Drug Addiction Stories & Info

The ever-increasing prescription drug problem in America and across the globe is now gaining media attention. The American Federal Government recently launched a substance abuse prevention plan to evaluate ways to decrease the number of prescription drug deaths and addictions. Narconon has been reporting on the growing prescription drug problem for years, and has looked closely into the possible causes and solutions.

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Causes

• Stress and anxiety: These are actually growing health concerns on their own. Many people suffer from anxiety and stress daily. At times, it can be overwhelming. The solution for many is to take prescription medications, but there are other effective ways of dealing with stress. Bio-feedback has been proven effective against anxiety, and is completely drug-free. Herbs, such as Kava and Valerian Root work well for many people to relieve stress. Certain combinations of vitamins have also proven to work against stress and anxiety. At Narconon, a vitamin regimen is part of their drug-free rehabilitation program.  Meditation is another good option.

• Experimentation: Young people especially begin taking prescription drugs that they find in their parent’s drug cabinets. They also attend pharm parties, where a group of young people get together and dump a random sampling of various drugs into a bowl, then consume some of them. This often leads to substance abuse, if not death. Education is the key to curbing such dangerous experimentation and lowering the incidence of substance abuse. Schools, parents, and churches all need to be teaching instead of simply preaching about drugs. They need to know and not just “hear” that drugs can be deadly. Narconon offers a variety of educational material on drug information.

• Misinformation: Drug companies have been misleading the public for years. Only recently has the American government begun to act upon it. People get the impression, through advertisements from the pharmaceutical companies, that prescription drugs are safe. As good as it is that governments speak out against the misleading information, but parents need to do the same. The public needs to take some responsibility as well. It has long been known that one can’t believe everything they see or hear, and so it is with television and magazine advertisements. People also sometimes believe without questioning, that if a drug has been prescribed by a doctor, it must be safe.

• “Do as I say, not as I do”: Society, in general, has come to depend a lot on drugs, prescription drugs and OTC. It seems there is a pill for everything, so many kids see family members and friends take a variety of pills for a variety of ailments, real or imagined. Naturally, they begin to think that pills are the answer for everything, and also that drugs are harmless. Not only in America, but many places across the globe, people need to rethink their habits. Kids see and imitate what adults do, including relying on pills and medications for every problem and ailment. Parents can preach to kids not to take drugs, but what if they are showing them something different?

• Self Medicating: Once people have a prescription from a doctor, some begin to accept it as carte blanche, and begin to self medicate and over medicate. Many overdoses are caused by people taking too much of a prescription drug, whether by choice or accident. If the prescriptions says to take one tablet every six hours, but the patient takes one every hour, that is self (and over) medication. Doctors and Pharmacists need to be more diligent on warning patients of the dangers of prescription drugs… especially if there are several drugs involved. The little labels on the bottles just don’t seem to be doing the trick.

• Over Prescribing by Doctors: Many want to avoid this, the leading cause of the prescription drug epidemic. The plain truth is that prescription narcotics, sedatives and stimulants are far too easy to get. For some, getting high never has to involve buying drugs on the street, because they can get all they want from doctors. Some licensed doctors are actually known by addicts as a method of getting opioids and other harmful drugs. Doctor shopping is also too easy, and too common. If one doctor won’t provide the drug, the individual simply goes from one to the other until they find a source for the drugs they want. In some cases, people will go to one doctor for pain medication, and another doctor for sedatives. These are well known scenarios explained by the people who have actually done it.

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To End the Drug Epidemic Requires Drastic Changes

Ending the prescription drug epidemic will not be quick and easy. There will need to be some drastic measures taken in order to succeed. Prescription drugs are far too easy to get, and there are too many reasons why people want them, whether legitimate or not. There are alternatives to prescription drugs. Herbal medicine, acupressure, acupuncture and other methods of treatment have been known and successful for centuries. Most prescription drugs are chemical mixtures created by drug manufacturers. We put these chemicals into our bodies too easily without considering the consequences. Alternatives to prescription drugs need to be considered, and soon.

Since 1966, Narconon offers an effective drug-free alternative to drug addiction. Either to treat a prescription opiate addiction, for the recovery from any substance abuse or for methamphetamine addiction treatment, Narconon has successfully helped thousands of people around the world to beat their addiction. For more information about what you need to do to be able to participate in the Narconon drug rehab program, please call 1-877-782-7409 .

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I sat there with the other inmates and watched her walk out the door. People come and go when you are in the tank. I had been here myself this time about seven or eight weeks. I had heard all of the stories, nothing was ever anyone’s fault. I certainly played the blame game myself, having been an LVN and losing my license and control of my life to my addiction to heroin. 

She was different, though. She was actually a few years older than me. She did not blame society, other people or anyone but herself for what she had done. Her name was Nora and she also held her head high, saying she would do the same thing again. When her story got out around the tank, some people scoffed. Most of us who had been in repeatedly knew the score. She was definitely a different breed.

I stole drugs from the clinic where I worked. She wrote several hot checks. I stole prescription sheets from the doctor I worked for and wrote bogus ‘scripts for non-existent patients, then traded them off for heroin. She fed her kids with the checks she wrote at grocery stores. She said it was wrong, but when you have a sick kid, you can not work because of his medical care schedule and no one is around to help, you do what you have to when it comes to your kids.  It was her choice.  She made no excuses. 

I stole to feed my addiction. She stole to feed her kids. I blamed everything else. She blamed herself. I looked around at those of us in the tank who had blamed exes, parents, friends, bosses. She quietly went about her business the few days she was there reading. One of the long term women began picking on her. She ignored it. When a young girl came in terrified and was picked on, however, the mama bear in her came out and she stood up to the cell block bully bitch and would not back down. The bully went to the guard to complain and was shocked when the rest of the women stood up for Nora. They were sick of the bully behavior themselves.

When Nora left, those of us left behind had the usual feelings of jealousy, wishful thinking and resentment mixed with being happy for her. I watched her leave, took a breath and went over to the phone and called my own mother collect. “Mom, it’s me. When I get out next week, will you drive me over to the rehab center? It is my fault I am in here and on drugs. I want to get cleaned up for good this time.”

I had forgotten this feeling. One of freedom and euphoria without drugs. A feeling of remembering every part of the day and evening without blackouts associated with it. My experience with drugs is parallel to the ups and downs of Mother Nature.

I had been a pretty normal teenager. Stayed out of trouble, decent grades in high school and enjoying extra curricular activities such as sports and drama club. Then I got into the college of my dreams but at the same time, my dad died. Suddenly I was facing financial problems because my mom was barely getting by with two more kids left at home. There was no life insurance, my dad worked at a factory.

I worked two jobs and went to school. Then one night I took off and went to a party with a friend from Theater class. That was the night I tried heroin for the first time and the night I my life changed for the second time.

Life during that time was like Mother Nature: storm warnings, dark clouds, volcano eruptions. I was missing class and missing work but barely made it through my freshman year with Cs and Ds. Over the summer, my mother caught the changes and went Hurricane Mom on me. She told me that she was not going to let me throw my life away and that I owed it to myself and to the memory of my dad to get help. She got me into drug rehab.

The treatment program was a God send. The counseling not only helped me work out the tools I needed to get clean but it also helped me with the grief I still felt over my dad dying. I spent most of the summer in the program and after talking to my mom, decided to finish college locally so I could live at home and have my family’s support.

I am a junior now. My sophomore year was a lot easier. Sure, it would have been nice to stay at the college that had been my first choice but in the end, I know that being with Mom and my brother and sister is best for now. My mom and I have long talks and she is my best friend.

These days I feel like someone who has been released. I still miss my dad but I know that he is up there somewhere watching over me. My dad loved the ocean and when I walk along the coastline not too far from our home, I know he is out there watching over me, my mom and my brother and sister. I feel the calm presence of the sea and I remember the times my dad used to run along the shoreline and we would along behind him. I love being drug free again and feeling those old feelings and memories.