Drug abuse, in a nutshell, is using drugs incorrectly and excessively. Drug abuse happens when people become very compulsive in using a certain drug substance even if they recognize that such drug poses negative and dangerous effects. Drug abuse causes drug dependence. When people become physically dependent on a drug, they cannot function without their presence in the body. The excessive physical dependence on drugs leads to complete destruction of health both of the mind and the body, and so drug users when caught must be helped and convinced to undergo a drug abuse treatment program.

Drug abuse treatment can only start when drug users start to acknowledge that they have a problem. When drug users deny that they are in a negative situation, the situation, of course, cannot be overturned into positive. Before, medical professionals considered denial as one of the symptoms of drug abuse. Today, it is not anymore, as dozens of research shows that denial is subjected to the way treatment facilitators and loved ones treat people addicted to the substance. The more empathy and understanding drug abusers draw from people around them, the lesser is the tendency that they show denial.

Drug abuse treatment generally consists of drug clearing, abstinence, and counseling. In drug clearing, different procedures are prescribed to drug users in order to eliminate all the substances from their bodies. During drug clearing, different withdrawal symptoms are also addressed in order to lower the chances of relapsing and of exhibiting negative physical and psychological complications. Abstinence is the longest period in drug abuse treatment. In this stage, drug users are taught how to live without the drug, and how to control the cravings that may arise in the future. While in the process of abstinence, drug abuse treatment patients also receive private and group counseling in order to mold their minds on how to face problems, failures, and issues with a more dynamic and positive attitude and mindset.