Posts Tagged ‘rehabilitation’
How I managed to escape the control and charge that drugs had got over me
Last Updated on Monday, 18 January 2010 04:32 Written by Sam Monday, 18 January 2010 04:30
Once that I was having a casual conversation with a friend I suddenly realized that I didn’t need to go out or socialize to be happy. I started keeping a stash of pills at home, hidden in the most unlikely of places that I could pop in whenever the need came along. The need for the pills started to increase by the hour. What had started off as a lark was getting to me. The servant was becoming the master and riding me along. I started searching for excuses. It was one day……..
When I was really ill and had developed a kind of flu like symptoms and along with my prescription medicine, I popped in a happy pill. After all it was supposed to make me feel happy and euphoric. The next thing I recollect was waking up in a hospital bed, with two faces of worried doctors staring at me. Apparently, I had suffered a cardiac arrest which led to minor respiratory failure. I was got back from the clutches of death just in time. This time I had been lucky. The tests confirmed that it was a drug overdose and the mixing of too many drugs in my system.
I had a lot of questions to answer to the Michigan cops and my family of course. I was laid off from work, for the time being, that’s what they claimed. I was asked to clean up my act and get the drugs out of my system physically and psychologically.
That’s when I realized that I had hit rock bottom, and if I didn’t take myself under control it would be the end of my life. I had lost myself and wasn’t able to recognize the person that I was anymore. My first step was to find the right rehab in Michigan. Thankfully, I had a great support system in the form of my doctors and family and also a few friends who stood by me in the most trying of times.
At the rehab center, I was made to get to the root of the concerns. The first few days and weeks were spent in a lot of soul searching. Somewhere, it had all gone terribly wrong. The Michigan rehab center was where I joined a few support groups. I heard and saw people from all walks of life, and I realized that I had to stop this self victimization. My first breakthrough came when I stood up, and I announced that yes, I was an ex-drug addict. For a drug addict, every day is a battle but the lessons learnt at the rehab remain firmly entrenched.
Tags: Drug, rehabilitation | Posted under New York Rehab | 1 Comment
Narcotic drug laws in NY
Last Updated on Wednesday, 13 January 2010 11:06 Written by Sam Friday, 15 January 2010 01:07
There are very strict statutes that govern the abuse of drugs within the state of New York, in particularly the use of narcotics. Oftentimes the New York State Penal Law that concerns the use of narcotic drugs is referred to the Rockefeller drug laws named after the current governor of the state at the time they were created, Nelson Rockefeller.
When the Rockefeller laws were adopted in the state of New York the state gained the reputation and distinction of having the most severe drug laws across the United Stated until a similar set of laws were enacted in Michigan five years later in 1978.
Originally the laws stated that the penalty for selling about 56 grams of morphine, opium, cannabis, cocaine, heroin, and marijuana or being found in possession of about 113 grams of any of the drugs carried a minimum sentence of at least 15 years in prison with a maximum sentence of life in prison. The harsh sentence was equitable to the charges that a person faces if found guilty of second degree murder. Also included in the original set of laws were the same harsh penalties if a violent crime was committed while using any of the above mentioned drugs.
However, the Rockefeller laws have been changed slightly since 1973 lessening the minimum sentencing and the sentencing for the crimes. Currently the latter part of the legislation concerning use of drugs when a violent crime is committed was repealed and in 1979 the drug marijuana was declassified as one of the drugs listed as a narcotic for judicial purposes.
In 2004 the mandatory minimum prison sentences were reduced for those who were classified as non-violent drug offenders and the minimum penalty for conviction on a possession charge was reduced from 15 years down to eight years for those who do not have any prior felonies on their record. In 2009 the laws were reduced further allowing judges to remove the mandatory sentencing of minimums and instead choose to sentence those found guilty of drug possession or trafficking to shorter sentences or treatment instead.
Tags: drugs, narcotic drugs, rehabilitation | Posted under New York Rehab | No Comments
Is prescription medication abuse a problem in New York?
Last Updated on Wednesday, 13 January 2010 11:03 Written by Sam Wednesday, 13 January 2010 01:00
Like other states across the United States the state of New York has seen an increase in the amount of prescription drugs that are abused on a regular basis. In fact, it has become such a problem that many of the pills sold on the pharmaceutical drug market are actually fake pills by people looking to make a quick buck off of those who are addicted to them.
The two most commonly abused drugs in the state of New York are OxyContin and hydrocodone, which is known more familiarly as Vicodin. Many people obtain these drugs to sell illegally by visiting a large amount of doctors across the city in a practice called ‘doctor shopping’ to obtain multiple prescriptions that they can later sell. Oftentimes the practice also involves forging prescriptions.
Two other commonly abused drugs are methadone and benzodiazepines the latter of which is commonly diazepam and alprazolam. Theft and smuggling from other countries with looser medication laws and regulations such as Mexico is a common way that the prescription drugs enter the country and enter the drug trade.
Outside of these drugs prescription depression medications such as Xanax are often commonly misused in the state of New York. There is a large usage rate among high school students when it comes to these medications perhaps because they are easier to obtain than tapping into the drug trade.
In wealthier New York schools abuse of Adderall, a prescription medication used to treat ADD, is a large problem with students snorting the drug in an effort to remain more alert throughout the night. Among college students in the New York area the use of Adderall is extremely widespread with many students using the drug on the same regular basis as marijuana or alcohol.
Several other ways in which prescription drugs are spread across New York that have not previously been mentioned include shopping online for prescriptions and pill shipments through pharmacy groups, employee theft due to the high value of the pill, and pharmacy store robberies.
Tags: medication abuse, rehab, rehabilitation | Posted under New York Rehab | No Comments
What are the popular drugs used in New York?
Last Updated on Wednesday, 13 January 2010 11:01 Written by Sam Monday, 11 January 2010 06:54
New York has a long history of drug problems largely due to the many drug trafficking organizations that have historically operated out of New York City. It’s large diverse population also aids drug smuggling and the city often is the epicenter not only for drug organizations spread throughout the state of New York, but also to destinations across the East Coast of the United States and Europe and Canada.
Cocaine is currently one of the most popular drugs in the state of New York although at times throughout 2007 there was limited availability. Cocaine supplies within NYC are distributed to many areas within the US and the state itself. It is a larger problem in the Western area of the state and particularly in Albany. Alongside cocaine is its sub-form crack cocaine that is found in many economically depressed areas as well as in the suburbs of the state and is often linked to violent crimes in the state.
Another large drug in New York is heroin, which is found mostly in the metropolitan area of New York. It is usually smuggled into the city via the JFK Airport off of direct flights from Columbia. Similarly to cocaine heroin is increasingly becoming problematic in the areas of upstate New York. It is also causing additional problems since some of the purest forms of the drug are making its way into upstate areas of the state to users who are not familiar with its much more potent affects.
Although Methamphetamine use is smaller than cocaine and heroin its use is slowly growing across New York and becoming a large problem. Crystal meth is the most popular form of the drug within the New York drug market although there has been an increase across upstate New York of occurrences where crystal meth labs are found.
Finally, club drugs such as ecstasy are a large problem within the state of New York with most of it coming from the Netherlands and Canada. Since there are large profits to make as a trafficker the club drugs are increasingly coming into the state out of every direction.
Tags: Drug, rehab, rehabilitation | Posted under New York Rehab | No Comments
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