12 Steps Again

Relapse is a very real threat to rehab center graduates. Every year, thousands of “recovered” addicts slip back into patterns of abuse and dependency, with devastating consequences for their personal and professional lives. Under those circumstances, it should go without saying that the best treatment centers, like those that offer private cocaine treatment programs, are those which help their clients develop the self-control and self-esteem they’ll need to stay sober over the long run.
 
Cliffside Malibu drug rehab center was founded on the principle that the only meaningful kind of addiction recovery is that which lasts. That philosophy is Cliffside’s keen emphasis on personal empowerment in the healing process. It also helps to explain why so many of Cliffside’s clients get sober and stay sober. With so much to lose, and so much more to win, you simply can’t afford not to learn the truth for yourself.
 
Addiction is a devastating disease. Addiction recovery can fix what’s been broken, but only if it produces robust and sustainable wellness. Whether you need residential cocaine treatment, or alcohol treatment, it isn’t enough to get sober for a few months, or even a few years. Cliffside Malibu can help you stay healed for the rest of your life. In the end, it’s hard to imagine that any goal could ever be more important than that one.
 
If you’d like more information on this topic, visit Cliffside Malibu online at www.cliffsidemalibu.com.

Some doctors seem more willing than ever to prescribe massive amounts of habit forming medications upon request.

This specialized vicodin addiction treatment program is tailored to 30,60,90-day and 6-month residential treatment. For long-term success from prescription drug addiction, SouthCoast Recovery recommends the 90-day program.

Prescription drug addiction is a growing problem for teenagers and young adults. More youth are turning from the streets to their parents’ medicine cabinets and “Farming” for prescription drugs. These are then taken to parties, combined in a bowl, and the assortment is made available to other party-goers.

Prescription drug addiction affects people of all ages, race, sexuality and faith. SouthCoast Recovery recognizes the need for specialized drug and alcohol treatment programs. Individuals who suffer from vicodin addiction need a safe and supportive environment to restore health and balance. SouthCoast Recovery offers state-licensed, medically supervised detox for vicodin addiction. Individuals with prescription drug addiction undergo an initial mental health evaluation upon entering SouthCoast Recovery’s drug and alcohol treatment program.

SouthCoast Recovery believes that recovery is a transformation in all areas of life. The Vicodin Track program is now available during 30, 60 and 90-day residential treatment in addition to our drug and alcohol treatment programs at SouthCoast Recovery. The 90-day program is recommended for long-term success in recovering from depression. For more information on the Vicodin Treatment program, please call (866) 847-4506 or visit www.SouthCoastRecovery.com.

Hypertension or high blood pressure for many individuals is sometimes a consequence of using and abusing drugs and/or alcohol. G & G Holistic Addiction Treatment Program has recently implemented a new and innovative component to their comprehensive, holistic approach to the treatment of addicts and alcoholics.
 
Created by Dr. Harry Henshaw, G & G Holistic is now offering clients who suffer from hypertension the opportunity to learn how to treat their high blood pressure holistically. While it is important to have a client evaluated medically, G & G Holistic has a promising alternative to the use of medication for lowering blood pressure.

Hypertension is a problem that affects many individuals indeed one out of every three individuals in the US has hypertension. Due to the fact that there are little or no symptoms of high blood pressure, one third those that have the condition don’t even that they have it.

Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to stroke, heart attack, heart and kidney failure. Hypertension or high blood is defined as a elevated blood pressure reading greater than 120/80.

Be sure to come back to 12StepsAgain.com soon for Holistic Treatments Part 2, and learn holistic techniques that you can sue to lower your blood pressure.

Women living in New Jersey who need treatment for drug and alcohol addictions now have access to a new facility specifically designed for their needs. On Wednesday, April 15, at 11 am, Maryville Addiction Treatment Centers will celebrate the opening of Kell Hall for Women, 1903 Grant Avenue in Williamstown, New Jersey, with a ribbon cutting ceremony and open house. The facility will bring state-of-the-art treatment to women living with addiction. 

“Studies show that 92% of the women who are addicted to drugs and/or alcohol do not have access to treatment, and one of the barriers to treatment is the fact that there are so few available slots allotted for women in facilities,” explained Jim O’Brien, Executive Director of Maryville Addiction Treatment Centers. “It is our intention to remove that barrier by offering a safe environment specifically designed to address the unique needs of women.” It is important to understand that addiction is just as big a problem with women as it is with men. 

Kell Hall will be staffed by two counselors who cover the unit from 8 am until 8 pm, as well as one monitor for each 8-hour shift. A full medical staff with registered nurses, practical nurses and an ASAM certified physician is available to oversee the program 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.

The clinical programming is supervised by a Masters Level LCADC, while the counselors working in the unit have a Women Specialist Certification in order to better serve women with addiction problems. Women throughout the State of New Jersey are eligible to apply for admissions. For more information on Kell Hall and Maryville’s gender-specific treatment program, please call (856) 629-0244, extension 310 or 311.

A story investigated by WSB News, in Atlanta, reveals that while Miami may have been the main drug distribution point in the 80’s, the new distribution center for the eastern seaboard is Atlanta, Georgia.

“It may surprise many people that Atlanta is the new drug capital,” comments Mary Rieser, Executive Director of Narconon Drug Rehab, Atlanta Recovery Center. “However, those dealing with drug rehab and drug addiction have seen a shift from supply areas. Atlanta is the hub for the East Coast, unfortunately.” That is why the Atlanta Recovery Center is so important.

The director of Atlanta’s High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, Jack Killoran, agrees. “We are the source of supply for Miami. We’re no longer a consumer area. We are, literally, a supply area…Drug dealing in Atlanta is big business.”

“The Atlanta area is a major hub for the distribution, and for the movement, of large shipments of cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamine,” says Rodney Benson, Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta office of the DEA. “It’s a staging area, and a transshipment point.”

Atlanta has become the major hub for drug distribution because of the amount of interstate highways converging in the Atlanta Area. Recovery programs in Atlanta are becoming increasingly necessary. “All roads lead to Atlanta,” comments Ms. Rieser. “The factors making Atlanta the hub also include the tightened security at airports, which means drugs are now moving down the highways instead of the airports. Many drug networks are set up in quiet high scale neighborhoods, where no one would be aware of a meth or cocaine warehouse set up in a million-dollar home. Several homes have been raided that don’t store drugs, but bails and bails of cash. Dealers are treating this as big business and using Atlanta as their distribution center.”

If you or someone you know is in Atlanta and struggling with an alcohol or other drug problem, contact Narconon Atlanta Recovery Center today for immediate assistance.  Visit www.AtlantaRecoveryCenter.com or call 1-877-413-3073. Also, check out www.InTheRooms.com for a global recovery community

Sobriety is more than just not drinking or using heroin according to Joe Petri, who oversees a drug and center in Delray Beach, Florida. “Of course, the first step towards healthy and lasting sobriety is to stop drinking and using drugs. However, there is much more that needs to be done,” he remarked. Petri went on to explain that when it comes to ensuring lasting sobriety it is important for a person to substitute healthy activities for those destructive and harmful behaviors that destroy an individual’s life and that it starts with the proper treatment.

“In order to get sober, the heroin addict will have access to healthy options, that individual needs to have the proper rehab facility,” Petri said. “In this regard, on many different levels, Delray Beach is the absolute best place to find treatment for heroin. In many ways south Florida has earned the reputation of being the recovery capital of the United States if not the world.”

Petri has lead the way in establishing a treatment center for safe and healthy recovery in Delray Beach in part because of the variety of activities and support services that are available in the community. Delray Beach is home to a wide array of different recreational, entertainment and cultural options that are well suited to people who are committed to improving their lives, who are dedicated to developing and then maintaining true, lasting sobriety not only today but into the future as well.

“There are a number of different treatment centers for heroin in south Florida. We wanted to show everyone that it could be done at an affordable low cost and still show more care and compassion to the individual who seeks recovery,” Petri said.

For more information about heroin drug treatment in South Florida, be sure to visit www.HelpForHeroin.com and www.InTheRooms.com.

www.WhiteHouseDrugPolicy.gov is part of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which was established by the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. The ONDCP establishes policies and objectives for the Nation’s drug control program.

Below are just some of the free publications available to the public on the White House’s drug policy web page. The publications are available in PDF and HTML formats and range in topics from drug prevention to the public health consequences of Methamphetamine Laboratories. 

Publications currently available online:

Growing Up Drug Free: A Parent’s Guide to Prevention, Department of Education. A guide to assist parents in preventing drug abuse by their children.

Anabolic Steroids: Community Drug Alert Bulletin, National Institute on Drug Abuse. This publication alerts communities to the fact that steroid abuse is a growing problem among adolescents, and to the dangers of steroid abuse. 

Cannabis Youth Treatment Series, Vol. 1: Motivational Enhancement Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Adolescent Cannabis Users, Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. This manual provides an overview of the motivational enhancement therapy/cognitive behavioral therapy approach to treating adolescent marijuana users. 

InfoFacts: LSD, National Institute on Drug Abuse. This resource provides information on the use and effects of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD).

National Drug Control Strategy 2009, Office of National Drug Control Policy, January 2009. The goal of the Strategy is to reduce drug use in America by stopping use before it starts, healing America’s drug users, and disrupting the market for illegal drugs. In addition, this report discusses the substantial decline of drug use among America’s youth and within the work force.

For More information on the White House drug policy and the entire list of free publications, visit them online at www.WhiteHouseDrugPolicy.gov

According to a new study, Naltrexone, a drug usually used to treat drug addiction and alcohol dependency, may help treat kleptomaniacs as well. U.S. researchers stated earlier this week that the drug may be able to help subdue the urge to steal and the “thrill” that is thought to drive the actions of kleptomaniacs.

Naltrexone has shown positive affects on kleptomaniacs which reported significantly less stealing behavior as apposed to those patients who simply took a placebo. The study concentrated on 25 individuals who claimed they spent at least one hour a week stealing.

Currently, Naltrexone is sold under the brand names Depade and Revia. However, the drug is only approved for use against opiate abuse and alcoholism. Further research and studies could lead to the approval of Naltrexone for the treatment of kleptomania.  

In some countries including the United States, an extended-release formulation is marketed under the trade name Vivitrol. It should not be confused with naloxone, which is used in emergency cases of overdose rather than for longer-term dependence control. This is not to say that Naltrexone cannot be used to reverse an overdose from opioids, since being a full antagonist, it will reverse an overdose. However, given that Naltrexone is a longer-acting antagonist, naloxone would be a more ideal antidote in emergency situations.

It’s tough to come down from virtually being deified at the Olympics, but Phelps’ situation points out plenty of things to consider as we examine our laws and strategies for dealing with drugs and alcohol.

“Studies show that young people’s, especially male’s, brains are hardwired for bad choices, and being under the influence of anything – legal or illegal – leaves you open to making bad decisions about everything,” said Calvina Fay, Executive Director of Drug Free America Foundation, Inc.

“These studies along with this particular incident confirm that random student drug testing and other such strategies are needed to help deter youthful drug use,” Fay continued.

“Whether celebrities like it or not, they are looked upon by fans as role models, and I hope Mr. Phelps is sincere in his words of regret. Maybe he can now put his free time to better use and help further drug prevention messages through first leading by example, “ concluded Fay.

If you would like to set up an interview about this issue with Calvina Fay or other drug policy and prevention experts, please contact Lana Beck at (727) 828-0211 or (727) 403-7571.
Drug Free America Foundation is dedicated to fighting drug use, drug addiction and drug trafficking and to promoting effective sound drug policies, education and prevention. For more discussion, please visit our blog entitled “Michael Phelps – His Role and His Mistake”.

Earlier this month, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), in partnership with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), announced the availability of up to $1.2 million for new Drug-Free Communities Support Mentoring Program (DFC Mentoring) grants. An estimated 16 new Mentoring grants will be awarded (approximating $75,000 per grant for up to two years) to drug and alcohol prevention community coalitions representing a cross-section of rural, urban, suburban, and tribal communities. The actual award amount may vary, depending upon the availability of funds and the progress achieved by the awardees.

The purpose of the DFC Mentoring Program is to provide grant funds to effective current DFC grantees (mentors) to facilitate the development and/or expansion of new community drug prevention coalitions (mentees) which seek to prevent substance abuse among youth. By building the capacity of drug free community groups to assess the unique challenges facing their communities and assisting in the organization of a coalition-based response to those challenges, the mentoring system better prepares mentee groups to implement effective prevention strategies.

Ed Jurith, Acting Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, stated, “These mentoring grants support President Obama’s goal of aiding community development and organizing efforts across the Nation. This program will help keep young people safe and healthy by giving local leaders the resources they need to strengthen their communities and to keep children drug-free.”

To be eligible for a DFC Mentoring grant, interested drug prevention community coalitions must have been in existence for five years; be a current DFC grantee or grantee applicant; have achieved measurable results in youth drug and alcohol prevention; have dedicated staff, volunteers, or members to assist the mentee coalitions; and must demonstrate consensus and community support from local key sectors and stakeholders, including youth, parents, businesses, media, law enforcement, government, and religious and civic organizations, among others.

To review the grant application or its requirements, or to learn more about the Drug Free Communities Support Program, please visit, http://www.ondcp.gov/dfc. DFC Mentoring grants are awarded through a competitive peer review process.