Cocaine Has Destructive Physical Effects Over and Above the Potential to Create Addiction

Posted on February 8, 2012 by narconon

Cocaine Causes Physical Effects

It’s well known that repeated use of cocaine can turn a person into an addict. What some people may not realize is that the drug itself has harsh physical effects. In fact, these effects can be so strenuous as to result in the prompt death of the user.

This potential was largely unknown until the 1986 death of Len Bias, a healthy young basketball player who had just been drafted by the Boston Celtics. Perhaps celebrating the accomplishment, Len was using cocaine with friends when he died suddenly from heart problems. Before this time, little was known about the stresses this strong stimulant places on the heart.

Any stimulant increases heart rate and body temperature. Cocaine abuse also constricts the blood vessels. This combination of faster-beating heart and constricted veins and arteries can place so much pressure on the heart that it can fail. This pressure can also lead to a stroke.

Preventing Physical Damage May Require Cocaine Addiction Rehab

If a person were to ingest cocaine, which sometimes is done, it can constrict the circulation in the intestines so much that gangrene forms in the abdomen. That’s how strong this drug is.

While not a dangerous effect, a chronic cocaine user who snorts the drug may suffer a severe erosion of the tissues in the nose, so much that holes form between the two sides. Drug rehab will not cause this damage to heal, only surgery will fix it. The reason the cocaine user does not notice this happening is because cocaine also acts as a local anesthetic. In fact, cocaine is used to numb eyes for surgery.

Cocaine addiction rehab at the earliest possible moment in cocaine abuse can prevent the worst of this damage. In addition, treatment can also save a person from the financial, moral and emotional destruction that often accompanies cocaine addiction. Like binge drinking, bingeing on cocaine can lead to the most serious effects.

Addicts to Cocaine and Other Drugs Find Sobriety at Narconon Drug Rehabilitation Centers

The Narconon drug rehab centers around the world help addicts to cocaine and many other drugs find recovery. One of key features of the program is the Narconon New Life Detoxification Program. Those seeking cocaine addiction rehab find that this step that uses time in a sauna, moderate exercise and an exact regimen of nutritional supplements helps them overcome the cravings for more cocaine. Since drug residues lodge in the fatty tissues of the body, they can remain there for years, contributing to cravings. When this program flushes out these stored toxins, the person in recovery feels brighter and often remarks on his increase in energy.

The Narconon program goes on to guide each recovering person through life skills training that supplies stability and the ability to make the right choices even in challenging situations.

Help With Cocaine Addiction

Learn more about how the Narconon drug rehabilitation program can help with cocaine addiction and how it provides relief from cravings and long term sobriety.

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Parents Can Be First Line Defense Against Teen Prescription Drug Use

Posted on February 6, 2012 by narconon

Teens busing Prescription Drugs

By the time American children are through with high school, more than 50% of them have abused an illicit drug or a prescription drug. Approximately 60% of American students have drunk alcohol by the time they graduate from high school, 41% of them binge drinking (five or more drinks in a short time period) in the two weeks before the survey.

Europe is seeing some improvements in drug abuse among the young, with decreases particularly in cannabis use. But polydrug use and a proliferating market for synthetics like mephedrone and synthetic cannabis are worrisome.

In these geographic regions and others, children who are not adequately educated on the problems that can arise from drug abuse are frankly at risk.

The Monitoring the Future report that comes from the University of Michigan each year paints a picture of what happens when there is not enough information broadcast to young people who lack the experience to know what can happen from drug abuse. The latest report, issued in December 2011, noted that while heroin and cocaine use were down in the US, marijuana use was up and prescription drug abuse was steady at a high level.

In the US, schoolchildren 12 to 17 make up nearly 8% of those going into drug rehabs for help. When you total up the number who are not even 21 years old yet, you come up with 15% of the two million people into treatment in 2009. That’s 300,000 young people. The primary drug that group is struggling with is marijuana, but 67,000 went to treatment for alcohol abuse.

Many Teens Are Easily Convinced that Prescription Drugs are Safer

When teens see themselves or their friends given prescription drugs throughout their lives for problems focusing and settling down in schools or for injuries, and when they see their parents consuming prescription drugs for anxiety, pain or sleep problems, it is not hard to understand that they might consider prescription drugs a safe substance to abuse.
And so American youth abuse these drugs in unacceptably high numbers. Prescription drugs of abuse are all addictive and some of them are fairly easy to overdose on.

The number of high school seniors abusing prescription opiates like hydrocodone or oxycodone almost doubled between 1991 and 2010, hitting more than 13%.

In 2010, 7.5% of high school seniors abused a sedative. Eight percent abused a tranquilizer like benzodiazepines. Two percent abused steroids.

The class of amphetamine drugs was abused by 11% of seniors. This class includes the drug Adderall, commonly prescribed for young Americans and so in plentiful supply in schools. Ritalin, another stimulant, was abused by 2.7% of high school seniors and 2% of high school seniors also abused Provigil, a drug that was previously prescribed to children for so-called “attention disorders” but which was banned from use on young people due to serious adverse reactions.

Parents and Narconon Working Together Can Save Lives

Parents may be reassured to find out that they can have a positive effect on their children by talking to them opening about drug use. It’s important that both parents agree on the anti-drug and anti-alcohol stance taken, as the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Colombia University (CASA) found that this one factor can have a profound effect on whether or not a child decides to use drugs or alcohol.

CASA also found that having family dinners five or more times a week coincides with lower substance abuse than is found in families where communal dinners are held three or fewer times each week.

Parents Educating Kids About Drugs

The Narconon alcohol treatment or drug rehab delivered in rehab facilities around the world is there when drug prevention fails. When a person struggles with addiction, unfortunately, this struggle can go on far too long before they get effective help. At Narconon rehab centers, seven out of ten graduates stay clean and sober after they go home, without the need of Narconon meetings, which is a remarkable success rate in this field.

Narconon also sends staff and volunteers to schools, clubs, civic groups and even the streets in some cities to educate children on drugs to prevent addiction from ever becoming a problem. Drug education teams are sent out from Narconon California and other centers across the US, in Ghana, Nepal, across Europe and in other parts of the world.

With parents and Narconon both working on the matter of drug abuse, addiction does not have to result in a lifetime habit, incarceration or death.

Resources:

http://monitoringthefuture.org/pubs/monographs/mtf-vol1_2010.pdf

http://www.casacolumbia.org/templates/publications_reports.aspx: National Survey on American Attitudes on Substance Abuse XVI.

http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/attachements.cfm/att_143743_EN_EMCDDA_AR2011_EN.pdf

http://oas.samhsa.gov/NSDUH/2k9NSDUH/tabs/Sect2peTabs1to42.htm#Tab2.4B

http://monitoringthefuture.org/pubs/monographs/mtf-overview2011.pdf

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With More than Half of All High School Students Abusing Drugs, Should Parents be Using More Drug Tests?

Posted on February 3, 2012 by narconon

Students Abusing Drugs

Parents should take note of recent reports on drug abuse among teens and young adults and also those that find that when parents speak out against drug abuse, drug abuse statistics are lower.

According to the most recent Monitoring the Future report on drug use among our schoolchildren, by the time they graduate from high school, more than half have abused an illicit drug or prescription drug. Is there anything parents should do to prevent drug use among their children or should they just rely on home or school drug tests?

Certainly parents come in all shapes and sizes. Some hope their children will not use drugs, some are too wrapped up in other concerns to pay much attention to the matter and some take effective action to fight drug or alcohol abuse by their children. It can be hard to tell which path is the most effective.

Is the best route to skip drug education and simply administer frequent drug tests? Certainly drug tests are in the news recently, as the Ohio School Board deliberated on the best method of using random drug tests among students in performance and competitive events. And in Florida, debate continued over whether or not it was proper to give welfare recipients drug tests as a condition of receiving their benefits.

On this point, parents can look to recent reports from the National Center on Addiction and Drug Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) for evidence of what methods are available to them to prevent drug abuse by their children.

According to CASA, something as simple as family dinners together makes a big difference. Look at this comparison, for example. CASA compared teens who have frequent family dinners (five to seven per week) with those who have fewer than three per week.

Teens with fewer family dinners are:

  • Nearly four times as likely to use tobacco
  • More than twice as likely to drink alcohol
  • More than twice as likely to smoke marijuana
  • Almost four times as likely to say they expect to use drugs at some point in the future.

CASA’s surveys also show that it is essential for parents to agree on their drug use and alcohol use messages. When parents do not agree completely on their anti-drug message to teens, those children are 3.5 times more likely to expect to use drugs in the future. When parents don’t agree on an anti-alcohol use message, teens are twice as likely to drink as other children whose parents do agree.

Narconon Centers Sponsor Drug Education Classes in Hundreds of Schools to Help Reduce Drug Abuse

Schedule Drug Education Presentation

Along with running centers that provide drug rehabilitation services around the world, Narconon staff from many centers go out into the community to deliver anti-drug messages to young people. From Narconon Arrowhead in Oklahoma and centers in Southern California and Italy alike, staff teach children of all ages in schools and clubs the dangers of illicit or prescription drug abuse or alcohol abuse. When the anti-drug curriculum is from Narconon, schools can find that their drug problems drop. A peer-reviewed study, published on the website www.substanceabusepolicy.com, reported on the decrease in drug abuse among students who had received the entire Narconon curriculum.

CASA studies report that a young person who does not start abusing drugs or alcohol until he or she is 21 years old is virtually certain never to do so. The best tools to use to prevent drug or alcohol abuse are accurate lessons in the problems created by substance abuse and parental concern, communication and attention.

Call a center near you to find out more about the Narconon objectives used in the drug education presentations.

Resources:

http://monitoringthefuture.org/pubs/monographs/mtf-overview2011.pdf

http://www.casacolumbia.org/templates/publications_reports.aspx: The Importance of Family Dinners VII and National Survey of

American Attitudes on Substance Abuse XVI: Teens and Parents

http://www.substanceabusepolicy.com/content/3/1/8

http://www.bcrnews.com/2012/01/24/ohio-looks-at-drug-testing-options/ac9ga6f/

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/25/florida-primary-candidates-drug-policy?newsfeed=true

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A Growing Tragedy Manifests Itself in Addiction to Painkiller Medications

Posted on February 3, 2012 by narconon

Get off Pain Pills

For many people, this addiction starts with the use of pain medication after an injury or surgery or maybe just a tooth extraction. The pain may be real in the beginning but the painkiller use goes on after the pain goes away. Maybe the person just seems to feel better and not have so many aches and pains when they take those pills.

Many people will not realize that there is any problem when they need more of that painkiller just to keep the aches away. But you see, the body is developing a tolerance to the opiates, meaning that more of the drug is needed to create the same relief that a lower dose used to do.

This can happen again and again, with the doctor increasing the dosage each time the patient reports that the drug is not handling the pain. But the doctor may finally call it quits on the increases. He may even refuse to prescribe any more pain medication at all. But now the person needs the drug just to feel normal, just so he doesn’t don’t feel achy and sick, just to function. Now the person is in trouble because there’s no legitimate prescription to rely on.

So what’s the answer? There’s several choices. The person can go “doctor shopping” for their higher dosage needs. This means she selects three or four or more doctors in different parts of town or even different towns and makes the same complaints to each one. Then fills the prescriptions at different pharmacies.

Or he can go to a pain management clinic, one that doesn’t even require a physical exam. Of course, these are being closed down in many states so this might only work for a little while.

Or she can figure out a way to commit prescription fraud. Maybe at one of those doctor’s offices she can steal a prescription pad and fill out her own orders for drugs. Or pretend to be a doctor’s office and call in a prescription.

Or he can commit theft, stealing pain pills out of a friend’s purse. If he has more nerve, maybe he can hold up a pharmacy and make off with the OxyContin or hydrocodone.

She might be able to find an internet pharmacy that will ship her drugs from India or China but there’s no telling what the purity or dosage of these drugs would be like.

Or there are drug dealers who traffic in these drugs along with heroin and cocaine. If any of these other actions land him in jail, he can probably hook up with some good connections there.

Of course, there is one other option. She can switch to heroin, as many people do when their sources of prescription pain medication dry up. If she is lucky, she won’t get really pure heroin unexpectedly which might cause her to overdose by accident.

These Were the Choices Many Americans Faced on their Way to Becoming Addicted to Pain Medication

Addiction to painkillers is rather unique for the way that many people start with legitimate use and progress to addiction. The same can’t be said for heroin or cocaine, for example.

Recent statistics released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) show just how bad it’s gotten. According to SAMHSA, prescription drug addiction is up 430% from 1999 to 2009, based on the number of people entering treatment for this problem.

Flanking this statistic is another fact: In 2010, the most popular prescription drug in America was hydrocodone, an opioid pain reliever, combined with acetaminophen – aka Vicodin or Lortab. There were 131.2 million prescriptions written for this drug in 2010.

Addiction Calls for Thorough Rehab to Restore the Addicted Person’s Ability to Live Sober Again

Pain Pill Rehab

When a person loses his sobriety, he needs a drug rehab program he can rely on to bring him back to lasting sobriety. While some programs state a recovery rate of 10% to 20%, the Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation program maintains a success rate of 70%. There’s no secret to it – it’s just an effective rehab program that thoroughly addresses the damage done by addiction and that teaches each person the life skills needed to make drug-free decisions.

Narconon objectives are to offer a long-term residential treatment program that will give a recovering addict enough time to claim back the personal integrity that was lost during addiction, and to show each person how he or she can stay stable in the face of life’s difficulties and stresses.

Then add the unique Narconon New Life Detoxification Program that helps each person reduce the cravings that result from extended drug use. This program utilizes time in a low-heat sauna combines with generous nutritional supplementation and moderate exercise to activate the body’s ability to flush out old stored drug toxins. The elimination of these toxins has been proven to help recovering addicts lower cravings or even make them disappear completely.

You can get off pain pills. Before you commit to any drug treatment program, find out about the Narconon program by calling Narconon International at 1-800-775-8750 today.

Resources:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jamie-lee-curtis/king-of-pain_b_240998.html

http://www.samhsa.gov/data/DASIS/teds09st/teds2009stweb.pdf

http://www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/advisories/1112074117.aspx

http://www.clinicalcorrelations.org/?p=4888

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What Will Stop the Increase in Teen Prescription Drug Use?

Posted on January 31, 2012 by narconon

Teen Prescription Drug Abuse Help

The recent Monitoring the Future report on young adult and teen prescription drug use makes it very clear that not enough effective actions are being taken to convince young people to avoid abuse of prescription drugs. The 2011 edition of this annual survey of teens and college students points out that while cigarette smoking, heroin and cocaine use are down, marijuana abuse is up and prescription drug abuse remains steady at unacceptably high levels.

Prescription Pain Medication Seen by Many Teens as Safer

It’s understandable that many teens would think that if they are going to abuse drugs, prescription drugs would be the way to go. After all, they were prescribed this drug after they broke their foot (or after mom’s surgery or grandma’s hip replacement). It can’t be that dangerous. And Aunt Sally takes them every day.

So at a party or friend’s house, someone breaks out a stash of prescription pills. Maybe they are ingested or maybe they are crushed and snorted for a real fast and strong effect.

Between 1991 and 2010, the number of high school seniors who had abused a prescription narcotic like hydrocodone (Vicodin, Lortab and others) or oxycodone (OxyContin and others) just about doubled, increasing from 6.6% to 13.1%.

But Far More than Just Pain Killers are Being Abused

Sure, there’s been a lot of publicity about the use of prescription pain pills but not as many comments about the rest of the long list of prescription drugs that are being abused by America’s young people. While oxycodone and hydrocodone are the headliners, here are some of the other types of drugs being abused:
Sedatives such as barbiturates. In 2010, 7.5% of seniors abused a sedative.

Tranquilizers like benzodiazepines. More than 8% of seniors abused one or more of these.
Steroids, abused by 2% of seniors.

Amphetamines, abused by more than 11% of seniors at some point in their lives. This group of drugs includes Adderall, an addictive combination of amphetamine salts prescribed when a person is said to suffer from an “attention disorder.” When asked if they had abused Adderall in the last year, 5% of high school seniors and 10% of college students said “Yes.” Some medical staff on college campuses put this figure much higher.

Ritalin, a strong stimulant used for the same problems as Adderall, had an annual abuse rate of 2.7% among seniors.
Provigil, a stimulant drug banned from use among children, had an annual abuse rate of nearly 2% among seniors.

Stopping Prescription Drug Abuse Begins with Parents

More than anyone else, it’s up to parents to stop prescription drug abuse. No matter what reply your child has while you are talking to them about drugs, they hear you and many will listen more than they let on. According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, children whose parents agree on their anti-drug message and who carry that message clearly and firmly to their children will have lower drug abuse rates.

Prescription Drug Help

Drug rehab is also an important solution for this problem. The Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation program has helped tens of thousands of people around the world with problems like these. Check out Narconon reviews at centers like Narconon California or other locations in Europe, Australia, Asia or Africa. Narconon alcohol treatment and drug rehab enable those who have become addicted to start living sober lives again.

Resources:

http://monitoringthefuture.org/pubs/monographs/mtf-vol1_2010.pdf

http://www.casacolumbia.org/templates/publications_reports.aspx: National Survey on American Attitudes on Substance Abuse XVI.

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Alcoholism as a Great Equalizer: The Societal and Health Problem That Exists in Every Corner of the World

Posted on January 31, 2012 by narconon

Alcoholism Health Problems

You can go to every corner of the globe and find alcohol problems. In some countries where religious beliefs ban alcohol consumption, they will be less frequent and more concealed. In other countries, the social patterns of the population seem almost to be based on alcohol consumption and use of this addictive drug will be fully out in the open.

But the fact is that excess and lengthy alcohol consumption can turn into alcoholism and can destroy or kill, no matter how rich or poor, no matter what color or creed, no matter how educated or primitive.

Worldwide Statistics Support the Need for Effective Alcohol Abuse Rehab

In Brazil, for example, a UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report from 2010 stated that 86% of college students have used alcohol and that 22% of these student risk alcohol dependence through heavier consumption.

An older report about Russia noted that drinking to unconsciousness had wide prevalence in that country and may have started when manufacture and sales of alcohol was a popular way for the government to raise money. A 2006 study found a clear connection between Russian alcohol consumption and suicide.

The World Health Organization reports that more than 2.5 million people die each year from alcohol related causes, and that 9% of these are teens or young adults. In the US, approximately 85,000 people die from alcohol-related causes each year.

But many cultures do not have the same inclination toward alcohol abuse rehab that is seen in Europe and the United States. So alcoholism may be tolerated until it simply results in illness and death.

Narconon Brings Effective Alcohol Abuse Rehab to Six Continents

Over the last forty-five years, the founder and executives of the Narconon network of alcohol abuse rehab centers have understood the heartbreak associated with alcoholism and drug abuse. So from one center in Los Angeles in the late 1960s to more than 120 rehabilitation or prevention centers around the world, the Narconon network has expanded to bring help to as many people as possible.

Narconon centers are now located in Taiwan, Italy, England, Brazil, Mexico, Nepal, Russia and many other countries. The long-term residential program offered by Narconon centers has been shown to help seven out of ten addicted people recover fully, so that they stay sober for a two-year monitoring period after graduation.

Help With Alcohol Abuse

The program offered by Narconon has eight phases that address the damage done by addiction, the restoration of personal integrity and the life skills needed to walk the sober path after getting home. The last four decades of application of this program have proven that the Narconon program results in sobriety in the majority of cases, and that the prevention programs result in reduced drug and alcohol abuse in the students who participate in these classes.

Call a Narconon alcohol treatment center to get more details or to find out how Narconon can bring improvement to your community by offering rehabilitation or prevention services.

Resources:

http://www.unodc.org/southerncone/en/frontpage/2010/06/23-quase-metade-dos-universitarios-do-pais-ja-usou-drogas-ilicitas-mostra-pesquisa.html

http://alcalc.oxfordjournals.org/content/34/6/824.full

http://sf.oxfordjournals.org/content/85/1/413

http://www.who.int/substance_abuse/facts/en/

Description: Alcohol can cause different health problems. If you need help with alcoholism, contact a Narconon alcohol rehab center today.

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Prescription Drug Abuse…A Spreading American Addiction

Posted on January 31, 2012 by narconon

Prescription Drug Addiction Help

Ever since physicians have been able to prescribe narcotic painkillers, some Americans have taken more than is safe and have found themselves physically and emotionally addicted to these drugs.

Americans have a history to abuse opiate painkillers when they have not been legally regulated. This problem led to the enactment of the Harrison Narcotic Act, which required that a licensed healthcare provider provide a prescription for opiate medications sold to the public.

This act fell short of curbing opiate abuse since pharmacists were still selling “over-the-counter” remedies for everything from cough syrups to tonics that helped the “woman of the house” get through her busy day.

It wasn’t until our society felt the pressure from the abolitionist movement in the 1920s and 30s that stronger restrictions were placed on the public’s access to the addictive drugs. This social pressure fell short of curtailing American’s ability to find means to legally procure these narcotics leading to more evidence that stronger regulations were needed to help control the widespread abuse and addiction to opiate medications.

At the pressure of prohibitionist, Congress passed the Narcotic Control Act in 1956, which heightened the levels of control of these substances, but statistics show that this led to more illicit sale of the same drugs. Americans have been determined to procure and abuse opiate medications no matter the level of control over these dangerous drugs.

Since there is a medical necessity for opiate painkillers, physicians have been left with the responsibility of deciding to whom these drugs should ethically be prescribed and which patients can be treated with non-addictive painkillers. Leaving this choice to individual physicians hasn’t been successful ensuring that only those with documented medical need are allowed access to these drugs. Since the decision as which patients actually need this level of pain medication is mostly a subjective determination on the part of private physicians, there continues to be many Americans becoming addicted to these drugs who should never have had access to this level of pain management.

As long as the public desires these drugs, there will be doctors that will profit on liberal prescribing of medications that ultimately cause more harm than good. This problem has reached epidemic levels of abuse across the U.S.

Teenage Prescription Drug Abuse

Opiate painkillers are not the only prescription drug of abuse in America today. A number of national studies show that besides pain relievers, there is prescription abuse of tranquilizers, stimulants and sedatives. Prescription drug abuse among teenagers between the ages of 12 and 17 has become the second most abused illegal drug behind marijuana. (In fact, a study in 2006 found that for the first time, there are as many new teenage abusers of prescription drugs as there are for marijuana.)

In interviews with these teenagers, it was found that our prevention messages are not hindering their desire to seek out these medications. Many hold the belief that abusing prescription medications is medically safer than other illicit drugs. It has also be recognized that it is easier for teenagers to get prescription drugs since, many times they have easy access to these drugs from their parent’s or relative’s medicine cabinets.

In contradiction to illicit drugs, it is found that girls are more likely to intentionally abuse prescription drugs to high, with OxyContin and Vicodin being the most commonly abuse prescription drugs by teenagers.

Studies show that today, prescription drugs account for the second most commonly abused category of drugs, again behind marijuana, but above cocaine, heroin, meth, and other drugs. In 2000, which is the most recent year that these statistics have been analyzed, around nine million Americans above the age of 12 reported that they have used prescription drugs for nonmedical purposes.

To counteract this prevalence of abuse, which leads to addiction, crimes and death, Federal and State governments have implemented prescription drug monitoring programs. Fifteen states currently operate prescription drugs monitoring programs as a means to control the illegal diversion of prescription drugs.

Certainly government and law enforcement have a vital role in limiting the illicit diversion of these drugs, but as long as opiates, like OxyContin, that sell for $4 a pill legally can bring $40 to 50 dollars on the streets, there will always be more diversion than we can afford to monitor and control.

Prescription drug abuse is not only a legal issue, but is more predominately a public health problem. OxyContin, which is the number one drug of diversion and represents countless dollars lost from the effects of addiction and the consequential rehabilitation that comes from these types of addictive opiates. Since this drug was first produced in 1995 by Purdue Pharma, it has been implicated in many times more U.S. deaths than caused by 9/11 and the Iraq War combined.

OxyContin is chemically similar and nearly identical to the molecular makeup of heroin and is the choice of many heroin addicts over their street drug choice of heroin. This evidence doesn’t seem to influence the FDA since they continue to document that OxyContin has a low addiction potential.

Misleading the Public About Addictive Drugs

However, in 2007, three top executives at Purdue Pharma pled guilty in relation to misleading the public about addictive qualities and the drug’s safety and paid fines of $634 million. In light of these findings, the power and greed of corporate America has kept Purdue Pharma from having any other restrictions on the manufacture and sale of this drug. OxyContin is a “virus” that has led to an epidemic of addiction in our country. Many physicians have documented that there are many less addictive and less euphoria analgesics that can easily replace this drug. Since the government won’t take the initiative to ban this legal heroin, healthcare providers and the public have started a petition to ban OxyContin. There are many petitions requesting that this drug is banned, including one by physicians stating that it interferes with good medical practice, yet there haven’t been any actions to comply with common public health sense.

Prescription Drug Rehab

Since prescription drugs are now being manufactured to compete with heroin and other street drugs, it is obvious that the public will continue to suffer from this form of drug abuse. Our country needs to follow the pubic health advice of some of our European friends that put strong restrictions on the types and amounts of addictive drugs that can be prescribed. Denmark doesn’t offer its pubic the numerous types of opiate pain killers, but only allows for buprenorphine, which is mildly addictive and for extreme cases, morphine, which is also less addictive than OxyContin and many of the America’s other popular legal drugs.

Prescription Drug Abuse Message

We need to continue and enhance our prescription drug abuse messages and take the personal responsibility to make our voices heard through petitions and contact with our elected representatives that we can no longer afford to allow our neighbors and their children to have easy access to these dangerous drugs.

Call Narconon International and speak to a rehab counselor today.

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Saving a Person from the Destruction of Alcoholism through Alcohol Abuse Rehab

Posted on January 31, 2012 by narconon

Alcoholism Help

It’s a tragic situation when alcoholism or drugs addiction take over a person’s life. One of the defining characteristics of addiction is that it begins to control a person’s life rather than the person being in control. He or she cannot determine when to drink or do drugs. Instead, the person’s life becomes focused on the next drink, the next injection, smoke or pill.

When this state is reached, everyone suffers. The addict, the spouse, the employer, family, community and other associates. The destruction can and does spread far and wide from just one addict or alcoholic.

Sadly, many people go to conventional drug rehab programs only to relapse into drug or alcohol abuse after release. Real recovery takes more repair and preparation than a 28-day treatment program can offer. Even many longer programs miss some of the points of recovery that are needed.

What is it Like When You do Alcohol Abuse Rehab the Narconon Way?

This innovative program starts with a tolerable withdrawal, supported by generous nutritional supplementation and one-on-one with with Narconon staff. The nutrition begins to calm the body’s reaction to the cessation of drug or alcohol consumption and the gentle reorientation and relaxation processes help calm both the mind and body. This provides a positive beginning to the recovery.

Soon after withdrawal comes the Narconon New Life Detoxification Program. This is a sauna-based program that employs more nutritional supplementation and moderate exercise to activate the body’s ability to flush out stored toxins. When drugs or alcohol are consumed and then broken down by the body, some residues are attracted to and lodge in the fatty tissues of the body. This phase of the Narconon drug rehab sets up the right conditions for these residues to be flushed out. As they leave, those in recovery regain a better mood and outlook and their cravings drop, sometimes disappearing altogether by their own statements.

Learning New Life Skills as Part of Alcohol Abuse Rehab and Rehabilitation at a Narconon Center

Each person who is going to go out on their own must have the skills to avoid situations that might present too much temptation, and must know how to turn an adverse situation around to a positive one. They must also have a clear personal moral code and must have recovered their own personal integrity in order to succeed. These and many other points of recovery are part of the Narconon alcohol abuse rehab program.

Narconon Programs Can Enhance the Operation of Drug Courts and Other Diversion Programs

In many states, the drug court is a method of helping people avoid one of the worst repercussions of alcohol or drug abuse: incarcerations. Those arrested for non-violent crimes relating to drug or alcohol use are diverted into programs where they are offered a chance to get sober. According to Narconon reviews, these drug rehab programs located across the United States and around the world work hand in hand with a diversionary program like this, helping to return seven out of ten graduates to a lasting sober lifestyle. Narconon centers may be located near you, like Narconon Georgia near Atlanta or one of several rehabs in Italy or Russia. Find out about the Narconon program today.

Narconon Alcohol Rehab

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How Much Does Alcoholism Contribute to Traffic Fatalities?

Posted on January 30, 2012 by narconon

Alcohol Fatalities

It’s a good guess that pretty much everyone knows that drunk drivers are dangerous to themselves and everyone in their environments. Amazingly, this doesn’t stop tens of thousands of people each year from driving off in their cars when they have had too much to drink. A major reason for this is that alcohol not only impairs ones ability to drive safely, it also impairs judgment. So one can very erroneously decide that they are fit to drive.

This is why many states mandate electronic locks for the cars of those who have been convicted of DUIs and DWIs. The driver must breathe into the analyzer and only a low alcohol reading will allow the car to start.

But something about this whole system is not yet effective at eliminating the thousands of deaths that occur each year related to alcohol consumption. Just to put these deaths in some kind of context, according to the head of the National Transportation Safety Board, there have been 5,700 fatalities in the entire 50-year history of US commercial jet aviation. But it only takes five months to kill this many people in alcohol-related traffic accidents.

Alcoholism Takes the Control Out of the Hands of the Drinker

Drinking and driving is one thing, but alcoholism takes things to a different level. When a person is an alcoholic, he or she is unable to make the decision to drink or not. The alcoholism, in effect, makes the decision for one.

Drunk driving, higher around the holidays, is going to include not only alcoholics but the many others who are drinking more frequently than usual. Alcohol abuse at this time is often overlooked as there are so many who are overindulging during this time.

A Narconon rehab center can mean the difference between sobriety and drunkenness and even life and death for a person who needs alcohol abuse rehab.

How Narconon Drug Rehab Centers Help Alcohol Addicts Find Lasting Sobriety

When a person finally seeks addiction rehabilitation, he or she deserves a treatment program that gets an effective result in the majority of cases. This is why many families seeking help for a person trapped in drug or alcohol abuse choose Narconon drug rehab centers, located around the world and across the United States. Narconon alcohol abuse rehab or drug rehab is successful in seven out of ten cases. Locations like the Narconon California centers in both northern and southern parts of the state, Narconon centers in Taiwan, Moscow, Italy and Australia offer this lasting recovery through their alternative, inpatient programs.

An essential component of recovery is the reduction in cravings. The Narconon New Life Detoxification Program provides assistance with this. This phase of the overall recovery program consists of time spent in a low-heat sauna, generous nutritional supplementation and moderate exercise. This combination activates the body’s ability to flush out toxins of drug or alcohol abuse that have become lodged in fatty tissues. As the toxins leave, the person becomes brighter, his or her mood improves and most people state that cravings are reduced, sometimes eliminated.
Narconon Rehab Counselor Help
Using the Narconon drug and alcohol abuse rehab program for your loved one makes good sense. Get all the details on this holistic alcohol abuse recovery program today.

Resources:

http://www.ntsb.gov/news/speeches/sumwalt/rls110823.html

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Colleges Turn Out to Offer Dangers as Well as Educations

Posted on January 30, 2012 by narconon

College Alcohol Use

The image of a young person, eighteen or so years old, heading off to college is one filled with hope and dreams of accomplishments and future careers. Parents look at their child going off to college with pride, but if they are wise, they also feel apprehension. Now more than ever, the college experience places dangerous pitfalls into every young person’s path. And most young people going off for higher education are sadly unprepared.

First Pitfall: Heavy Alcohol Consumption

Fraternity and sorority row are known for their alcohol consumption but binge drinking is hardly restricted to those zones. According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, half of all full-time college students binge drink, abuse prescription drugs or abuse illegal drugs. Sixty-eight percent of students drink some alcohol and four out of ten binge drink. Binge drinking frequency is way up as well.

Every year, more than 1,700 students lose their lives in alcohol-related incidents. Some students just go into a coma and never wake up and some die in traffic accidents. It is just as easy for people to need alcohol abuse rehab in college as at any other point in life.

Second pitfall: Prescription drug abuse

Abuse of prescription drugs has been skyrocketing around campuses. At first it was painkillers, tranquilizers and sedatives. In other words, Vicodin, OxyContin, Xanax and Nembutal.

Now stimulants like Ritalin and Adderall are popular drugs on campuses. These are the drugs prescribed to teens and younger children for difficulties in the classroom that some people think need drugging. Ritalin’s main ingredient is called methylphenidate and Adderall is dextroamphetamine. They are strong stimulants, similar to what is sold illicitly to get people high and addicted. Adderall college use can start addiction to this drug early in life.

Third pitfall: Marijuana abuse

A third of college students abuse marijuana, according to the annual survey Monitoring the Future. There are some signs that use may be set to increase. Numbers are already increasing among high school students.

College students who use marijuana tend to engage in other high risk behaviors, like risky sex and mixing alcohol with marijuana or combining other drugs. Students using marijuana also spend more time at parties and less time studying, and tend to have poorer academic performance.

It is not anyone’s plan that a young person graduate from college only to need alcohol abuse rehab or drug rehab to recover from four years of substance abuse. But it can easily happen that a person may need to take a break from higher education for alcohol abuse rehab treatment.

Narconon Programs Help the Recovery of Students as Well as Moms, Professionals and Artists

Narconon drug rehab programs are located around the world on six continents. They have been returning people to sober lives for more than forty-five years. Narconon objectives include helping people detoxify from drug or alcohol use that has left toxic residues in the body, and teaching each person the life skills needed to stay sober in the future.

Narconon Helps Students

Drug toxins tend to lodge in the fatty tissues of the body and can remain there for many years unless the right combination of time in a sauna, generous nutritional support, moderate exercise and careful supervision are provided. This is the Narconon New Life Detoxification Program, part of the overall rehabilitation service offered by Narconon centers around the world. Facilities are located in Russia, Italy, Taiwan and England, and in the US, Narconon Georgia services the Atlanta area and Narconon Vista Bay helps those in Northern California, in addition to many other US centers.

Call the Narconon alcohol program to get help with alcohol abuse. Our counselors are ready to assist you.

Resources:

http://www.casacolumbia.org/templates/publications_reports.aspx: National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse

http://www.higheredcenter.org/files/product/marijuana.pdf

http://www.monitoringthefuture.org/pubs/monographs/mtf-vol2_2010.pdf

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