Gatehouse Academy has  been warning for some time about the abuse of prescription drugs by young adults.  Partnership for a drug free America recently launched an awareness campaign on abuse of prescription drugs by teens.  Many teens get their fix in their parents medicine cabinet.  Partnership’s T.V. Ads are hard hitting reality checks for parents who leave their prescription drugs lying around.  According to recent statistics from Partnership for a Drug Free America’s annual tracking study:

• 1 in 5 teens has abused a prescription (Rx) pain medication
• 1 in 5 report abusing prescription stimulants and tranquilizers
• 1 in 10 has abused cough medication

Michael Jackson’s devastating early departure from this world may at the very least raise awareness about this new threat to our kids and to anybody who doesn’t understand the fatal consequences of this type of drug addiction.  If you or a loved one needs addiction treatment contact us for a free consultation.

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Prescription drugs and Michael Jackson

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Problem is that everyone else seems to think that’s pretty much impossible. British Liberal Democrats think the plan is completely absurd citing the fact that Britain does not have enough addiction treatment centers to get the job done.

Also according to the article:
“As many as 350,000 heroin and crack cocaine users of working age are receiving state payments, it has emerged. The government’s welfare reform bill will require all of them to undergo medical assessment and treatment or lose financial support.”

The number however may be as many as 400,000 drug addicts receiving these types of benefits with at least 8,000 more waiting for them.

However, treating these people without proper facilities remains to be seen. There is simply nowhere to put all of these drug addicts to ensure that they get proper care. Some may require dual diagnosis treatment as well.

Others say that you cannot force an addict into treatment and just expect them to completely change their lives; they have to do it willingly.
The article states:
“The welfare reform bill also contains provisions enabling a secretary of state to introduce similar mandatory treatment regulations to those who misuse alcohol.”

So the plan is not just meant for those using hard drugs, it’s also a plan to help UK citizens break free from all types of addiction.

This article in The Guardian is just another example of how drug addiction really is a wide spread epidemic in the world today. It shows that no government has found a way to deal with it yet effectively. But can people be forced by the government into treatment? Or will that just make relapse that much more expensive for governments.

If a person is not ready to get off drugs, the government surely cannot force them.

If you or a loved one need help with addiction treatment call us and we can help.

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The attempt to solve drug use in the UK

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A&E show, The Cleaner

The kits contain a drug called naloxone (Narcan) which is used in ambulances and hospitals to reduce opiate overdose. Overdoses kill about 22,000 Americans each year and most are completely by accident. Most of them come from mixing substances. That was the cause of death of actor Heath Ledger and Anna Nicole Smith.
17 states having in place what the Chicago Alliance is doing. And city health departments in New York City, Boston, Baltimore and San Francisco have similar programs. However, many do not see Anti-overdose kits and their distribution to be the answer to the drug overdose problem or even dual diagnosis treatment.
There is a very real possibility that the kits could be being misused because they are out of the hands of the professionals that were meant to be using them, like EMTs and doctors.

Here is a quote from the article regarding misuse issues: “A recent study published in the journal Addiction found that after naloxone training, addicts did just as well as medical professionals at addiction treatment centers at recognizing the symptoms of overdose and determining when to use the medication. And addiction experts say the experience of coming back from an overdose is frightening enough — not to mention often accompanied by severe withdrawal symptoms — that few addicts would consider using naloxone as an insurance policy to justify taking more drugs.”

Is the medication effective and fulfilling its purpose? Yes it absolutely is. But it makes one think if giving addicts an out if they overdose is the right answer. Does it make them feel as if they can continue using? What do you think about DIY anti-overdose kits?

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DIY anti-overdose kits

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Governments’ Drug-Abuse Costs Hit $468 Billion, Study Says

The report was developed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration ( SAMHSA ) based on the 2006 and 2007 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health ( NSDUH ).

Here are the report’s most notable findings:

• Vermont had the nation’s highest incidence rate of marijuana use among people aged 12 and older ( 2.5 percent ) while Utah had the lowest ( 1.6 ) percent.

• The District of Columbia had the nation’s highest rate of past year cocaine use among those aged 12 and older ( 5.1 percent ) while Mississippi had the lowest ( 1.6 percent ).

• Utah had the nation’s lowest rate of current underage drinking ( 17.3 percent ) while North Dakota had the highest ( 40 percent ).

• Tennessee had the nation’s highest rate of people aged 18 and older experiencing a major depressive episode in the past year ( 9.8 percent ) while Hawaii had the lowest ( 5.0 percent )

According to the press release for the study, here is another interesting finding:

“Among those aged 12 and older, Iowa had less than half the current illicit drug use rate of Rhode Island ( 5.2 percent vs. 12.5 percent ) – yet Iowa’s population aged 12 and older also had one of the nation’s highest levels of people experiencing alcohol dependence or abuse in the past year ( 9.2 percent).”

The report is an important indication that it really does not matter where you live because every state experiences its own set of problems and needs addiction treatment centers.

This report just goes to show how much of an impact addiction is having on our country as a whole and there may be more need for dual diagnosis treatment than we think.

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New report breaks down substance abuse by state

The Army now hopes to get offenders into treatment. They are staring their crackdown slowly, but getting started is half the battle. “That could mean increased inspections of barracks rooms and more visits by leaders to soldiers’ off-post homes to make cursory evaluations of their living conditions.”

Soldiers who are having urine tests coming back positive can soon expect stricter penalties. The problem with substance abuse has come to light after the Army Vice Chief of Staff Peter Chiarelli made an internal method. This is being combined with a larger initiative launched in April to look into the suicide rates of soldiers.

The problem is, according to the article, is that soldiers who are testing positive in multiple urine tests are not being referred for treatment. Instead only about 70 percent of those tested go on and receive treatment for one addiction, or dual diagnosis treatment.

Positive urine test results are growing steadily. And alcohol continues to be a problem for soldiers. In a Department of Defense study from 2005, it found that nearly 25 percent of soldiers are heavy drinkers.

Alcohol is among the reasons why a soldier may commit suicide. Along with other factors such as relationship problems, financial hardship or pending legal action.

“The incidence of alcohol abuse is detected differently than that for drugs, usually by military police or local police outside post, for driving under the influence or in observations by peers.”

So soldiers could go without being found out that they indeed do have a problem for longer periods of time.

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Army cracks down as drug, alcohol cases rise

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Addiction, Recovery, and Yoga

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