealed her true self, for the first time, to the astonished and enthusiastic audience (21). The way that Christine’s character is introduced is interesting because it is such a loud and clear statement about her role in the novel, however, it is almost hypocritical, in a sense, because of the identity issues she faces with herself that makes her so hesitant of her own decisions. The way that Raoul is introduced has the same effect as the way that Christine is introduced. Leroux introduces him and portrays him as a weaker character, such as when he writes, â€Å"He was a little over twenty-one years o f age and looked eighteen. He had a small, fair mustache, beautiful blue eyes and a complexion like a girls. Philippe spoiled Raoul† (24). The way that he is described makes him appear like a weaker character, or even as one that never had the chance to truly mature, because he is seen as the child of the family. Christine and Raoul have known each other since they were children, when he saved her red scarf from the sea. Since they share this connection, they bond further when they become present in each other’s lives again when Raoul returns to the opera house to visit. Another reason that Christine has a strong connection to her childhood is because she was so attached to her father. Shortly before his death he explains to her that, â€Å"every great musician, every great artist received a visit from the Angel at least once in his life. [] Persons who are visited by the Angel quiver with a thrill unknown to the rest of mankind. And they can not touch an instrument, or open their mouths to sing, without producing sounds that put all other human sounds to shame. Then people who do not know that the Angel has visited those persons say that they have genius† (60). Christine hung onto her father’s words, long after he passed away. Because she was so close with her father, sh e could never let go of his promise to her, which is seen when she later explains, â€Å"‘[my father] said, When I am in Heaven, my child, I will send him to you. Well, Raoul, my father is in Heaven, and I have been visited by the Angel of Music.’† (67). This comes back to haunt her when she hears the ‘Angel of Music’ for the first time and forms a bond that closely resembles a father-and-daughter relationship. She begins to listen to everything the voice tells her, and is passionate towards the voice in the most innocent sense. This father-and-daughter relationship can really be observed when the â€Å"Angel of Music† says, â€Å"‘Your soul is a beautiful thing, child,’† (29). The use of this quote ultimately shows her relentless connection to her childhood memories and her need to be cared for. Both Christine and Raoul having identity issues that causes them to hold onto their childhood memories connects the two characters, going even further than their love for each other. The love that they have with each other starts off pretty innocent, until the phantom, Erik, becomes involved and gets insanely jealous. Not only are Christine and Raoul connected through this love triangle involving Erik, but the two of them are almost parallels because they share the same vivid childhood memory of Raoul saving Christine’s scarf when they were children. Christine always held onto to that memory, explaining, â€Å"I have not forgotten the young child who fetched my scarf from the sea† (56). For such an insignificant memory from childhood, she still hung onto the very memory, ultimately proving her relentless grip on her childhood. In the beginning of the novel, Phantom of the Opera, characters Christine and Raoul both very much resemble children. With the various and plentiful amount of quotations that use childish language, along with childish behavior exhibited from both characters, only goes to show where they were mentally. However, as the novel goes on, readers can see connections between the two characters and the bond they share. This bond fulfills its purpose in making both characters truly mature.