The Canyon

When we talk about drug addiction and why it is a problem, we usually focus on the personal effects: health problems, financial problems, issues with family and relationships, lost jobs and opportunities. We don’t often talk about how others connected or only briefly connected to us suffer when we are a victim of drug and alcohol addiction. Today, we’ll talk about our actions under the influence and why they alone are enough to add up to a need for drug addiction treatment.

Drug Addiction Treatment and DUI

Most people associate a Driving Under the Influence, or DUI, charge with drinking and driving. Though this is one of the more common DUI issues since many don’t realize they are impaired when they get behind the wheel, it is just as common to get pulled over due to impairment by prescription drugs, marijuana and other common drugs. The accidents that occur due to bad choices made by a driver under the influence are exceedingly common and the victims, though they may often include the driver as well, also includes others who did nothing but end up in the wrong place at the wrong time: pedestrians, small children, mothers, fathers, grandparents…. The stories of loss due to DUI are endless and heartbreaking, and when the perpetrators aren’t killed in the accident, new and harsh laws are making sure that they spend plenty of time in prison suffering for their crime.

A Personal Story of the Effects of Drug Addiction

Linda was married for over a decade before her husband’s cocaine addiction affected their children. Though their marriage had suffered due to his infidelity under the influence and abusive behavior, they had both managed to keep the problem away from their children… or so they thought. When Linda’s husband cleaned out their savings while gambling on cocaine and lost his job a week later due to his erratic behavior, the addiction was still there and so, too, was his physical abuse. It was impossible for them to hide it from the kids when they moved, changed schools, and their father was around the house all the time. Though he didn’t technically use the drug in front of them, they still recognized the change in his behavior and, primarily, his anger that was amplified by the cocaine.

When Linda left him, he told her that all the behaviors she hated—the abuse, the cheating, the lying, the stealing from the family, yelling at the kids, the late nights, losing his job—all of it was because of his cocaine addiction and that it would all go away if he could stop. She agreed that all that was true, but having heard the promises of quitting before, she simply told him: “Go to a cocaine rehab. If you don’t, you can add us to the list of things you lost when you finally do get clean.”

Drug Treatment Now

If you are struggling with cocaine addiction or addiction to another drug, no one expects you to go through it alone. Contact a drug rehab today that can help you with your personal needs and proved treatment that will help you to get back on track before you hurt yourself or anyone else.

Do you have questions about dual diagnosis disorders?  Mental illness or addiction on their own would be a challenge to live with.  Having both is even more complex.  You need to know what to do and where to go for treatment.  Take a look at these frequently asked questions about dual diagnosis disorders.

Dual Diagnosis Disorder Questions

What Is A Dual Diagnosis Disorder

Which comes first, mental illness or drug addiction?  In many cases, the mental illness has come first.  People with a dual diagnosis often develop the addiction because they self-medicate with addictive drugs or alcohol.  They use more and more to mask the mental illness symptoms, and before long they can become addicted.  Not everyone with a mental illness uses drugs and alcohol to manage their symptoms.  Some people are more vulnerable to drug addiction than others.

Why Are The Mental Illness And Addiction Treated At The Same Time

Research has shown that people have a better recovery when both problems are managed at the same time.  Several years ago, people with a dual diagnosis were treated for their addiction first.  They needed to get stable with their sobriety before mental illness treatment was started.  Now, both are done simultaneously.

If the mental illness remains untreated for a while, it will remain a potent threat to sobriety.  Because a person with a dual diagnosis disorders usually self-medicates the mental illness, this underlying problem must be addressed immediately.

Why Did My Doctor Give Me Drugs For My Mental Illness

A doctor prescribing medication for someone with a dual diagnosis must be cautious.  Some anti-anxiety medications and sedatives are in an addictive drug class.  Many helpful medications for mental illnesses are safe for people with a dual diagnosis.  Check with your doctor to be sure he or she knows of your dual
diagnosis issues before they prescribe any medication for you.

Can Any Drug Rehab Center Treat My Dual Diagnosis Disorder

Some drug rehabs treat people with a dual diagnosis as well as those with just addiction.  A few newer drug rehab centers focus on dual diagnosis as their specialty.  You need to be sure that no matter where you go for drug treatment, you are treated by professionals who are trained for dual diagnosis.  If you see a place you’d like to try, ask if they treat dual diagnosis.  If not, you need to keep looking.  Leaving your mental illness untreated can dramatically lessen your chances of maintaining sobriety.

More Questions About Dual Diagnosis Disorders and Drug Rehab

If you find yourself with more questions than answers, you aren’t alone.  Recovering from a drug addiction and managing a mental illness is a tricky balance.  Contact the Canyon Drug Rehab to ask more important questions about drug treatment for someone with a dual diagnosis.

A story was recently published about a man in England who reported to police that he purposely committed a crime just to get the drug addiction treatment he needed and knew would be available in prison.

It’s a sad statement on health care availability when you feel like you have to rob a convenience store in order to get medical treatment. Unfortunately, even in the United States, it is often easier to get the help you need that way than to try to figure out how to pay for it.

Paying for Drug Addiction Treatment: Crime

Though it isn’t recommended that you perpetrate a crime specifically for the purpose of receiving the drug addiction treatment you need, it certainly seems that the laws are set up as if to say: “We only believe that your drug addiction is serious when it costs us money and since it costs less to put you in a drug rehab than prison, we’ll wait until you commit a crime before we help you.” California, for example, has had great success with the Prop 36 program that offers drug rehab to those who are charged with possession or other nonviolent crimes attributable to drug use. Though the California prison system is still extremely overcrowded, it is considerably less so than it would have been otherwise.

Paying for Drug Addiction Treatment: Insurance

If you do have insurance, make sure that you look closely at your policy or contact your insurance agent. Even if the whole bill isn’t covered, part of an inpatient drug rehab problem or the full cost of specific treatments may be included. For example, some health insurance companies will pay for outpatient treatment programs only or they will only pay for a detox centers if you have a doctor’s verification that you are physically addicted to a drug and experience withdrawal symptoms when you stop taking it. Insurance companies can be tricky with the language in their policies, so make sure to verify what you are eligible for before you enroll.

Paying for Drug Addiction Treatment: Family

Asking your family for a loan at the end of drug addiction is going to be difficult, if not impossible. You’ve likely abused any resource available from family and friends through the course of your drug addiction and no one wants to get burned twice. If anyone you know even has enough money to help you pay for what you can’t, consider asking them anyway. Do not allow them to give the money to you but ask them to pay the drug rehab facility directly. Set up a repayment plan for after you graduate and let them know that you intend to honor your debt by signing a written contractual agreement obliging you to pay. The worst that could happen? They’ll say ‘no’ and you’ll be no worse off than you are now.

So did the English man I mentioned above get the drug addiction treatment he sought when he robbed the convenience store? That still remains to be seen. The latest update is that he was being arraigned on charges of robbery, aggravated assault, terroristic threats, reckless endangerment and theft. His bail is 50,000 pounds… more than enough to pay for drug rehab.