David Lovato

12/02/2020
HLTH-1050
Reflection
Looking back on all that we learned throughout this semester I can say that I believe this class
has been long but informational and beneficial in the end. We went over things that I had little
knowledge on and even learned tons of new things that opened my eyes and allowed me to
view the topics discussed in multiple different points of view. We covered a wide variety of topics
in this class from the dangers of the cartel, to heroin and opiate use, to amphetamines and
cocaine, marijuana usage, to tobacco, all the way to the history of alcohol and it’s long past of
usage. Each module in the course had a plethora of concepts from all around the world. It
showed us how society, both present and past, are impacted by the substances covered in each
model. It taught the relationships between countries when it came to certain illegal substances.
It showed us where each substance came from and the history behind the production, usage,
and distribution of illegal substances. I can personally say that after taking this class for the past
couple months and absorbing all the information that has been offered by the course that I am
moving forward with a new mindset on the drugs mentioned in this semester. I feel that this is
largely due to the abundance of valuable knowledge that was provided by the professor, but
also due to the discussions and perspective warping conversations that I participated in with my
fellow peers. I did not know what to expect when signing up for this class, I was honestly just
trying to fulfill my general education requirements so that I could move on to working in graphic
design. However, I’m happy and more than satisfied to have been able to take this class
because of the knowledge I was able to consume about drugs and their multiple uses and
impacts on people’s lives. Before this class I had not known the real dangers of some of the
substances mentioned in the modules. I had not known the effects of these drugs. Nor had I
known the massive impact these substances have on me personally, but also the impact these
substances have worldwide. Before this class I would not have thought that somewhere in the
world people still believe that tobacco and smoking are not related to lung cancer. I would not
have thought that drugs were being made in the forests of South America. I would not have
known about the history of alcohol and the massive impact it had on society in the past, enough
to ensue a pandemic in England. I would not have known all the medicinal properties of
marijuana and the leaps and bounds that it is making in the pharmaceutical world. I would not
have known the drug related crime that is committed daily as a result of mass produced and
illegally trafficked substances by Mexican Cartels. All this information is news to me and I’m glad
that I was able to take this class and realize what is going on in the world outside my small state
of Utah. I think that it is important to do things like this and view things from other perspectives
so that you don’t get trapped with such a narrow state of mind. Going forward from this class I
plan to take the information that I have learned and apply it to my own life. I had little knowledge
on some of the effects of the substances mentioned in the course but now I feel that I am well
versed and confident enough to make decisions surrounding these substances. I will use it to
make optimal choices and make sure to stay away from substances that are harmful to my
health. I will use this newly found information to make sure that i’m leading a life free from these
substances that only work to tie me down and inhibit me. This course does not tie into my other
courses and is not like any other course that I have taken and I am happy about that. I love
learning new things especially on the global scale. I’m thankful for this semester and I look
forward to many more great semesters to come.