Drugs

Abstract:
Nowadays, drugs have spread in the whole world and people are
dying day after day by using drugs. Drugs have been used among
different kind of age and we should create awareness among common
individuals regarding the abusive usage of drugs and how drugs can
affect their daily routine.
The abusive usage of drugs mainly results in negative outcomes such as
aggressive reaction and might lead a person to adapt unethical means to
quench his thirst for drugs such as; he might start stealing from other
people as addictive drugs are very expensive, he might adopt the illegal
ways to get his hands on drugs or in worst case scenario, might harm
someone while on drugs. Moreover, I will share what is the role of
hospitals in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in provision of rehabilitation
facilities to people who are suffering from drug addiction. As well as,
the consequences that drug users might have to face, damage to their
body and moreover what might happen when they are seized by the
anti-narcotic.

The main thing that matters is prevention of buying & selling of drugs
by creating awareness among people and explaining the expected
consequences.
The methodology for creating this project is reading online articles,
information given on websites of relevant authorities and to use the
information available over the internet. I will be using literature based
approaches, secondary analysis and combining both qualitative and
quantitative data.

Rationale:
The purpose of choosing this topic is to focus on the collateral damage
of drugs and its effects on the users, their families, their environment
and the punishments they might face according to law enforcement
authorities in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Moreover the techniques used
for the treatment of people who are addicted and what kind of facilities
they provide. Furthermore I could suggest some improvements to fill
the gaps so that this drug factor can be eradicated permanently to
provide a better, clean & safe environment for our future generations.

Moreover, serving our community by implementing new strategies and

revise our education system. It should be the sole priority of our
Government to create awareness starting from the basic levels of
education. The main topics covered in this project are types of drugs
used in Saudi Arabia and why our youth uses them, the rehabilitation
facilities provided, the effectiveness of therapies offered by these
facilities.

Literature Review:
According to the information given in articles, news columns and
blogs over the internet I found that abusive usage of drugs poses a
serious threat to mental and physical health of an individual.
Excessive use can lead to extreme aggressiveness and numerous
psychological disorders.
When the drugs users use the same equipment such as the stitch for
using cocaine, so when they share it could cause to them different kinds
of diseases for instance, HIV. If you take cocaine, it is possible to die

of an overdose from over stimulating the heart and nervous system,

which can lead to a heart attack. (UK, 2011)1

On the other hand drugs have a very deep impact on nervous

system and metabolism, when a drug addict is going through a
medical operation, anesthetics and pain killers have no effect on
his body. (Notes, 2012)2
But there are rehabilitation facilities here in Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia which follow the same standard procedures like all over the
world. The social learning model uses group therapy and peer
guidance to encourage soberness. (Van Voorhis P, 2009)3
Saudi Care for Rehabilitation & Health Care is the main facility located
north of Riyadh and headquarters in different cities of Kingdom.
(Healthcare, 2013)4

The effects of drugs, www.nhs.uk 21 September 2011

Nicotine's Multiple Effects on the Brain's Reward System Drive Addiction," NIDA Notes 17-6.

Van Voorhis, P., Braswell, M., &ump; Lester, D. (2009).

4
http://www.en.sccksa.org/

Methodology:
My methodology for creating this project is reading online articles,
information given on websites of relevant authorities and to use the
information available over the internet. I will be using literature based
approaches, secondary analysis and combining both qualitative and
quantitative data.

Expected findings:
On the other hand, variety of drugs has been used among different ages
and we should create awareness among people about this social and
environmental issue. Therefore, this paper will examine the side effects
of using drugs, giving the Government of Saudi Arabia suggestions and
productive measures to eradicate this negative factor from the society.
Moreover, by covering all the topics mentioned we will be able to
explore the standard procedures and techniques that Saudi
Rehabilitation facilities adopt in order to treat their patients and
whether these techniques are beneficial enough.

Introduction

Drugs
Drugs considered time bomb in the heart of environment, culture
and society which poses a serious threat to economy and progress of
any country. Unfortunately in the recent past, drugs have spread in the
whole world and people are dying day after day by using drugs. Drugs
have been used among different kind of age and we should create
awareness among common individuals regarding the abusive usage of
drugs and how drugs can affect their daily routine. According to a
survey, USA has the highest number of drugs users worldwide. (Global
Drug survey, 2014)
The abusive usage of drugs mainly results in negative outcomes such as
aggressive reaction and might lead a person to adapt unethical means to
quench his thirst for drugs such as; one might start stealing from other
people as addictive drugs are very expensive, might adopt the illegal

ways to get his hands on drugs or in worst case scenario, might harm
someone while on drugs.
Its an alarming situation that nowadays we see our youth ruining their
time and energy for the sake unworthy pleasures which have absolutely
zero benefit. I became interested when I started researching about drug
usage among youth in Saudi Arabia. In this research I will share few
suggestions that will help us to go deal with this problem without
facing any difficulties.
The most alarming thing is that, now people dont need much sources
or contacts to buy drugs. Nowadays there are online agents in some
countries who can provide you drugs. So the drug is in everyones
approach easily. Buying drugs online is as much easy now as to buy an
online movie. According to a survey USA has the most number of
online drug buyers followed by UK and the most commonly bought
drug is marijuana and cocaine. (Drugs survey, n.d)
The purpose of choosing this topic is to focus on the collateral damage
of drugs and its effects on the users, their families, their environment
and the punishments they might face according to law enforcement

authorities in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Moreover the techniques used

for the treatment of people who are addicted and what kind of facilities
they provide. Furthermore, I could suggest some improvements to fill
the gaps so that this drug factor can be eradicated permanently to
provide a better, clean & safe environment for our future generations.
The main thing that matters is prevention of buying & selling of drugs
by creating awareness among people and explaining the expected
consequences.

History & Background

Since the dawn of history, mankind has found ways to relieve the daily
grind of life. In ancient Mesopotamia (the area now known as Iraq),
agriculture slowly began to flourish, and a large network of city states
started to gain prominence. With the cultivation of wheat and barley
came another product: beer. 5Humans have used drugs of one sort or
another for thousands of years. Egyptian documents show that opium
was used to soothe a crying baby. Wine was used at least from the time
of the early Egyptians; narcotics from 4000 B.C.; and homeopathic use
of marijuana has been dated to 2737 B.C. in China, but not until the
19th cent. A.D, were the active substances in drugs extracted. There
followed a time when some of these newly discovered substances
morphine, laudanum, cocaine were completely unregulated and
prescribed freely by physicians for a wide variety of ailments. 6Romans
embraced these drugs for recreational use because of the ease of
obtaining them through trade. During the American Civil War,
morphine was used freely, and wounded veterans returned home with
5

http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/science/drug-addiction-drug-abuse-history.html

http://drugabuse.com/library/history-of-drug-abuse/

their kits of morphine and hypodermic needles. Opium dens flourished.

by the early 1900s there were an estimated 250,000 addicts in the
United States. (Olson, 1999)

As I have already mentioned that prevention is the key to reduce drug

abuse, now I would like to further add some suggestions and solutions
to drug abuse. The main solution is to avoid such gatherings where
there is abusive usage of drugs, but somehow if one is engaged in such
activities, then comes the role of rehabilitation facilities.
7

Rehabilitation facilities here in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia follow

the same standard procedures like all over the world. The social
learning model uses group therapy and peer guidance to encourage
soberness. (Van Voorhis P, 2009)8
Creating awareness is also very important because most of the people
are not aware of the side affects and dangers drug abuse poses. We can
modify the basic education levels in order to educate our young
generations about the consequences of drug abuse. The main
7
8

http://www.en.sccksa.org/modules/publisher/item.php?itemid=6
Van Voorhis, P., Braswell, M., &ump; Lester, D. (2009).

rehabilitation centre of Kingdom is, Saudi Care for Rehabilitation &

Health Care is the main facility located north of Riyadh and established
headquarters in different cities of Kingdom and it is lead by Al Turaiki.
(Healthcare, 2013)9.
"We will need to build an Islamically grounded 12-step culture and
meetings to support patients post-discharge," said Al-Turaiki. His
company has plans to build a public-private 250-bed treatment hospital
and referral centers not just in Saudi but throughout the Middle East.
(Magazine, 2010)

http://www.en.sccksa.org/

All the mentioned remedies and solutions are not enough as there are
some limitations too such as the willingness of an addict to be treated.
Cost is also an issue some private facilities are affordable and others
are very expensive. This makes them unreachable to many who wish to
be part of that particular facility.
One of the primary components of drug rehab is a connection with the
peer group and building communality within the program. The location
of treatment center might be far away. The other limitations include
availability of time and friendly staff.

Body
10

The types of drug mainly found in Kingdom are ecstasy,

amphetamine, cocaine, marijuana, liquor, hashish, heroine and alcohol

products.
These drugs are mainly used by younger generations and in remote
areas of kingdom where there is not much attention by law enforcement
authorities. Moreover the youth engages in such foul activities due to
lack of awareness about the future consequences of drug abuse. There
are numerous reasons behind falling prey to drug abuse such as peer
pressure, addiction in family background, mental illness. (Baker,
2013)11
For my research, I did intervires for this purpose. I choose totally
random people and asked them different questions about drugs.
Obviously no one said that they use drugs, but most of them mentioned
that someone among their family or friends are drug addicts. When I
asked them why and how do people get addicted, around 70% said that
they people start drugs only for fun at first. Their friends or someone
10

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/07/23/middle.east.drugs.amphetamine/

11

http://world.time.com/2013/10/29/conservative-saudi-arabia-is-becoming-a-hotbed-for-amphetamines/

offers them to try it once and a person thinks to himself that im going to
try it only once, I will not get addicited to it. That one try takes a person
to the darkness of drugs use. (Personal interviews, 2014)
Other main reasons are the company one adopts to hangout with, if one
of the group member is an addict he forces other members to at least try
the drugs once and when one tries them, then he falls prey and makes it
his habbit.
The data collected over the internet shows the same trends of why the
youth is involving in such activities despite the strict law and
regulations because they dont have any platforms to show their
talent.12
According to my personal research and analysis I have come to the
point that if we educate our people properly and provide basic
necessities like employment then drug abuse can be prevented.
Although the Government has taken this matter very seriously by
devising strict laws against drug trafficing and selling but there are
some gaps that need to be filled. According to a short interview with
one of the person who has been addict, it came to my knowledge that
12

http://www.vice.com/read/drug-dealing-in-saudi-arabia-sounds-like-a-very-stressful-business

most of the youth just uses drugs to soothe their brains and relax from
the stress created by the society, schools and other instituions and other
reasons consist celebrations, parties, relieved from problems and the
impacts of foreign media.

The Reahbilitation Facilities:

There are many services situated in different cities of Kingdom and
they provide the facilities like all the other countries.

13

In February,

2011 Arab News, Dr. Khaled Al-Mirghalani with Saudi Arabias

Ministry of Health, states the Kingdom currently has 18 hospitals that,
cater for mental patients and drug addicts. The Ministry of Health
also plans to build another large (500 bed) mental health hospital in
Riyadh with facilities to treat patients with drug addictions.

14

Saudi

Care for Rehabilitation & Health Care is the main facility located north
of Riyadh and headquarters in different cities of Kingdom. It comprises
of 50000 square meters and acquired the necessary the licenses and
procure plots of land with wide enough areas in different locations
13

http://alcoholrehab.com/international-rehab/alcohol-and-drug-rehab-saudi-arabia/

14

http://www.en.sccksa.org/

across the Kingdom for the purpose of establishing company-owned

treatment and rehab centers all over the Kingdoms regions. Moreover,
it aims to set up major centers specialized in preventive, curative and
rehabilitative care by investing in projects backed by strategic and
professional services. The strategic goals of the Saudi Care Company
are: to treat the drug addicts according to the type of drug they are
addicted to i.e. categorizing the drug addicts into category and dealing
them accordingly; to improve their physical and mental health so that
they can live a normal life, like a common man, to treat and rehab
people who agonize from drug addiction; to help them personal
problems which maybe a cause for them to take drugs; to provide the
best ever service possible by a well-structured plan which will give the
most efficient results; do prevention measures so that people dont get
addicted to drugs; to give plans for both drug consumers and their
families; and to manage generalized schemes that enable it to meet the
actual needs.

Facilities Provided:
The services provided are very curative and helpful these include:
Establishment/Managing of new hospitals, clinics or rehabs.
Establishment/Managing of treatment and rehab centers for
different addicts like drug, alcohol and smokers.
Establishment/Managing nutrition centers, fitness clubs, health
centers and gyms.
Purchasing of different medical equipment related to rehab
including drugs and medications which will help them ease the
addiction of drugs.
Purchasing different health and fitness supplies which will help
addicts to be physically fit again.
Sports facilities should be provided because results have shown
that those who indulge themselves in sports, are less likely to get
addicted to any addiction.
Psychiatrist should be provided because at times some addictions
are more psychological than physical.

Bibliography
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This reference is written in medical point of view and it deal with
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common diseases like flu, cold, cough etc. and how to deal with them
and how the spread/happen.
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mentioned and how to deal with them and how they affect us.
Angell, M. (2004). The truth about the drug companies: how they
deceive us and what to do about it. New York: Random House.
This book is basically about drugs used in pharmaceutical companies
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mentioning cannibals in this book.
In this book, they also wrote a detailed explanation of different drugs,
that how a person gets addicted to them, why a person gets addicted to
them, what are the mental and physical effects of these drugs.
Baker, A. (2013, october 29). Conservative Saudi Arabia Is Becoming
a Hotbed for Amphetamines. Retrieved july 1, 2014, from
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In this article, the rising populations of Saudi Arab who are getting
addict to drugs are mentioned. Different facts and figures of drug
users in Saudi Arab are provided.

I used this article to provide the information regarding the rising

number of drug users in KSA and how they are effecting the society
and why and how their number is increasing day by day.
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Treatment Methods. Addiction Treatment.
In this article, the rising populations of Saudi Arab who are getting
addict to drugs are mentioned. Different facts and figures of drug
users in Saudi Arab are provided. Also the rehab of drug addiction is
mentioned and how KSA is learning from USA to combat drug and
treatment of drugs.
I used this article to provide the information regarding the rising
number of drug users in KSA and how they are affecting the society
and why and how their number is increasing day by day and how KSA
is trying to learn from USA to combat drug users.

Notes, N. (2012). Nicotine's Mutliple Effects on the Brain's Reward

System Drive Addiction. 17-6.
This reference is about how people start using drugs and they start to
live in a fantasy world where they consider that drugs are the only
problem to their solution but in real, drugs are dragging them even
into a deeper hole of problems.
I used this article to provide information regarding the negative effects
of drugs on human body and mind. Information like how a drug
addicted creates a fantasy world around him and considers drugs as a
tension reliever is also mentioned.

 Olson, K. R. (1999). Poisoning & drug overdose (3rd ed.). Stamford,

CT: Appleton & Lange.
This source is about different kinds of poisons and drugs which are
also a poison itself. Different kinds of poisons are mentioned even
those which a person consume accidently like basic household
cleaners which are very unsafe to consume. Apart from that, drugs
overdose are also mentioned.
In this reference different kinds of overdose of drugs like cocaine,
marijuana, xenox and other pills are mentioned and how to deal with
them and how they affect us.

Philip Bean, T. N. (2009, May 7). Drug Abuse treatment. Retrieved 7

1, 2014, from http://www.questia.com: http://www.questia.com
This website is basically about different types of drugs, their effects,
their side effects and how to treat them and how to get rid of their
addiction.
In this reference different kinds of overdose of drugs like cocaine,
marijuana, xenox and other pills and meth etc are mentioned and how
to deal with them and how they affect us and how to treat them.

Sherman. (2007, october 1). Impacts of Drugs. Retrieved july 1, 2014,

from www.drugabuse.gov: http://www.grugabuse.gov/newsevents/nida -notes/2007/10/impacts-drugs-neurotransmission

This website is basically about different types of drugs, their effects,

their side effects and how to treat them and how to get rid of their
addiction and the impact of drugs on social and personal life.
In this reference different kinds of overdose of drugs like cocaine,
marijuana, xenox and other pills and meth etc are mentioned and how
to deal with them and how they affect us and how to treat them.

UK, N. (2011, September 21). The Effects of Drugs. Retrieved June

2014,

from NHS.UK: http://www.nhs.uk

This website is basically about different types of drugs, their effects,

their side effects and how to treat them and how to get rid of their
addiction.
In this reference different kinds of overdose of drugs like cocaine,
marijuana, xenox and other pills and meth etc are mentioned and how
to deal with them and how they affect us and how to treat them.

Van Voorhis P, B. M. (2009). Correctional Counseling and

Rehabilitation. In Correctional Counseling and Rehabilitation, 7th ed.
Cincinnati.
This book is basically about different types of drugs, their effects,
their side effects and how to treat them and how to get rid of their
addiction.
This reference largely deals with different types of drugs and their
Correctional Counseling and Rehabilitation.

 DRUGS SURVEY. (n.d.). Issuu. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from

http://issuu.com/mixmagfashion/docs/mm_may13_drug_survey?
e=1541988/2105009#search
This is an online survey conducted in which many people participated.
Most important questions in this survey were the types of drugs used,
age of drug users, their nationality and their approach.
I used this survey to know which type of drug is most commonly used
and how to people approach to different drugs.
Global Drug Survey. (n.d.). The 2014 findings |. Retrieved July 6,
2014, from http://www.globaldrugsurvey.com/facts-figures/the-globaldrug-survey-2014-findings/
This survey only shows the countries in which drugs are most
commonly used and the kind of drugs used in that country.
I used this survey to know which country has the highest number of
drug users and what kind of drugs they are addicted.