Rehab Nye: A Case Study

Heroin addiction is one of the leading killers of adolescents and adults in the United States. In recent years, addiction has skyrocketed, and “the rate of heroin-related overdose deaths increased by 286 percent between 2002 and 2013.” In 2002, “100 people per 100,000 were addicted to heroin, and that number has doubled by 2013” (The National Institute on Drug Abuse 2013). The most affected populations include low income males, adolescents, and those who have a family history of addiction, due to their increased susceptibility and crime-ridden environment. While it may seem as though heroin addiction is “just another drug problem” in the U.S., it is actually a problem of major public health importance because there are numerous physical, economic, and social risks associated with heroin dependence. Heroin dependence in the United States accounts for brain damage, increased homelessness, crime, and incarceration rates, as well as economic decline.

The state of Massachusetts has been fighting a vicious battle with the spread of opioid addiction. Heroin and other opioid drug related addicts have formed a very negative outlook of themselves. A great deal of people view addicts as classic criminals. Addiction is an actual mental illness, something that the addict cannot control. Treating these struggling individuals as criminals is an unnecessary and cruel punishment. The state of Massachusetts needs to break the stigma that all opioid addicts are criminals and starting viewing opioid addiction as a serious mental illness.

The rate of substance abuse in New Hampshire is astoundingly high. In a survey conducted between 2009 and 2010 by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 12.15% of New Hampshire residents reported past-month use of illegal drugs. The national average during this time period was 8.82%, significantly lower than New Hampshire’s average. Likewise, the most common drugs of abuse during this time included other opiates, heroin and marijuana. More recently, data on drug rehab enrollments in New Hampshire during 2013 show heroin as the leading substance of abuse. As well, drug and alcohol rehab programs enrolled 1,520 individuals (36.7% of all treatment admissions) for heroin addiction treatment in 2013. The average

Heroin was once considered a dirty back alley drug, far from leafy suburban streets. Now a epidemic is arising, making heroin usage a health crisis amongst our youth. Heroin has spread from the slums to the suburbs because of the significantly increased use of prescription painkillers. Heroin is cheaper in comparison to medically prescribed opiates like OxyContin and Vicodin. Heroin is an epidemic spreading into suburban towns and destroying homes and communities. We should have more prevention programs in our school systems, provide greater access to drug treatments and send more nonviolent drug offenders to treatment instead of jail.

The state of Maine also has a pressing drug abuse problem. In 2012 drug use and abuse cost the state over $ 1.18 billion. In addition, the state saw a 20% increase in admissions into treatment programs over the last year (Maine DHHS, 2012). Over 60% of outpatient treatment admissions are due to some form of opioid (Figure 3). In addition, opioids make up the majority of deaths due to drug overdose (Figure 4). Bringing these numbers down will require a multi-pronged strategy including finding less addictive painkillers, improving prescription practices related to painkillers and reducing the desire of people to abuse painkillers. UNE is taking an active role in

Another northwestern county in Ohio with a growing problem is Fulton which is located west of Lucas. In addition to the heroin problem, 8% of the county’s 6-12 graders have admitted to taking prescription medication in order to receive a high (Coehrs). That’s just one county that has children under 18 taking medication to find a high. This high can lead to trying to locate a more powerful drug when the effects are not the same. People switch to heroin because it’s cheaper than prescription medication (Coehrs). Once people are addicted to their prescribed medication and can’t afford to keep supplying it for the addiction, they try and see a cheap alternative which happens to be heroin but heroin brings more of a risk. There are some addicts that want help but, many addicts can’t locate a place for help when

The city of Philadelphia is home to some of the richest and most influential history the United States has to offer, but it’s also home to a very large crime rate. Heroin and opioids have been largely abused for continuous decades in cities like Philadelphia throughout the world and the law needs to come down with harder sanctions to combat this issue. This is largely in part because crime simply leads to more crime. Another reason why more rigid law structure needs to be centralized around heroin and opioid abuse is that previous addicts from all sorts of backgrounds rarely maintain remission, but end up relapsing. In fact, heroin is one of the most addictive drugs in the world. Not to mention, basic necessities within the city, such as public space for its residents, have transitioned to heavily policed areas due to drug use. The conjunction of all these issues demands for more firm and rigid laws which will help to diminish drug use in America.

In my opinion, there is a heroin epidemic within my community and many other communities nationwide. In Will County in December of 2015 one of my childhood friends passed away from a heroin overdose. Heroin use is an issue that is prevalent within our community and has affected an immeasurable amount of people. Heroin addiction is extremely detrimental to young adults and must be combated with a multi-faceted approach. The prevalence of pill mills, teen’s access to prescription pills, a lack of drug education, and the defunding for alternative pain management strategies have driven the increased demand for heroin. The defunding of physical rehabilitation centers and the increased focus on prescription medication as the answer to all aliments

National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that between the years of 2002 and 2012 the usage of heroin was 19% higher with the people that had already been prescribed pain medications.“Pooling data from 2002 to 2012, the incidence of heroin initiation was 19 times higher among those who reported prior nonmedical pain reliever use than among those who did not (NIDA). The idea that various doctors just throughout the united states are over-prescribing opioids is extremely concerning. This means that they are being careless, possibly being fooled by patients, and it means that they are ultimately partially responsible for the growing opioid epidemic. Bigger actions need to be taken by all levels of society to attempt to maintain and control this devastating reality. Along with research form many different studies performed throughout the united states, people also have suffered personally from the opioid epidemic. Overdoses are one of the top reasons for death in the US. They happen just about everywhere in the world, but more so in the United states that anywhere else. Congressman Zeldin Lee claims that ““As a whole, our nation has been debilitated by the rise of the heroin and opioid abuse epidemic, and as heroin and opioids flood the streets of our communities on Long Island and across America, the issue continues to become increasingly personal.”

In 2015, more than 400 people in New Hampshire died because of drug overdose (Nilsen 2016). The drug overdose numbers have increased 33% in the past five years (Casey 2016). The drug crisis in New Hampshire is a really big issue. New Hampshire has one of the highest rates of opioid related deaths. There is always something on the news about drugs, whether it be a drug bust, an overdose, or death. Something needs to be done on a state level and a national level to help educate and rehabilitate.

Overcoming any type of addiction can be quite overwhelming. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, people with addiction to drugs can get quick and sufficient help if they enroll for inpatient rehabilitation programs at drug rehab centers. At any addiction treatment center, patients get supervised detox programs in more structured environments to manage any withdrawal symptoms.

The United States is in the grips of one of the worst heroin epidemics in its history, due in part to a flood of cheap doses of the drug. In some regions, heroin is deemed "highly available" by local police in more than three times the number of communities as it was just seven years ago. This drug has taken many lives in the past and it is now becoming very popular again. The resurgence of the deadly drug has sparked a flurry of action from governors' mansions and statehouses across New England. The addiction of this drug is devastating and the deaths are rising.

Heroin has long been a overwhelming problem in Maryland. There are too many deaths caused by Heroin.. This is an issue because the local government has not been able to stop its spread. In fact, heroin use has increased dramatically over the recent years. Because of this, the people are calling for extra measures to be taken to fight heroin use.

Heroin use, abuse and addiction has been a major issue in our society. Considered a worldwide social problem, heroin abuse has been on the rise and as of late has reached epidemic proportions. Locally, the city of Erie and neighboring counties have also been affected by this wide-ranging drug trend. Heroin abuse brings violent crime, economically compulsive and systemic violent crime to a community, along with homelessness, as well as diseases, such as HIV and Hepatitis C. Another problem impossible for the compassionate and humanitarians to ignore is the amount of deaths and struggles those addicted to heroin are experiencing. Because of these chronic social issues that are not being resolved well enough through treatments such as Methadone and Narcotics Anonymous, alternative treatments should be explored and could be incorporated into treatment plans for those addicted to heroin.

When it comes to this topic I am not that knowledgeable on heroin. My family and I haven't went through something significant like using heroin or any kind of drugs like that. What I do know this reminds me of when last semester we had a panel on Heroin at our University in the MPR room. When I was there I listen and heard how can destroy a family. A cop had a son who was using heroin, and he tried to help him as best as he can. The son later on in the story went to rehab to get clean, and he was successful in doing that. The son was also at the panel with is father the cop as a surprise ending. So from what I know is Edinboro, and Erie are taking steps to address heroin going out making it known. Telling people heroin is back with a force.