NFT: Anbody have close family suffering from "the pill epidemic"

Ocean County is off the hook with heroin. 90% of the kids that are hooked on herion started taking pills first. Some kids are originally prescribed them, get addicted, and it's a wrap. Dr eventually stops writing script then they buy illegally. Run out of money then turn to the much cheaper drug heroin.... I run into kids dailey that take trips with the friends to Florida, where allegedly, you can easily obtain a script from a Dr for as much of a certain pill as you want. They all get scripts, pills, then bring them back to nj to sell and use. It's a shame. This heroin epidemic in OC and all throughout NJ I'd all due to pain pills.

almost 90% of the kids i know hooked on heroin started off popping percocets or vicodins for their wisdom teeth then couldnt afford to keep paying dirty Dr's or buying it off the ST. Turned to heroin, and oh boy what a mountain that is to climb to recover. One kid who had cancer said that going through chemo was easier then trying to kick his opiate habit. Thats scary

in youth heroin use. When I was in HS kids getting caught sneaking beers while tailgating for football games was considered a big offense, now they're OD'ing with needles sticking out of their arms... very disturbing.

The problem is huge. I watched this happen to a family member's 18 year old. I don't want to be the big bummer here but, one rehab doesn't seem to work in most cases. The girl I know did six stints in three years. Your uncle only has one step in hell right now, let alone two feet and the journey.

My advice is simple yet may sound somewhat stupid. For the most part, it's out of his hands. Your uncle needs to seek out a support group. There are many sprouting up that deal with adolescent addiction for parents and other family members. You really feel all alone, and it's good to have people who have been there or are going through the same thing. It helps. People tend to point fingers and parents feel as if they caused this to happen, or did something wrong. For the most part, they didn't.

The second thing is to go to his doctor. The stress he's going to experience is beyond belief. His blood pressure, diet, sleeping patterns are going to be affected. He'll need to keep an eye on all his numbers.

Good luck to him and the family. Keep me posted.

Is the speed with which it has taken off. It had been growing for awhile buy it has mushroomed Over the last few years. Coke was the recreational drug of choice after weed in much of VA. Almost overnight it became pills and then heroin with some inroads for meth. Coke sucks but not nearly as addictive or as lethal for the average user as Meth or heroin.

with lots of money who don't fall into this, so this group of people are the least likely for me to feel sorry for. Good luck, I guess.

Maybe sometimes, when someone asks for kind words, not being an asshole would seem to be the best option.

One fell prey for 2-3 years, one has had issues since the late 90s.

Fortunately it never went beyond that.

Unfortunately it's been disastrous enough as is.

and I know kids who have no family(and little support)who succeed.

I've seen drugs(and alcohol)destroy many lives and there is seldom a common thread. Whether its poverty or exposure to temptation some people make it through and some don't.

I don't know if I feel sorry for many people anymore...but I do so hate to see a life thrown away.

the ones footing the emotional bill. The kids are living in another world. They don't seem to care or understand what they are doing.

In comment 11625764 Randy in CT said:

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with lots of money who don't fall into this, so this group of people are the least likely for me to feel sorry for. Good luck, I guess.

I don't get your point. Did you come on this thread to say you don't feel less sorry for people who deal with drug addiction if they come from a wealthy family than you do with drug addicts who come from poor families, because you know some people from wealthy families who don't have to deal with drug addiction? Don't you know any people who come from poor families who don't have to deal with drug addiction? What the fuck does the fact that they are wealthy have to do with your level of sympathy for drug addicts?

Why even bother coming on the thread at all, if your only point is that rich people are less deserving of sympathy than poor people? Do you really think BillyBoy needs to hear "Good luck, I guess" from you? Is that your idea of being supportive? Or is it just your way of saying, "I really don't give a shit about your family, but I needed to read my name on a BBI thread so I posted on it anyway."

If you haven't got anything constructive to contribute on a thread about someone dealing with drug addiction in the family, maybe you should just stay the fuck off the thread.

but Randy, hands down you win the award for " I got nothing of substance to add so I'll make a guy who is pouring his heart out, feel worse, while I feel better about myself"

have problems with pills. My brother was injured on a construction job in the nineties. He doctor shops and goes to the emergency rooms to get pills. The ER'S very rarely will give him any painkillers now. There is a lot of denial from people who abuse pills.
He has been in shelters after losing his apt. The shelters are filled with drug addicts and other criminals. Sad story.

nowadays with heroin addiction is the different methods it can be used to get a user high. The only previous method to using heroin was by injecting it with a syringe which makes it seem dirtier and more dangerous. Now they can snort and smoke it and get just as high without feeling it isn't that bad since they aren't injecting it which is not the case. It is a huge problem and something has to be done.

I know a few people who were addicted to painkillers but luckily most of them never used heroin. I know a few who took suboxone to help them quit.

My soon to be ex-wife was hooked on Percocet after a few back pain mysteries that never truly revealed themselves. Her doctor put her on Percocet and she lived on it, to an extent far far more than I realized. She would take it all day and be almost comatose while I was at work, then at night she would complain about her pain, dope up and keep sedated. I felt badly for her pain but had no idea it was more her body asking for more pills. She was up to 10 pills a day until her therapist finally told me something had to be done. We went through very intense withdrawal (we because I got to be there to help her through it) for several days and it was absolutely draining. She can never take another opiate for pain ever, or the addiction will take hold instantly.

I came to find out a lot of the losers she hung out with and got high with in high school are now all pushing/using oxycontin to the point of multiple prison terms, deaths, destroyed lives, etc. These were all well to do families whose parents were just plain shitty and let the kids do what they wanted and this was the result.

My wife's battle with percocet ended only to devolve into a truly bizarre 2 year period of ambien overdosing (again she took it during the day to get high unbeknownst to me) that ended with her crashing her car, then my car, then totaling her new car and almost killing herself and another driver while overdosing on ambien. I was forced to drive home from Albany about 10 hours after I arrived for camp after I found out she had been arrested and tossed in jail for DUI, causing an accident and apparently cussing out a magistrate and the arresting officers because her mind was so far gone on ambien.

During those two ambien years, our marriage just ripped apart, her behavior when on it was the stuff you see on movies and then some. Broken doors, smashed chairs, broken phones, a broken windshield, a broken garage door, wine bottles tossed downstairs and at appliances and all over our kitchen and this is on SEVERAL SEVERAL occassions. All of them she claims to have no memory of but countless days I woke up to some bizarre mess and her in a haze.

I think this speaks to the addictive personality, she has a brother in similar trouble for almost the identical things and the one thing they share is an enabling look the other way mother who just tosses money at them and always tell them how great they are doing. She is truly an awful parent in that way and I put a lot of this at her feet. My wife is supposedly in AA now but she has called me drunk on a few occassions rambling on about God knows what so clearly she doesn't take arrest, jail time, license restriction, court ordered classes, fines and countless court dates and legal fees enough of a deterrent. I moved out 5 months ago after she got out of jail and proceeded to try to kick over head stones in a historic VA town we were visiting after we were out celebrating with our friends. I had no idea she had downed nearly 2 bottles of wine while we were out having fun and out came the gnarly angry violent drunk I had hoped was gone. I had no choice but to leave, it killed me, still kills me and seeing her kill herself in numerous ways and endanger me forced my hand.

On the surface we appeared to be a happy couple and she painted herself as a successful career woman and happy wife but she was most of the time a drugged up or drunk mess only cleaning up long enough to do a few jobs, do some chores and have a few days of normalcy which would then devolve into some odd behavior and just stupidity for several days, then it was "i'm done drinking" and she'd eat well for 3 days, get upset and then dive into junk food, pills, booze or all three. It's her inability to cope with stress and her inability to express much verbally when things go badly for her or those around her. I think some is genetic, but I know for damn sure if she had a mother who was less concerned with what celebrities were wearing what and where her next expensive house item was coming form they may have had a chance. Her mom painted over all mistakes, never held them accountable and always bailed them out with not as much as a lecture or stern word it was always "mommy will fix it". Lovely woman, great mother in law, terrible person to be raised by though. She will soon have two of her 3 adult children moving back into her house because both have spouses who left due to the substance abuse and I honestly think she's perfectly OK with that.

I really feel for you guys, and I'm scared shitless at trying to figure out how to best protect 3 kids from this shit.

We didn't have a whole of of touchy/feely parenting at home, my grandfather rule with an iron boot that he had no qualms about beating you over the head with (figuratively) if you got out of line. To the point where even taking an aspirin or Tylenol was considered weakness, pain was considered natural. I always thought it was funny and a little extreme, but I guess the further you stay away from the slippery slope the better.

In comment 11625764 Randy in CT said:

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with lots of money who don't fall into this, so this group of people are the least likely for me to feel sorry for. Good luck, I guess.

I guess you didn't feel bad for rich parents who had their kids killed by Adam Lanza. Some people are so retarded.

The kids were friends and ran in the same circles. Both started with the pills then moved on to heroin. One, my friends son, is an addict, has been in trouble with the law on many occasions, and stole $40k from his grandmother. There's still hope for him though. He has support and family helping him. The other, facing a lot of time in prison, hung himself. Both did work for me when I was building my house. They both seemed like good, normal kids. Very sad.

It's a huge problem. Take a look at the number of Oxy scripts written in this country each year. It's mind boggling. I saw something on Nat Geo channel about how Florida has Oxy clinics all over the state where there are armed guards in the parking lot and dealers and junkies just outside. Everyone knows these are pill mills for doctor shopping addicts and dealers but the legislators won't pass laws against them. Guess there's too much money for the pharmaceutical companies that make the pills. Apparently, Florida supplies most of the eastern seaboard with illegal pills. (At least that's what Nat Geo said on TV).

Then there's the benzos, which are as hard, if not harder to ever get off. Anti depressants and speed drugs for "add" are also everywhere. I mean, this great nation of ours is loaded on pills.

Meth is terrible too.

I'm terrified of the pill problem in this country. We should all be terrified. It doesn't discriminate.

I have a close friend and family member under its spell. And there's nothing I can do about it.
Pay no mind to anyone showing insensitivity on this thread. Some people float through life dodging rain drops, I guess.

Stick to "contributing" on threads where you fight the good fight on alien existence, fucking loser.

that took a lot of courage

In comment 11625995 Headhunter said:

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that took a lot of courage

Ditto. You got some serious sack to endure that and get out. Pray for your ex-wife. As hard as it seems to believe sometimes, I don't think anyone wants to be an addict.

.

“Benzodiazepines and the opiates both can cause death when you take too much of them. But ... they make each other stronger. And so one plus one doesn't equal two; it equals three or four."
- Dr. Michael Kelley

Truly frightening the power of addiction these substance hold.
Link - ( New Window )

That was a shocking and really rough read. I feel really bad that you've been going through all this.

And Headhunter is right. It was courageous of you to post it.

I'm very sorry for everyone who has to suffer through this.

I had shoulder surgery and the doctor prescribed me 60 percocets.

I took every one of them, even after the pain was gone. I probably needed 20 for the pain, at most.

I never felt compelled to seek more out when they were gone, but that high was definitely strong enough where I can see people predisposed to addiction or who just liked the feeling for whatever reason motivated to acquire more pills by any means necessary.

I don't know anyone I'm aware of who has a problem, but I wouldn't be surprised by anyone.

I really hate to read what you have been and are currently going through. It seems like only yesterday I recall you posting about getting married and how excited you were. I feel for you and wish there was something I could do or say to help. If you ever need someone to lend an ear just to listen, all you have to do is ask. You and your wife will be in my prayers.

Everyone on this thread has my thoughts and prayers.

Everyone is capable of posting something that they don't intend for it to sound like it does when read in written form.

In comment 11626148 steve in ky said:

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Everyone is capable of posting something that they don't intend for it to sound like it does when read in written form.

Sometimes we all say something off the top of our heads without thinking it through.

who go down that road. But it seems like for a lot of users it still starts as a recreational thing, figuring that prescription drugs are maybe a little worse than weed but well short of cocaine or the like. The problem is they're more addictive than traditional recreational drugs and what starts out as recreation can easily become habit.

And there's really no easy solution. Incarceration? Other than maybe (maybe) drying them out, what is it going to do? Might disrupt the supply, but it's still a bandage (and a costly bandage, with second and third order consequences) for a bullethole. Inpatient drug treatment for the families that have the resources to do so, but even that isn't going to work in a majority of cases, at least not the first time around.

Ballsy thing to open up about..I hope it works out for the ex, really do

Doc prescribed me more Vicodin than I needed after a recent hip surgery. Haven't necessarily "needed" them for pain in a while, but its really tempting to have one or two and a couple beers when going out partying rather than drinking 10-15 drinks. The "high" feels great, and you feel fine the next day instead of being an idiot drunk and then dealing with a horrible hangover.

That said, there was a point where I found myself taking one once every few days just for shits and giggles, so I purposely put an end to that to nip it in the bud before it turned into anything more. So I can definitely see where someone with an addictive personality can run into trouble.

Your story kind of parallels a family member of mine. His soon to be ex-wife has been a wreck for about 10 years now. She was actually to the point of inhaling "dust off" to alter reality when doctor shopping no longer worked. The car crashes, DUI's, court dates, in/out of rehab just never ended. Rinse and repeat over and over again. It's truly a sad and difficult life.

That was a brutally unsettling read. Alcohol and substance abuse damaged my family and destroyed my marriage too. It's just an awful thing.

1I read an article recently that because of the legalization of marijuana the farms in Mexico that previously grew marijuana are now growing poppies.
2.There is tremendous pressure on physicians now to not prescribe narcotics.The amount of prescribed narcotics in the community will definitely decrease.
3.How many people will seek illegal drugs for treatment of pain is anyone's guess.
4.Heroin is far worse than any pill because it carries the risk of HIV and hepatitis.

addict, at least not to pain killers. I've had so many scripts for vicodin and flexaril and xanax but I rarely take them. They don't get me high, just do what they are supposed to do. In fact, vicodin makes me nauseous and I can't sleep on it. The only time I felt high from a drug was when I had dilaudid in the hospital. But maybe it was just the relief from the awful pain. I think some people have the genetics or whatever to get addicted very quickly. I do think doctors over prescribe medications. I've had a harder time getting a refill for my thyroid medication than for Xanax or vicodin.

a nephew who is in jail right now because he can't shake an addiction.

Had a high school friend die from heroin addiction. Was an all star baseball player. Died 3 years after high school. I use to drive him to Paramus to get his methadone treatments. He always said he would kick the shit out any of us who even thought of trying the stuff. He died in 73'.

If anyone remembers, good old Joe Friday had a episode on Dragnet on trying to close down a pill mill doctor in LA. How long ago was that?

Pain pill mills in Fla. are basically done. Feds cracked down on them a few years back.

Buford. I'm like you. I still have vicodin left from a prescription from 2 years ago. Every once and a while I'll take a half of pill at bedtime if I'm sore somewhere. They do nothing to me but take pain away. Never had a feeling of getting "high" or have an urge to "need" one. Guess we are lucky that way.

. 12 step program like AA.

I'm sorry to hear that. I know how hard it is when you're trying to save someones life, and they have no interest in saving themselves. They have the party and you pick up the mess. It's a shame.

It's pretty terrible.

is an org I recently worked with, a new non-profit started by a father who lost his son to drugs. In the aftermath Gary, a successful businessman, wondered why there's no Autism Speaks national organization to combat this, to explore the science of how the brain works, to focus on prevention and families with younger children as much as recovery, to influence legislation.

http://www.shatterproof.org/

You can also hear him talk at the Clinton Foundation in 2013 where he tells his story and his son Brian's, when the organization was called Brian's Wish.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wGjtajI0IE

Sorry if there's a way to embed link. I'm not that savvy!

This is a huge issue for our communities. It's robbing many of us of our key investment, resource and love.

We need to have a national response to this that moves beyond the simple stigma of moral failing to a rational approach to "getting high" whether pills, powders or even alcohol.

In comment 11625927 napoleon said:

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In comment 11625764 Randy in CT said: Quote: with lots of money who don't fall into this, so this group of people are the least likely for me to feel sorry for. Good luck, I guess. I guess you didn't feel bad for rich parents who had their kids killed by Adam Lanza. Some people are so retarded.

Let me be clear. First your example was stupid. Stupid.
I do feel bad when people's lives get messed up no matter what their financial status--tragedy is tragedy.

However, this isn't a no-solution scenario that so many people find themselves in--without the means to address this from a medical standpoint. Without the education to know what to do. This group of folks is in a scenario where the means, the ability and the knowledge are there to a) try to avoid the situation from starting (see it coming; communicating with the kids), as it is happening, be aware of it and address it by every means possible. To me it sounded a little like Robert Downey Jr started a thread telling us how rough it was being wealthy because it is so easy to fall into the trap of drugs when you have a ton of dough and are bored.

Best of luck to the thread starter--I didn't mean to be a dick.

..went from pills to heroin over a 4-5 year period. It took losing his fiancé, his daughter, his home, his job, sleeping in the streets of Camden, and an overdose that resulted in him waking up in the a emergency room before he finally committed himself to taking back control of his life. I'm proud to say that his one year clean mark is approaching in a few weeks. There are so many who have fallen victim to addiction and were not fortunate enough to get the second chance my brother has. He now has the chance to be a part of his daughter's life, something the addiction took from the both of them.

Scary stuff. Heroin and pills are bad news.

Good luck to you.

Thats brutal. I'm so sorry to hear that.

with a side dose of means and ability.

that's why you see so few smokers or fat people these days.

In comment 11626660 fkap said:

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with a side dose of means and ability. that's why you see so few smokers or fat people these days.

So, your point is that people are helpless and there's nothing that can be done? Or that someone else is to blame for our own indiscretions?

I was an addict myself. I had a dialaudid drip after eye surgery, got OC to bring home, and struggled with addiction for a few years. It was miserable.