To send a link and summary of this article to a friend, click here . But dependency sneaks up slowly, insidiously, one pill or marijuana cigarette at a time, until a woman is confronted with a problem that she never thought she'd have to handle. Maybe, if we're not careful, even us. But it cuts across all boundaries. You certainly don't have to be a poor urban youth to become hooked on drugs.
Drug use exacts a brutal toll.
It can cost our money, our jobs, our friends, our spouses, our dignity. It can ravage and age our bodies. It can make us stop eating or compel us to eat in binges. It can make us forsake exercise or let our hygiene go. We can lose mental capacity.