I found this website for low cost treatment programs.  It lists facilities all across the country.  The cost is between 2 to 5K. 

http://interventionamerica.org/Inpatient_Rehab/

This website is for families to research what treatment facility would suit them best and also a guide of questions to ask your doctor.

https://www.drugabuse.gov/patients-families

Addiction: Learning to Forget.

I got this video from this site:
http://www.nature.com/nature/outlook/addiction/#video


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7Dsg1ZObFo

This talks about relapses.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_V_n3KZpmis

Stop Enabling
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLrm4f51I5o

How to let go
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRRaXaz-lXc

For Profit Prison Systems

For profit prisons are not working for our country.  First, the clothing has to be bought through their commissary system.  From what I understand that is a company started and owned by Bob Barker, yes, I'm outing Bob.  The problem is that the clothing doesn't last and costs much more than what you can buy it retail.  If I bought something that only lasted 3 months I dang sure wouldn't buy anything from them again.  Our prisoners don't have that choice.  Now if that isn't the behavior Bob Barker condones, then he needs to step in and get better quality goods.  I am giving him a chance to fix that problem.

Second, the medical care in the for profit prisons are lacking.  There is no differentiating between a violent criminal, drug addicts, or individuals with mental illness.  Everyone is lumped in together.  There are very few programs to help inmates to better their lives.  Why would you want a person to gain control over their lives if it meant they wouldn't come back like a revolving door.  I mean there aren't many classes to help inmates get treatment for mental illness or addiction.

Thirdly, it has been proven that for profit prisons are not as safe as federally run prisons.  There have been incidents where inmates are forced to fight, or fights break out and guards turn their backs.  Guards have been paid off so drugs can be brought in...it's just a mess and there doesn't seem to be any oversight.  As a reasonable person, I know this can't be all guards in the for profit prisons, but there are enough of them to give for profit prisons a bad name.  And Jeff Sessions wants to INCREASE the for profit prisons!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Is he just that naïve or getting a campaign contributions from these corporations? I think we need to know what his motives are.

Unfortunately the whole DOJ seems to have gone crazy.  Right now I just have the for profit prison experience.  I am wondering if the Federal system is just as jacked up.  If so then we need to start becoming active in making change.  When I sent a Christmas card to my son it was sent back twice.  Once because I used a red sharpie marker to write with.  The next card was sent back because it had glitter on it.  To be honest, I get it, I might have been sending drugs on the red or glittery part of the card.  Until this experience, I wouldn't have been that creative but I suppose others are.  So if the prison is going to be that picky about a Christmas card, then I think they could use that attention to detail to stop the other stuff and develop programs to help inmates from becoming repeat offenders.

http://www.salon.com/2013/09/23/6_shocking_revelations_about_how_private_prisons_make_money_partner/

I found this article to be really informative.

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/12/05/trump-sets-private-prisons-free 

This article describes how it all works.

YouTube Vidoe...Great Stuff

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ao8L-0nSYzg

A friend shot me this on facebook and I have heard this before but thought I would share it with the rest of you.

https://www.samhsa.gov/programs-campaigns

I found this and am currently looking into this site. 

https://www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics/trends-statistics

Alternative Treatments

In my initial post I mentioned alternative drugs.  I want to focus on Ayahauasca in this article and will be posting several sites that you can investigate.  Keep in mind that I am learning right along with you all.  It would be great if in your own reading you could post things that you find of interest.  Unfortunately there isn't a whole lot known about this vine and it is usually administered in South America.  I am NOT suggesting that we start having mass Ayahuasca parties to treat our loved ones, however, I do think that it should be researched.  Now that will mean some Dr. trekking down there and learning how to make it.  There are a few Drs. I know that I would pay good money to see doing that.  One in particular admitted to being in the Air Force, an officer, in Germany doing field exercises and the officers burned down their tent trying to start the wood stove.  The Drs.

If the research can be done, I don't see why it shouldn't be like any other drug.  Even if this is something that would have to be administered in-patient to monitor vitals.  There would also have to be a protocol for how to counter-act the effects, if needs be.  Also from this first article, I would think they would need to learn from several of the medicine men.  This would account for mild to severe reactions to the ayahausca ceremony.  I suppose then it would be a matter of finding the effective median range.  AND, for Gods Sake keep it out of big pharma's ability to charge 100's of thousands of dollars for it.  Well, enough of my random thoughts, let me know yours.  Updates will follow.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/shortcuts/2014/apr/28/ayahuasca-celebrities-usage-hallucinogenic-substance-death-british-teenager-Colombia

http://www.aya2014.com/en/2014/06/eight-myths-about-ayahuasca-debunked/

http://highexistence.com/cutting-edge-law-in-new-zealand-can-mean-the-beginning-of-cognitive-liberty-and-kickstart-the-psychedelic-renaissance/

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2017/03/24/Prescription-weight-loss-drug-may-help-with-opioid-addiction/6301490373701/

http://www.collective-evolution.com/2017/03/22/addiction-study-shows-we-might-be-completely-wrong-about-what-causes-it/

https://www.sovhealth.com/addiction/german-scientists-developing-painkillers-without-negative-effects/

Emmanuel Jal

https://www.facebook.com/EmmanuelJal/?pnref=story

I am posting this so that we can all see how much the Arts can help us overcome tragedy. I found his story and music to be an inspiration and I hope you will too.

Have a Blessed Day!

International Day of Peace

Just a reminder that The International Day of Peace is Tuesday, March 21st.  This is an annual event where cities all around the world come together for peace and ceasefire.  Since so many of our veterans have problems with addiction I hope we can come together for one day and send prayers up to our Creator for peace.  In addition, I would also like us to pray for justice because without justice you cannot have peace.

As with so many addicts, the issue with my son is relapsing.  This weekend was a bummer.  My son was to spend the weekend with his daughter.  After all the goodies were gotten, she was bored and wanted go home.  Of course my son was devastated.  He woke up in the hospital with alcohol poisoning.  At this point I'm not sure he used, I guess we will find out if they did a UA on him.  It really doesn't matter since he's on probation and isn't supposed to drink.  Later in the week I guess we will find out if there are to be any repercussions. 

I had a feeling that something was going to happen.  I actually woke up in the middle of the night and knew whatever it was, it had already happened.  Now in all honesty, I probably have been conditioned to it, but I hoped that I was wrong.  There are people who can just turn their backs after so long; I haven't gotten there yet.  Don't get me wrong if my child show up at my home in that condition, I will take them to rehab or if they get belligerent I will call the police, but that is mainly for the protection of everyone involved.  At this point I would rather know.  The day may come when I no longer feel that way, so please understand that I am not criticizing the family members who have had enough.  It's a hard and emotional journey. 

Have A Blessed Day!

Culture of Resistance and Use the Arts in Treating Addiction

I recently watched a documentary called, "Culture of Resistance," by Caipirinha Productions, and has been playing on Free Speech TV.  The film travels to several countries that have been war torn and shows how they are using the Arts to tell their stories.  There were cartoonists, poets, all types of musicians, and obviously film makers, all with the goals of telling their history, telling of what they witnessed, telling of injustices and to promote peace.  Not only are these people recording the history, they are in their communities teaching children, teaching women trades, or teaching the Culture of Resistance and what that means.  The one comment that sticks in my mind was the elderly woman who counseled her country to accept love so that hate will never again enter their country. There was a man making gun guitars out of AK-47's.  I would highly recommend this documentary.  But while I was watching I wondered if the Arts could help in dealing with the effects of addiction.  I mean if countries like Rwanda and the Congo are finding positive results, then why not.

Now I want to make it clear I am not talking about being in a psychiatric unit and making a wallet, unless you enjoy leather working.  I can tell you that there is a difference between a crafting project, that you don't really want to do, and using the Arts to tell your story.  No, these projects will be hard to see, read, or hear for those of us who have loved ones that are addicted, but if it is to be of any success it needs to reflect the reality of what addicts go through.  At the same time the emotional trauma that the families have gone through needs to be given the same attention.  That is also part of the Culture of Resistance; all people need representation if healing is to be accomplished. 

So I would like to put out to the community to send us songs, stories, poems, pictures of you artwork, photographs you have taken.  For those who may not feel they have talent, cooking, woodworking, and working with textiles are art forms too.  Send us a recipe or a how to video.  Pseudonyms are fine and you don't need to use names if writing a story.  There is no deadline so no pressure there.  Just send whatever you already have or start something today.  Hope to see some interesting stuff

Hello, my name is Katie and I am starting this blog so that we can begin a conversation about addiction. I am the mother of two addicted, thirty-something, children. After years of trying to understand and cope with it on my own, it's time to open up and try to find answers. Oh, I tried counseling, but got discouraged when my counselor almost dozed off. Recently, both of the kids went sideways and I used journaling to help ease the emotional stress. Not only did I come to understand how I felt, but why and how I needed to deal with the situation. During this time of reflection, I wondered if others might be willing to share their own experiences.

 

The number of individuals affected by addiction in this country is frightening, and can no longer be viewed as anything but an epidemic. So many times parents don't speak out for fear of being judged. Personally, I have been dealing with this for so long that I don't care who thinks what any more. Maybe if people do speak up we can help others to avoid some the pitfalls we fell into. As parents of addicted children, we are all in varying stages of emotional recovery. The first person we tend to blame is ourselves, no matter how many times our children and others tell us it's not our fault. I say, "as parents," but the sad reality is that addiction transcends every demographic in this country: black/white, wealthy/poor, straight/gay, and young/old. The reality is many children are having to care for their parents and younger siblings because of addiction. Grandparents are raising their grandchildren. One that I am very familiar with is not knowing for months on end where they are or if they are alive.

 

It is my hope that we might get recovering addicts and mental health/addiction professionals to join us in this discussion. The only way forward, that I can see, is to begin the honest, open, and probably painful conversation. Not only do we need to talk to heal but we need to listen. We must be ready to change how we treat addiction, we know that what is currently being done isn't working. Perhaps, we need to treat the whole family instead of just the addict. Please understand, I am not any kind of expert, only a parent of addicted children who would like to make a difference. My goal here is to get more answers, get more tools to help us cope, and bring this community together. Together, we will have a much louder voice and we can begin to demand results from our mental health professionals and social reform from our government.

 

Not only can we banned together to affect change in the legislation and the mental health community. By doing the research we can become the experts and sources of information. We cannot ignore what has and is working in other countries. If we become knowledgeable enough and strong enough politically the legislators will not be able to ignore us.  Some ideas may seem progressive but I urge us all to look at the statistics and data. In the interest of transparency, I am for legalizing marijuana, for a multitude of reasons. Why not use it to treat PTSD and addiction; for those two issues often go hand in hand. There are many different non-traditional medicines, Ayahauasca or Iboga. Yes, both of these are interesting options, but I do feel that they need much more exploration. Why not set up needle exchanges in all county health departments? If we have any hope for our loved ones, then we mustn't fail them in addressing the health risks of needle sharing...are we willing to risk HEP C or AIDES?

 

The bottom line is, if we banned together we can find solutions. Solutions for the parent who lays awake at night wondering what can or could I have done. Solutions for the children who are having to care for addicted parents and raising their siblings. Solutions for the addict who is homeless and in need of shelter, medicines, or help with rehab. We may find that this is a series of solutions depending upon recovery stages. We must be willing to move away from failed programs and embrace new programs that do work, willing to set aside pre-conceived ideas that have been proven false, and willing to see erroneous attitudes we ourselves may have held toward addiction.

The idea behind this article is to communicate. We have been silent long enough and now is the time to break that silence, come together, discover tools to help us cope, and just perhaps get strong enough to affect legislative changes. In our own way we have all been through hell. Please let's keep this positive, if I have an idea that sucks, then tell me why it sucks...explain why you strongly disagree. This is NOT for families to hash out their issues like I have seen on social media.  I realize there are many facets to addiction and no ones' story is the same and it is my sincere hope that we can deal with a good many issues on this blog. If there is a topic of interest to you please feel free to request information. If you have information please share it with us all. I will be the first to admit that I have been trying different things that haven't worked. I'm out of ideas and am at the point of, "What do I have to loose." All I do know is, if anything is going to get done, we, the people of this community will have to do it.

 

Sincerely 
Katie











 

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