Substance Abuse Counselor

Substance abuse has been around for centuries but has only been dealt with over the past 100 years or so.  Both alcohol and marijuana have been used in religious ceremonies and royal courts. However, no one really took substance abuse seriously until the late 1800s to early 19^th century.  Law enforcement did not hold people accountable until after automobiles came along.  In fairness, this could be due to the fact that we have to have a history to look back upon in order to truly learn a lesson.

We have to see patterns.  We have to notate occurrences.  Just as we see them in other life situations and learn from them, we have to see them in substance abuse as well.  Centuries ago, and yes, even now in some cultures, alcohol and marijuana were highly regarded as gifts to the gods and important parts of sacred acts.  What would those people from back then think today?  Would there be an older wise woman off in the corner shaking her head who just knew that special plant was the cause of the fire on her father’s land?  Would that aged grandfather think to himself he was right all along about the cause of the horse and carriage being so damaged one Saturday night by his brother that his beloved horse had to be put down?

It takes a sequence of events that are familiar enough in society to be able to be seen as signals or symptoms.  Experience teaches us and if we are lucky, it is without a fatal error in our lives.  Awareness is the key to learning and history is learning that same awareness in all areas of life and that includes substance abuse.

We may not have seen the neighbor from the next farm as anything other than a harmless old man who just enjoyed the Saturday night barn dances.  Now we can tell that yes, our neighbor has had too much to drink and we will escort him home or offer him the couch for the evening.  We may not have understood how that charming young man could have died so young but now we know the drug that made him seem so calm and serene was actually going straight to his brain and causing the damage that led to his death.  History is learning from what has gone on before and using that knowledge to make things better for the present and the future.  The history of substance abuse has changed laws, made health professionals aware of the reality of drug and alcohol use and perhaps saved more lives than we will ever realize.