Addiction and abuse and the need for rehabilitation and to what degree of rehabilitation is needed, have long been an involved and much discussed topic for many in the field of drug abuse and addiction treatment. Drug Abuse or substance abuse is often defined as the continued use of any substance like cocaine, heroin methamphetamine, and prescription drugs for non medical reasons or outside the directions given by the medical practitioner. Drug addiction or alcohol addiction is defined by many as the repetitive use of a substance after negative consequences have been experienced.

There have been many ideologies surrounding the debate on what is drug abuse and what is drug addiction. Drug abuse leads to drug addiction and can destroy life of an addict and shatter the lives of those who love him or her. Facts are those that argue the difference between drug abuse and drug addiction often times have no real clue. The mental health classification does not recognize drug abuse and now references this as substances abuse, and has many complex classifications of drug addiction. It’s almost as if experts are attempting to convolute the issue surrounding drug addiction.

Addiction abuse can be found to contrary or conflicting terms. When a person says “he is suffering from addiction abuse” they most often mean the person is addicted to something and needs help. However, in the world drug and alcohol recovery, there is a promoted difference between addiction and abuse with regards to usage patterns and patterns and acknowledged dependence.