Pdhpe: A Short Story

A recent poll published by CASA Columbia shows that substantial portions of the public still see addiction as a choice rather than an illness. The nature of addiction is not something David Sheff leaves open to debate for his readers. Once David discovers that his son is addicted to meth, he tracks Nic down and unconditionally demands that Nic check himself into a rehabilitation center. During Nic’s first stay in rehab, Sheff meet with a Dr. London, a Professor of psychiatry and behavioral science at UCLA, to gather information on his son’s condition. Dr. London shows Sheff her research on brain functions of meth addicts. Commenting on Dr. London’s work, Sheff

During Alejandro’s first years, he has had a turbulent life. When he was born, the medical staff had noted that he had methamphetamine in his bloodstream; Ms. C. had used the substance within four days before his birth. Alejandro had also been witness to domestic violence–watching as his father pinned down his mother and bit her cheek, drawing blood. During his second year of life, DCFS had placed Alejandro in a total of four different Los Angeles County foster homes.

Individually, we create a metaphorical puzzle as we reflect on our life. These puzzle pieces represent all of the small-scale decisions we’ve made. Inside of those decisions, also consists of other people and how they influenced our upbringings. When this puzzle is put together, all of these decisions create one large picture. Specifically, Wes Moore’s “puzzle” obtains unfinished than other people, these pieces may not fit particularly well with other pieces, and they may never will. The reader may never perceive why Wes made any of the poor decisions he has made in his lifetime, nevertheless, there’s one large section of the puzzle that holds together–this would be Wes Moore’s influence from drug abuse. The idea of drug abuse continues to be frowned upon by other people. However, what most people may not understand is that there’s an addiction that comes with it, not an addiction to the drugs specifically, though an addiction to the lifestyle that came with it.

Nonetheless, your feelings of guilt, and shame spurred you along. You sighed. You shake. You moaned. You groaned. Still, your guiltiness did nothing to stir remorse until two summers aback. Yes, your body had developed a tolerance for the acid trip. You needed to increase the doses the get that high. This summer was no different than any other. Yes, you were on one of your binges, and you blacked out. When you woke up there was blood all over your face and vomit on your chin. You lay naked on the ground in sugar daddy cellar. When you sat up you were covered with feces and urine. You managed to pull yourself up. You pulled up your pants and buttoned your shirt. The blood on thighs and the money of the floor told you what did not want to acknowledge. Your sugar daddy had sold you for a fix. His need was bigger than yours. God alone knew how long was the human train. You did not scream. No, you did even cry. Your life had come full circle. You stumbled over the garbage bags in the cellar. You smelled. You walked all the way to your parents’ house. It was a two hours walk. You pasted sugar daddy and did not stop when he called out your name. After you showered you climbed into bed with your mom and cried. The next day you checked into your first

Nic Sheff was 18 and collage bound when he discovered crystal meth. At first his father had no idea. Then came a call from his school, the late nights, the lying, the ghoulish pallor and the wasting away. David’s life became an eternity of waiting, for the phone to ring, the door to open, or

Methamphetamine: A Love Story is a book documenting the lives of various people who were immersed in the culture of using, selling, and manufacturing methamphetamine. Through interviews with over 30 individuals, Rashi Shukla brings to light the drastic effects that manifested when this drug took over their lives. Shukla aims to “illuminate this dark world,” (Shukla 2016, p. 11), and to provide insight as to why methamphetamine becomes more than just a drug to those involved with it.

Jude Hassan and Chris Herren were both in different situations with a drug addiction. Both of them had their addiction take them to a whole new different level in their lives. Jude Hassan, in Suburban Junky, was just a sophomore in high school when exposed to marijuana. While Chris Herren was just a freshman star basketball player at Boston College, he was exposed to cocaine. Both of their “small” addictions turned their whole lives up-side down when they were introduced to heroin. Jude and Chris didn’t really admit to their addiction until it was almost over.

‘I know you know.’ The man stood there shaking his head. ‘Well, I can take you to where we were going.’ ‘Fine hop in my car.’ He directed her to a neighborhood not far away, where she parked in front of a run-down house.” Kelley cared so much she had a drug addict get in her car just so he could show her where Adam might be.

21 year old Nic Sheff with an extended history of drug use has finally been sober for a little over a year but that soon changes. In and out of rehab centers and 12 step programs Nic began experimenting with drugs at quite a young age beginning with alcohol at age 11 closely followed by Marijuana at age 12. As Nic becomes older the drugs become more lethal from heroin to crystal meth. One day in the city of San Francisco Nic runs into an old friend, Lauren. Lauren and Nic soon follow that meet with a drug dealer named Gack and pick up a gram of crystal meth. What follows is a chaotic swirl of events.

Drugs destroyed Nic. Before Nic became addicted to drugs he was a charming kid, a varsity athlete, and very nice to his family. But after drugs Nic was a new person. He lied, cheated, and lived on the streets. Nic’s father worried about his daily, wondering if he was okay. Finally it was too much. Even though Nic kept saying he would stop, he never did. Nic’s father trusted him but was getting close to losing it. Finally after Nic running away multiple times, breaking into houses, and stealing money, David decides to force Nic into rehab. For Nic, as well as many other addicts, rehab didn’t work. David would notice Nic was high yet it wouldn't’ stop him. David was giving up. He reached out to other addicts parents to see what they did. Then as someone recommended, Nic moved down to Los Angeles by his mom. They thought it was a much better environment where Nic could stay away from

Objectives/Progress: Pt. continues to maintain total abstinence and Phase 7 status of the tx program. During the last quarter, Pt. denied any recovery issues or concerns and he is maintaining compliance with all tx criteria and obligations. Pt. has become more open during groups by acknowledging and accepting his chemical dependence; this openness was noted and reinforced. During the last quarter, Pt. provided input of ongoing activities that he is working on at this

Where he lost almost everything after, he had been released from rehab earlier which cost him his house, his money, his career and almost his life. What can make a young mind lead to unusual thoughts to want to disappear? In the book Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man it explains how Bill Clegg’s telling disturbing of crack-cocaine addictions had changed his life. Clegg was a young successful man had immersed in drink and drugs since he was a teenager.

Though some members of the public health system may have experienced addiction, it is highly unlikely that they have dealt with extreme heroin dependency as those in the community has. The attitude toward heroin addicts truly transforms when their personal accounts are stated rather than having a comprehensive trend or poster-child type figure represent the community. Though one can assume the withdrawal symptoms are difficult, Carter and Frank’s description surely brings into perspective how excruciating withdrawal from such an addictive substance such as heroin is. The withdrawal is as much emotional as it is physical, with the physical consequences “You [are] throwing up and fartin’ and shittin’ at the same time. It’s like you don’t have no control over your ol’ muscles in your rectum whatsoever” (81). However, the emotional consequences are much more intense and inescapable as “the worst part is the heebie-jeebies…the anxiety part just make [you] wanna scream…[it’s like] a million ants crawling through your skin and you just want to peel it off. And there ain’t no sense in bein’” (81). Heroin is one of the most addictive substances in the world to the point where when Hogan was hospitalized for 6 weeks and nearly lost his arm, he wept and stated, “‘I’m scared, Jeff. I’m through with dope,’” only to appear a week later back in Edgewater injecting heroin as he said “‘What else can I do?’” (106). It is near impossible to sincerely understand the toil that such an established dependency can cause when trying to go

James was prescribed a long-acting painkiller for chronic back pain after a severe injury. However, James also liked the high. He used more than his physician ordered, and would buy them on the street when he ran out. When using, he became the life of the party. He went through an inheritance of over $100,000 in just twelve months, spending most of the money to buy drugs and alcohol for himself and his “friends.” He would experience withdrawal symptoms when he ran out of opioids. When he complained of severe abdominal pain and noted a yellowish tint to his eyes, his physician diagnosed acute liver failure due to both the acetaminophen in the painkillers and excessive use of alcohol.

The brain is a complex machine that can be disturbed by many stimulants. Methamphetamines (abbreviated as “meth” not to be confused with methadone) are highly addictive psychostimulants. The brand name for meth is Desoxyn, however, slang terms include the following: crystal meth, speed, ice, fast, chalk, crank, etc. (Harper, 2015). The media has impacted the popularity of the drug, primarily seen in the television series Breaking Bad, which makes the business of crystal meth appealing to its viewers. Meth is a relatively inexpensive drug as it is usually manufactured in small mom-and-pop shops, which are family orientated and passed down from generation to generation. Meth can be sold as a pill, white crystalized powder or in