Many people today view alcohol and drugs very differently than they were portrayed years ago. In previous years, there were not many drugs used to save lives as many different types of drugs used today. Today there are drugs used for different treatments for all types of diseases. Drugs are a business that earns billions of dollars, both legally and illegally. Society sees drugs in most cases as something that saves lives, helping them for the better, but many do not realize that they are destroying millions of lives. Substance abuse, from alcohol, illegal drugs, over-the-counter medications, and cigarettes, can go from a one-time, one-time thing to becoming an addiction. Substance abuse can be a huge gateway to addiction that can escalate very quickly. Most of the time we convince ourselves that people choose to take these drugs so frequently, that addiction is a voluntary option they make to themselves. Substance abuse and addiction are more than an individual problem, they are a social issue. Substance abuse is defined as dependence on an addictive substance (University of Rochester Medical Center, 2014). The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) found that 8.7% of Americans over the age of 12 are addicted to some type of addictive substance (Caron, 2009). Substance abuse is not about a particular person or group; can vary from any age, race, gender or social class. Many people believe that substance abuse is easy to overcome, when in reality for many addicts it is a difficult to treat disease that could lead to larger problems, such as addiction. There are steps that someone who abuses a substance must go through before becoming addicted... middle of paper... in the individual's life. Addiction is the same whether the drug is alcohol, cocaine, heroin, marijuana or nicotine. All substances allow the individual to experience the thrill of feeling good, away from all the problems that happen in his life. Although each individual has different reasoning behind taking the substance, constantly continuing to use the substance or substances makes the body addicted. Becoming addicted will make you experience uncontrollable cravings and relapses. Your body is at a point where stopping would be very difficult, causing severe physical and mental damage due to withdrawal. “The curious paradox is that when I accept myself as I am, then I can change,” The first step in any process that an addict goes through is to accept that they are exactly that, an addict. Once they accept this, they allow themselves to be open to receiving help (Carl Rogers).