Talking about drugs

Drug use can be tricky to talk about. It’s a personal and sometimes sensitive issue. Understanding drugs and why people might use them can help start an open and supportive conversation.

What is a drug?
A drug is any substance that, when taken or administered into the body, has a physiological effect.

A psychoactive or psychotropic drug affects mental processes and can influence a person’s mood, behaviour, cognition and perception.

What is a drug?

A drug is any substance that, when taken or administered into the body, has a physiological effect.

A psychoactive or psychotropic drug affects mental processes and can influence a person’s mood, behaviour, cognition and perception.

Why do people use drugs?

People use drugs for many reasons; to relax, for enjoyment, to be part of a group, out of curiosity, as a coping mechanism or to minimise physical and/or psychological pain and trauma.

They use drugs for the benefits (perceived and/or experienced), not for the potential harm. This applies to both legal and illegal drugs.

Many Australians take at least one psychoactive drug on a regular basis – they might take medication (i.e. over-the-counter or via a prescription), drink alcohol, smoke tobacco or use an illegal drug. All drugs have the potential to cause harm. As use increases, so does the potential for harm.

Types of drug use

These are some of the different categories of drug use. People may use drugs in one or several categories, and one stage will not inevitably lead to another.

Experimental use is when a person tries a drug once or twice out of curiosity.
Recreational use is when a person chooses to use a drug for enjoyment, particularly to enhance a mood or social occasion.
Situational use is when a drug is used to cope with the demands of particular situations.
Intensive use or ‘bingeing’ is when a person consumes a heavy amount of drugs over a short period of time, and/or uses continuously over a number of days or weeks.
Dependent use is when a person becomes dependent on a drug after prolonged or heavy use over time. They feel a need to take the drug consistently in order to feel normal or to avoid uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms.

While drug use can be harmful it does not automatically lead to a dependence, many people only use drugs once or infrequently.