Basis Inc

Drug addicts in movies tend to look seriously messed up: vampiric dark circles around their eyes, messed up skin or teeth, thin, pale, sickly. But the truth is that addiction is not always as gritty and underground as it seems. Regular people suffer from addiction. From the school nurse who’s addicted to prescription pain killers, to the junior lawyer who takes amphetamines to help him work seventy hours a week, to the mom who waits until the kids go to bed to drink a bottle of vodka, substance abuse problems often go unnoticed because they’re not always as obvious as one might expect.

Contrary to some beliefs, overcoming, or even controlling, addiction is not a simple matter of mind over body. In the beginning of drug use, the effects seem to be positive. Perhaps the user feels calmer, or more confident, or sexier, or happier. But as the effects wear off, the user needs more and more of the drug to achieve the same desired results. Thus, the addiction starts as a choice to use, but with continued exposure, the brain literally changes, making the drug an actual bodily need. The alterations to gray matter adjust the way someone makes decisions, affect judgment, and makes the user feel abnormal without being intoxicated.

Addiction is complicated, and not all addicts or addictions are the same. Addicts generally feel a compulsive need for alcohol or drugs, sometimes to the point of sacrificing other aspects of their lives, including careers and relationships. But the nature of addiction is more and more, so when a person finally spirals out of control and an addiction is uncovered, often doctors find that the true abuse started long before. Perhaps the bottle of vodka before routine began as a glass of wine. Maybe the junior lawyer began with caffeine pills. Brains become accustomed to the outside chemical input and begin to crave it. People with genetic predispositions towards addiction are more susceptible, but there’s no harm in examining the practices of you and your loved ones to ensure no habits blow up into addictions.

According to recent research, the number of elderly people in America suffering from addiction is rising. Approximately ten percent of people in this country abuse alcohol in some fashion, but the percentage of persons over sixty-five years old is nearly double that of the national average: closer to twenty percent. Because it is a real problem, there are some important things to know about substance abuse in people older than sixty-five.

Generally, there are thought to be two types of substance abusers in later life: those who started drinking earlier in life and have so far survived the hazards of alcoholism, and those who start drinking after they have reached a certain age. Aging sometimes causes depression in certain individuals, or anxiety, and alcohol and nicotine, or even prescription medication, can all be used to self-medicate away those negative thoughts in the older person’s mind. They may even feel calmer until the drug wears off and then want more, which creates the cycle of addiction. Add into the mix the fact that many elderly people live alone, don’t have a routine, and are often bored, and you have a perfect storm of factors that can lead to substance abuse.

Alcohol in particular affects older persons more than young healthy persons. The alcohol is absorbed at a higher rate in older people, so lower volumes create higher states of intoxication than they would in a younger person. This could mean that lifetime drinkers who consume their normal amount of booze will suffer greater effects, and that elderly people whose alcoholism is triggered by a big life event like the death of a spouse or child, retiring from work, significant hearing or vision loss, or other potentially traumatic changes aging people must endure, will likely feel the effects of even light alcohol abuse more severely than they expected.

To help an elderly family member cope with addiction, get them counseling right away to get at the root of the issue causing the self-medication or addictive tendencies. Group therapy can be beneficial as well.

In today’s world, with health insurance more out of reach than ever and unemployment taking away employer provided insurance coverage, we the people must take responsibility for the big and little surprises in life.  These surprises can befall any member of our family at any moment.

Preventive health care is one of the best safeguards against major medical catastrophic. Preventive health care takes time and thought, and it just seems so unnecessary to go to the doctor when you are well and healthy.  But interestingly enough, that is the best time to make visit to the medical professional. This is also the time to utilize emergency cash.  While preventive health care is not cheap, it is less expensive than a major disease that could have been prevented by front end care.

Some of the major systems—cardiovascular, pulmonary, digestive, female/male—have standard preventive care. Men and women alike should have regular stress tests and other heart health care to keep abreast of disease potential. If there is a family history of coronary disease of any kind, the preventive care must be stepped up.

The American Heart Association has data showing the death rates from various types of cardiovascular disease have declined, and one main reason is that people are making positive changes in their life styles as well as regular testing at the doctor’s office. Adults who are over forty and have a risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) should be assessed every five years, and more frequently if the factors are deteriorating.

Women know that annual mammograms are recommended after age forty, and before that age if there is a family history of breast cancer. For male and female, a colonoscopy is recommended for preventive care every one or three years depending on the person’s age, family history, and any abnormality that may present itself.

What does it mean when studies report that addiction and depression are comorbid conditions? It means that patients with one condition typically have the other condition as well. Is one causal while the other one is typically the result of the other? The answer to this question is more complicated. Studies have shown that women are more likely to have depression or another mood disorder prior to their addiction. Men are more likely to develop the addiction first, and then fall into depression. While it is possible that one does often cause the other, it is certain that once they are comorbid, the symptoms of each condition worsens the other.

Both addiction and depression can be managed through similar treatments. Certain kinds of therapies, like cognitive behavioral therapy and supportive counseling, are two methods that help patients control their addictive and depressive behaviors. Cognitive behavioral therapy helps patients change their thought patterns, which in turn helps them change their behaviors.

Here is an example of how depression and addiction may interact and how they can be managed. Counselors who screen patients for pornography addiction ask their patients to evaluate how they felt the first time they viewed pornography. Patients sometimes report that they felt stressed, depressed, or worthless. To help them overcome their addiction and to help them prevent a relapse, counselors help their patients to practice techniques that emphasize planning ahead and mood regulation. The patient might be asked to plan their day or their week and try to anticipate the times when they might feel those same feelings of anxiety or depression again. These times might be right before a big project is due or when they have a lonely evening to themselves. Patients can plan in advance how they will deal with these situations.

Medications are also available, both to help patients manage their depression and to help them overcome addiction, especially drug addiction. Because patients with comorbid addiction and depression are more at risk for suicide, it is important for them to receive the proper treatment and support from friends, family, and doctors.

Many people take prescription medicine for granted, thinking that it’s safe in their medicine cabinet and no one would think to use it other than the way the label describes. However, from 2004 to 2008 emergency rooms saw a 152 percent increase in visits caused by abuse of the pain killer oxycodone according to a study released in June 2010 by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention along with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

That’s not even the scary part of the study – results showed that the increase of ER visits for oxycodone was even higher for those age 21 and younger. A federal survey of high school students revealed that one in five used a prescription drug recreationally, without obtaining an actual prescription. Most of those individuals were Caucasian, leading experts to believe that, in communities where health care is more accessible and affordable for the income ratio, these children are raiding their parents’ medicine cabinets.

Unfortunately it doesn’t stop at high school students. Freshman at Arizona State University, and California native, Joey Rovero died of an overdosed and lethal combination of OxyCotin, Xanax and alcohol. Joey actually had a prescription for the drugs, selling portions to roommates and keeping the rest for himself. He apparently told his girlfriend that he wasn’t doing anything illegal (since he shunned illegal drugs) because “I’ve got a prescription. It comes from a doctor.”

The increase in recreational use of oxycodone and other pain medications among teens and young adults is a result of this misplaced feeling of safety because they have a prescription from a doctor. Even when the prescription is not their own, teens have a false sense of security from the fact that someone they know is taking the drug and doing fine.

Education is key to preventing traumatic results. Parents should keep prescriptions drugs locked up safely and inform their children of the dangers these drugs hold if not taken properly for a medical condition.

You’ve discovered that a loved one has a drug addiction and she needs a residential drug rehab program – you know that an outpatient program just won’t give her the discipline she needs to overcome this. The problem is, she doesn’t have insurance or a steady job and your family can’t afford to pay for rehabilitation, limiting your options in a number of ways.

However, you might be surprised to find that there are several facilities around the country that provide free or low cost drug rehabilitation residence programs. A great place to start your search is ChooseHelp.com. Select treatment locations by state and then select the “low cost” option to find information on facilities in your state that provide free or discounted services.

One such nationwide facility is The Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center ministries. ARC services are in-residence and focus primarily on providing participants with basic necessities while teaching them to live a life free of substance abuse and addiction. The program includes a clean and healthy place to live, meals, worth therapy programs, edifying leisure activities, counseling and spiritual guidance. The program is based in Christian fundamentals and encourages a relationship with God as a part of the healing process.

Teen Challenge is another nationwide program that provides free residential rehabilitation programs. The name can be a bit confusing, but Teen Challenge provides substance abuse programs for both teens and adults. Most states have separate facilities for teenage boys, teenage girls and adult men, with nearly 200 facilities across the nation. Teen Challenge is also a faith-based spiritual program, focusing on improving five areas of a person’s life – spiritual, emotional, physical, social and educational.

There are many other facilities and programs available for free or little charge, depending on where you live and how far you’re willing to travel. The Chicago area alone has over 10 such facilities in the metropolitan area.

Help is available for your loved one even if you can’t afford to pay for it. No excuses – don’t delay in getting her on the path to recovery as soon as possible.

It’s not easy facing the possibility that a loved one may have an addiction to drugs or alcohol, but in the event that you realize that is the case, you have to make the effort to approach that person and convey your concern.

The whole process may not go over well. After all, with an addiction comes emotional and mental instability, caused both by the drugs and the underlying cause that led to the addiction in the first place. However, that’s something you’re going to have to get over because, whether she knows it or not, your loved one is depending on your help.

First, do some research on the addiction – the effect it has on a person, the underlying causes and what steps needs to be taken to overcome it. Whatever the addiction may be, you need to have a clear understanding of every stage of the addiction and recovery (including withdrawals) so that you can be a strong support system for your loved one.

Next, develop a number of possible solutions. Look into residential and outpatient rehabilitation programs in your area. Research how much they cost and how to pay for it (insurance, help from others, a low cost or free program, etc.). Find programs that appeal to her approach to life, such as a program based in a spiritual outlook or one that avoids matters of faith and focuses on the individual. Have several options available to suggest.

Take time to plan what you want to say. In fact, it may be helpful to write it down, though it’s better to confront your loved one in person rather than writing them a letter. You need to gather your thoughts and how you want to approach the matter. Think of possible reactions your friend or family member may have and decide how to counteract them.

Finally, approach your loved one in a comfortable environment where he will feel loved and supported, rather than accused and judged. Having your support is an important foundation to his recovery process.

The HIV virus spreads through sharing of injection equipment through careless and casual solutions by injection drug users (IDU), and does not limit itself through sexual contact alone. However, even drug intoxication by IDUs can affect the mental state and judgment of the addicts and subsequently cause careless sexual behavior and unsafe sex. Most HIV infected drug users also have the Hepatitis C virus (HCV). The HIV and HCV co-infection accelerates deterioration of health and speeds up liver damage and ultimately death. Therefore origins of acquiring the HIV virus among drug users, traces itself to mixed causes clearly suggesting to direct or indirect influence of Substance Abuse.

In the US, one million people are living with HIV/AIDS. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), in a 2005 research update, clearly indicates that about one third of these cases are related with injection Substance Abuse. While all people are susceptible to HIV infection, some portions in concentrated populations of African Americans and the Hispanics are at high risk of acquiring this virus. Reasons for this phenomenon have been traced to these populations sharing similar social and economic backgrounds, which are conducive to intensive Substance Abuse. A 2003 survey indicates that half of the total AIDS cases in the US account to African Americans.

NIDA’s research based on preventive measures to HIV, such as community outreaches among the high risk population, their drug addiction treatment, testing for blood borne infections and counseling, have proven to be very effective. Among the inner city youth, school and community based intervention programs have shown positive results in terms of reduced Substance Abuse, risky behaviors and has introduced safe sexual practices. Drug Abuse treatment programs, Detox centers and Rehabs have decreased Substance Abuse and the resulting risky social behaviors and the practice of unsafe sex. Remarkable medicines such as Buprenorphine, Naloxone, Methadone and the like are cleverly used by the medical staff during Detox of the addict, which relieves the body of the habit of the drug(s), painlessly and effectively.

The high rate of co-morbid occurrences and conditions of Substance Addiction with Mental Illnesses has been an intriguing field of study by research scientists and practicing mental health professionals worldwide and findings have been alarming. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) indicates in a 2007 research update that six in ten people abusing Substance also suffer from a form of mental illness. While people with anxiety or mood disorders are twice as prone to be drug addicts, another perspective saw drug addicts to be twice as prone to have anxiety or mood disorders.

The cause of co-morbidity of Substance Addiction with Mental Illness does not lie in either one or both of the conditions alone. Research indicates that genetic, biological and environmental factors play an important role in giving rise to both conditions, in most cases eventually. The variant of the gene responsible in the individual to cause schizophrenia proper, is also activated by some powerful drugs to create the same hallucinogenic and psychotic effects that can rarely be reversible. This prolonged abnormal state of mind and symptoms can intermittently give rise to other clinical conditions like severe paranoia, mood disorder, depression and anxiety. The brain in turn functions in a similar manner, where certain common areas are affected by both drugs and mental illness. This means that Substance Abuse can seriously alter the brain which may eventually risk a mental illness. Environmental factors like stress and trauma are also known to have played a great role in leading to this co-morbid condition. Co-morbid conditions of Substance Addiction with Mental Illness are generally prevalent among teenagers, but this condition may be carried on into the further years of life.

Complications arising due to the interacting symptoms between Drug Addiction with Psychiatric Illnesses have required dedicated research, complicated mechanisms of evaluation, treatment and rehabilitation for the addict/patient. Not all treatment centers today yet, is equipped or able to treat both conditions together effectively, but there are some hospitals and rehabs that have the expertise and competent medical staff, and are able to treat this co-morbid condition effectively and with good results.

Pregnancy is the most important time to take care of body and mind. Everything that goes into the body will affect the health of mother and fetus, and most women make lifestyle changes to accommodate their pregnancy.

Eating healthy, whole foods, getting enough rest, and regular exercise will help ensure that nothing is Perhaps the most impacting change a woman can make during their pregnancy is to stop drinking alcohol, and taking drugs of any kind. Not only can drugs and alcohol cause problems during pregnancy and childbirth, but will also affect the baby before and after it is born.

Among other things, drugs and alcohol can affect the birth weight and size of the baby, development and function of heart, lungs and brain, and cause other physical, emotional and learning disabilities or challenges. It is ideal to quit drinking or taking drugs before pregnancy occurs, and as soon as the mother finds out she is pregnant when pregnancy happens unexpectedly.

It is critical to consult a doctor before taking drugs of any kind, including prescription and non-prescription medications. Supplements should even be taken with caution, under medical supervision.

For some mothers-to-be, it can be difficult to make the necessary lifestyle changes for a healthy and successful pregnancy because behavior changes are not always easy to make. For those who may need treatment to stop drinking or doing drugs while pregnant, admitting there is a problem is the only first step. Because sobriety is a choice, it is critical to commit to treatment and staying sober; facing a substance abuse problem will help both mother and baby, during pregnancy and throughout parenthood.

Asking for help and talking about the problem with a trusted friend or family member will make the first steps toward recovery much easier. A doctor may be able to recommend a treatment program or clinic, and can help ease withdrawal symptoms.

Making changes to routines, social rituals and other lifestyle habits is also necessary for a successful recovery. Counseling can help make emotional changes to guarantee sober living, and support groups will provide the moral support critical to avoid a relapse.