Heroin Addiction Therapy

America's prisons are overpopulated and the population is growing each year with increased drug activities. Low level drug offenders, comprised of 39 percent of the overall prison population. In the article " Department of Justice low-level drug offenders: a defense perspective" defines low-level drug offender as one who has been convicted drug trafficking offense but has no prior commitment, history of violence, known involvement of sophisticated criminal activity, significant "public risk factor," and pending detainer (Katz 28) . This group isn't hardened criminals and don't live a life of crime; rather they are motivated by profit. They are less likely to return to prison when compared to hardened criminals. The length of drug sentences

have had a positive drug test while they are in prison, they could be getting out of prison back into the community, or they just might not meet all the qualifications for the residential drug abuse program (Federal Bureau of Prisons, 2012).

During an anonymous Methadone addiction study, a participant articulated experiences with addiction stigma: “They look at you like you’re a drug addict and then they look at you like they can treat you any way they want. You know what I mean. You’re a drug addict. Well, you’re lower than I am if you use drugs.” (Earnshaw, et. al 117). In addition to affecting the lives of patients, addiction impacts the community’s functionality. Interestingly, frequent use of psychoactive medications by patients of all ages can lead to addiction, but administration of these medications is a valuable technique of treatment for ailments. Medications can provide relief from discomfort that a patient may experience, nevertheless while causing an alteration in

Opiate addiction is much different than that of other substances that are abused and can cause addiction. Opiate addiction is a serious problem in our country and will become an even bigger problem in the years ahead. The persistent use of opiates and is thought to be a disorder of the central nervous system. Though opiate painkillers are prescribed by physicians, opiate addiction is an insidious medical disease. But since opiate addiction is far more than a behavior problem, treatment requires more than just therapy.

Methadone maintenance essentially began with an experiment in 1963. Dr. Vicent Dole and Dr. Marie Nyswander conducted this experiment at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research. At that time, New York City was the home of half the country’s heroin addicts. (Awards & Honors) Through research and experimentation and collection of data, it was found that methadone could not only be used as a painkiller but also as a means of treating heroin addicts through the withdrawal stages of detoxification.

Resting on the border of Palm Beach and Broward Counties is the nondescript community of Deerfield Beach, Florida (FL). This quiet community has plenty of beach access as well as several large planned residential communities. It also has its fair share of issues related to drug abuse and addiction.

Fresno County is located in the central regions of California (CA). Current estimates put the population at around 965,000 which represents a huge 20% increase over the last 14 years. Most of the population growth came from the Hispanic and Asian communities, which now represent over 33% of the total population. Given the County 's proximity to both Sacramento and Los Angeles, they too suffer from a large number of crimes and death related to drug abuse and addiction.

Throughout the last few years a very dangerous drug has burst into mainstream attention, heroin. All throughout the country, there are numerous people suffering from addiction to the drug, and even dying. Heroin is a highly addictive drug that is relatively cheap and in many places, easy to find. In many big cities, it seems that almost everyone knows someone who has been on heroin, or a mutual acquaintance of a user. Numerous organizations have their opinions on how to stop the epidemic from spreading before it reaches an even vaster number of people. With that being said, not all of these options are effective. Some argue the viewpoint that users should be jailed until they learn the consequences of what they have done; while other disagree

Alcohol abuse and Opiate addiction continues to impacts millions of lives in the United States every day. The situation is so bad that government and private partners are coming together to establish treatment centers for opiate addiction. Many states in U.S have more than 20 drug treatment centers and rehabilitation facilities.

Being able to leave the addition becomes almost impossible for many addicts because of the lack of options they have when it comes to where they can get the treatment. According to an article by The Pea charitable trust those public programs that offer suitable treatments reach 23%, being worse in the private sector where there is much less (The Pew Charitable Trusts). Although there are very effective treatments with high indices of effectiveness to help the patient to get out of the addiction, the truth is that there are few places where patients can get this treatment.

The diversity and scope of individuals’ experiences with addiction is infinite; addiction targets all walks of life, regardless of age, gender, socioeconomic status, etc. Addiction itself manifests in a variety of contexts in a person’s life, including inter- and intrapersonal function, employment, social, and environment, and observable changes can offer clues and insights into progression, severity, and levels of needed treatment (Wahler & Otis, 2014). To properly aid in the treatment and recovery of individuals with substance use disorders, counselors must employ a variety of effective tools and insights, to effectively align an individual’s addiction with a complete diagnostic

A couple fellow classmates in high school and college were always taking some kind of pills. Myself not knowing much about drugs, I thought they were prescribed. Later, I found out that they weren’t prescribed. My classmates were using them for themselves and also distributing to other students. I never spoke up about it, since I never witnessed the distribution but rumors go around. For example, one time in high school, I witness this kid put 5 white rectangular pills in his mouth, from my point of view I thought that was excessive. The next thing we know this kid is just acting totally different, but somehow he manages to keep a low profile and the teachers don’t notice. Prescription drug abuse is on the rise as we have seen on the news if you don’t live under a rock. Teens and adults have managed to get their hands on these prescriptions. People abuse prescription drugs because they think they will have a better time

Addiction is the reliance on a routine. There are many addictive stages. Addiction, as it comes along, becomes a way of life. The persistent use of the substance causes to the user serious physical or psychological problems and dysfunctions in major areas of his or her life. The drug user continues to use substances and the compulsive behavior despite the harmful consequences, and tries to systematically avoid responsibility and reality, while he or she tends to isolate himself/herself from others because of guilt and pain (Angres, & Bettinardi-Angres, 2008). All these characteristics led to the conclusion that drug addiction is a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use. It is considered as a brain disease because drugs change the structure of the brain, and how it works. Every drug affects different systems of the brain. For example, in the case of cocaine, as the brain is adapted in the presence of the specific drug, brain regions responsible for judgment, decision-making, learning, and memory begin to physically change, making certain behaviors “hard-wired.” In some brain regions, connections between neurons are pruned back. In others, neurons form more connections. (Martin, 2000) These brain changes can be long-lasting and can lead to the harmful behaviors seen in people who abuse drugs.

Illegal drugs and the effects of drug dealing, drug use and drug addiction on families/communities.

When a person takes a drug the chemicals affect the brain by interfering with how the neurons send messages. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the structure of Marijuana and Heroin mimic a natural neurotransmitter which tricks the receptors into allowing the drug to activate neurons inside the brain which interferes with messages and leads to abnormalities of behavior. With other drugs such as cocaine there is an abnormally large amount of neurotransmitters released which disrupts communication channels. Drug abuse can rewire brain connections, decrease synapse activity and cause addiction. The American Psychiatric Association says that addiction is a complex condition, and a brain disease that is manifested by compulsive substance use despite harmful consequence. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) found that 21.5 million American adults (aged 12 and older) battled a substance use disorder in 2014. Addiction to drugs has been a growing issue in America, and is causing jails to become overcrowded. The Bureau of Justice Statistics found that more than half of federal prisoners were incarcerated for drug crimes in 2010. This leads to the question of whether the justice system is doing an adequate job of dealing with drug addiction. Instead of incarcerating people for drug abuse, an alternative is treating victims by rehab and treatment. This paper will exam why treatment is the superior option for