Our Views

According to a recent article, overdose from prescription drugs is now the leading cause of death for adults under 45 in West Virginia. In 1998, there were 21 deaths from poisonings, mostly drug overdoses, and by 2006 the number had escalated to 460. Seven of the top ten killers were prescription drugs - methadone, hydrocodone, oxycodone, morphine and fentanyl - aka Dolophine. Lortab. Vicodin. Percodan. OxyContin. MS Contin and Duragesic. OxyContin addiction is getting most of the press these days but the other drugs are just as dangerous, and they all require the same drug detox procedures to quit.

Why has the death rate increased in such alarming numbers? Partially because the number of prescriptions written for these drugs has quadrupled in West Virginia since 1998. But even ‘quadrupled’ is a long way from the difference between 21 and 460. The problem is that the many patients who start off with a prescription have trouble getting off the drugs. When they can no longer get a prescription, they hit the streets instead of going to drug detox for help. People also are introduced to the drugs by ‘friends’, find them in their parents’ or friends’ medicine cabinets, or get them in exchange for sex or other favors. The article even mentioned trading them for car payments.

Drugs beget more drugs, and deaths: Increase the number of prescriptions written by four times, and the death toll increases by 22 times.

If you or someone you know has an OxyContin addiction or a problem with any others of the drugs on that list, get into drug detox fast. Don’t become one of the statistics, and don’t risk the same happening to someone else.

Popularity: 12% [?]

Many people who develop an OxyContin addiction started taking the drug because of an injury, accident or surgery that caused severe pain. However, as I wrote in an earlier blog, some “experts” say that about nine percent of those who take prescription opioid painkillers for chronic pain over an extended period become addicted.  Of course they are using a narrow definition of addiction and they also seem to be saying that, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, these painkillers are really not that bad. Nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to OxyContin addiction.

Whatever the addiction statistics, a great many who take OxyContin or other opioid painkillers are, at the very least, going to become physically dependant—they experience severe withdrawal symptoms when they try to either reduce the dosage or stop taking the painkillers. And whether addicted or dependant, there’s a good chance they’re going to need OxyContin detox to come off the drug safely and without intense withdrawal symptoms.

Where do you go for OxyContin detox? Here’s what one client had to say after their stay at Novus Medical Detox.

“Novus is the greatest detox center and the most comfortable. I realized that my OxyContin addiction was my fault and nobody else’s. I also realized I want to stay clean and hope for the best for myself.  I will be attending rehab after Novus, but Novus did an excellent job of preparing me for my rehabilitation. Novus has a very successful program in my eyes and I would suggest Novus to anyone that has a problem with drugs and alcohol. My stay has been wonderful and the nurses, counselors, cooks, housekeepers and owners are very sweet.”

Getting off OxyContin can be painful. If you or someone you care about needs help, or simple needs to know whether they need OxyContin detox, contact Novus to find out what it involves and whether you need it. If so, they can also tell you how to get started.

Popularity: 13% [?]

Hard to imagine your kid as a drug dealer? Here’s the story of one teen who developed an OxyContin addiction after a car accident caused injuries requiring three surgeries. The pills were prescribed for the pain but, according to his mother, he got to the point where he couldn’t get out of bed without them. His mom had no idea he had a problem. After he went into rehab, his mother saw the many messages – one every 20 minutes – on his phone. Instructions from people, many of them adults, who were going to deliver OxyContin and other drugs to him – he was to distribute them, and keep some for himself. That’s how he fed his own OxyContin addiction.

How this could be happening right under his mother’s nose without her even having a clue it was going on is hard to say, but had she figured it out earlier, had she been aware of how easily the need for OxyContin can turn into OxyContin addiction, there’s a possibility that she could have gotten him through an OxyContin detox early in the game, and drug rehab if needed, and he never would have resorted to criminality.

The young man was also being threatened by drug dealers – he was told that if he quit dealing, they’d hurt his mother. Apparently his mom wasn’t worried about herself, but she did move her son to another city to keep him safe. He went to drug rehab and managed to survive OxyContin, and is now in a safer environment, but the family is split up.

If you have a friend or family member who is prescribed OxyContin or other prescription painkillers for a legitimate reason, make sure you are aware of how much they’re taking, how long they’re taking them, and so on. They may need an OxyContin detox to stop taking the drug, and they might even need drug rehab, but they will have their life back.

Popularity: 14% [?]

OxyContin addiction detox and rehab needs to be paid for, who better than the company that lied to us?

OxyContin doesn’t kill people, people kill people – that’s Purdue Pharma’s stand in the OxyContin suit filed in Kentucky’s Pike County Circuit Court that could result in Purdue reimbursing the state for the cost of drug abuse programs, law enforcement, and prescription payments made through state insurance. And the money could help finance the drug detox and rehab programs so desperately needed by those now suffering with OxyContin addiction.

Purdue says the company takes responsibility for their past ‘misstatements’ which led thousands of doctors and millions of patients to believe that the drug was safe, but the company made it clear that their responsibility does not extend to the damage done to individuals.  “We do not believe, however, that those misstatements were responsible for individuals’ abuse of OxyContin,” the company statement said.

How does their argument hold up? Believe me, there is no shortage of upstanding, reputable citizens who got in trouble with OxyContin addiction through perfectly legitimate means. And some of them will show up in court to bear witness. Others, unfortunately, will be represented by the grieving mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, friends and family who buried them. I would hope the prosecution will also use drug detox, drug rehab and ER representatives and records to help make the case.

Although Kentucky and the Appalachian states were among the hardest hit by OxyContin addiction, they are by no means alone. Americans all over the country need drug detox and rehab because of OxyContin. Hopefully, this suit will be won, and others will follow.

If an individual had inflicted as much damage as Purdue has with OxyContin, that person would be on death row. The very least that should be expected from Purdue is reimbursement for the damage done, and financing of the drug detox and rehab programs that will get people out of the mess Purdue helped create.

Popularity: 12% [?]

If you think you’re safe taking OxyContin, read this story about a woman who stole tens of thousands of dollars to feed her OxyContin addiction. I’m not surprised to see a story like this coming out of Florida where prescription drug addiction and abuse is rampant. Florida drug detox centers are soon going to be overrun with people trying to get off them.

When you first start taking OxyContin it will probably be cheap, or even free if you have insurance. But once your prescription runs out, you could wind up buying it on the street. And you’ll need money – lots of it. It’s not unlike heroin and other drugs in that way – and in other ways – you often start taking a drug when someone offers you a ‘taste’ or when you get a prescription from your doctor to help with an injury or illness. But you can’t get off it.

Next thing you know, you’d sell just about everything you own to get some or, as in the story mentioned above, put tens of thousands of dollars on a friend’s credit card without permission and have to add jail time to your resume. You’ll also be in desperate need of drug detox.

If you or someone you know is using OxyContin prescription painkillers, be aware that OxyContin addiction, and addiction to drugs containing the same active ingredient, is sending tens of thousands of people to emergency wards. Get them into and through drug detox as soon as possible.

Popularity: 13% [?]

Two days ago, federal agents rounded up 88 doctors in Puerto Rico whose licenses were obtained through fraud or bribery. Five states recognize Puerto Rico licenses: Arizona, Florida, New York, Texas and Virginia. Fortunately, none of the suspects were known to have practiced on the mainland, but who knows what will come out during the trials? How would you like to run into one of those guys if you overdose on drugs? One more reason to get yourself into drug detox so you can get off whatever drugs you’re on before it comes to that.

The medical licensing board that issued the licenses to the 88 doctors is accused of altering low test scores in order to license unqualified applicants. Some of the bribes reached the $10,000 mark. Most of the ‘doctors’ had failed licensing exams in the past, one had failed 16 times. At least 75 of the ‘doctors’ were practicing medicine, some in emergency rooms.

Rosa Perez Perdomo, Puerto Rico’s Health Department secretary, said in what can only be called an understatement, “We cannot allow doctors who obtained their license in an irregular way to practice medicine.”

Back in the day, doctors were trusted. A family doctor was like a member of the family. Today the news is full of stories about doctors who write prescriptions that feed habits like OxyContin addiction and others who have basically become drug dealers. Now we’re facing docs who aren’t even licensed. Get a second opinion before you get yourself into a dangerous situation by taking potentially addictive prescription drugs. And get into drug detox if you’re already there.

Popularity: 11% [?]