Each substance variety causes its own set of symptoms, and users share some common behaviors. Abusing a substance, legal or illegal, can result in a number of negative consequences. Each legal and illegal substance carries its own set of dangers. Used in excess or combined with other substances, they can cause irreversible damage or even death. But health isn't the only thing at risk.
Drug abuse can have serious legal consequences.
You might be arrested, put on trial and sentenced to anything from probation to imprisonment. The penalties vary from case to case, but any such experience would surely be embarrassing, expensive and inconvenient. When substance abuse reaches the point of addiction, it is no longer a bad habit that must be broken. A dependency this strong requires intervention and treatment to overcome. But the abuser first must come to grips with the reality of the addiction and admit that he or she needs help.