Rule Hibernia

Diagnosis of abuse, treatment of abuse, and psychological and physical side effects of anabolic steroid abuse

The use of anabolic steroids in the sports industry continues to be a major problem for athletes, sports teams, and sports organizations. That has forced organizations in charge of maintaining standards in sports to enact very strict rules and laws to ensure that users of steroids never get a chance to compete in legitimate sports. In sports steroids are referred to by a rather nice name – performance-enhancing drugs. When someone takes these drugs, their bodies become stimulated to abnormal levels so that they have abnormal aerobic capacity, power, and muscle growth. This gives such athletes unfair advantage on the playfield against their competitors. In the next section, I am going to look at how steroids affect the body and the effects they produce.

Side effects of steroids

With steroids running in your body, the body is stimulated to produce excess testosterone hormones, something that affect almost every organ system in your body. Some of the effects that steroids produce are simply reversible when one cuts consumption. However, other effects are irreversible and even get worse even after one cuts consumption. When steroids are consumed in excess quantities by men, they cause suppression of normal testosterone production within the body. As a result, one’s testes start to shrink, leading to accompanied decrease in sperm count. One also develops baldness and breasts. The development of breasts is referred to as gynecomastia in medicine. Females usually develop enlarged clitoris and breasts, reduced body fat, and general masculinization. These changes may be permanent or they may subside slightly when one stops using steroids.

There are also life-threatening side effects such as stroke, heart attack, liver cancer, and blood clots among others.

How do health care professionals diagnose anabolic steroid abuse and addiction?

In a structured setting such as a college, professional sports, and high schools, it is easy to diagnose steroids abuse among those involved because drug tests are performed on a regular basis. The problem is that most people who actually abuse steroids are never in such structured settings and random testing of steroids doesn’t happen at random. Doctors are only able to make a diagnosis when they come across a patient who has some of the side effects of steroids.

When someone is diagnosed with steroid use, the doctor will usually give them the chance to explore the various treatment options available just like they do with any other addictive drugs. However, the patient will be required to take the first step in the treatment process where they admit that they have a problem for which they need help. They must show willingness to accept treatment and professional intervention.

What is the treatment for anabolic steroid abuse and addiction?

The main treatment option for steroid use is counseling. The person in question must get a support structure in form of family and friends to help them get through their addiction problem. Suicidal thoughts and depression usually happen when one stops using steroids and when they do, being close to friends, family, or support group can be very helpful.

In extreme cases, the doctor may have to limit your ability to anabolen bestellen by having you committed to a facility.

Comments are closed.