Rehab Referral Blog

In a court case that took place in California in 2008,  an email from the Dept of Veterans  revealed some very shocking statistics.  Monthly on average,  one thousand returning vets attempted to commit suicide stateside.   Daily,  18 veterans DID commit suicide.  And for the past three years it was noted that the suicide rate had continued to drastically soar.

A counselor who deals with veterans in a clinical capacity noted that he had never seen such a degree of traumatization before in his 20 years of counseling soldiers returning from active duty.   Partly to blame were noted the extremely high tech destructive weaponry now in use.  Massive areas can be completely obliterated in seconds using electronics and laser and sonic weaponry. Also worth mentioning are the weapons which use DU  (Depleted Uranium)  and are leaving masses of atomic pollution in the air on a near daily basis.  Witnessing these levels of destruction of property and life are taking their toll. 

Adding to the stress factor overall is the “stop-loss” policy which has extended the length of tours of active duty years beyond what was expected.   An a soldier in active duty is constantly under the stress and fear of being attacked or killed at any given moment. 

Soldiers who are returning home are so severely traumatized that they are turning to drugs and alcohol for relief.   Even the Dept of Vets main treatment is simply to put them on drugs of the “legal” kind.  Drug them up.   That’s a solution??????

Even a 3 year old could predict the outcome of mixing  super-trauma,  exhaustion, and drugs and alcohol.  Suicide (having known links to drugs and alcohol)  would be a perfectly predictable outcome. 

The solution to the problem lies in the statement of the problem.  Too many of our young people are being traumatized by a war with no end in sight,  and too many are being  given no other therapeutic relief than to use  drugs (legal or otherwise)  when they return home.

January 18th, 2010

Holy Hannah,  did you know there’s drug residues (metabolytes) in the groundwater in every village town and city on this planet??

To avoid taking in other peoples drug residues,  I would highly recommend a water filter/purification system that will ensure the water you are taking in has been absolutely combed clean of drug metabolytes. 

What causes drugs to end up in our tap water?   Drugs are used every day by millions of people.  Billions in fact.  Those drug residues are poisons,  and the body tries hard to shed them.  It cannot shed all but tries.  Therefore the residues end up via the toilets and sinks and the industrial waste that gets dumped right  into  the municipal water system.  I used to sell water purifiers and there are many articles and videos you can catch on youtube or elsewhere on this subject.

I suggest you arm yourself with all the information available out there on the subject of drugs in your tap water,  and then protect you and your family from continuing contamination by removing the residues completely with an effective water treatment system.

And then get on all the committees or sub committees or public awareness group mailing lists that you can and see how you can add your voice in protest to this problem.   Pharmaceutical companies are poisoning our groundwater.  Illegal drugs came from pharmaceutical labs in the first place,  so these “orphans”  of the pharma industry are part and parcel of the problem. 

Don’t want drugs in your tap water?   Get involved.  For your own sake,  and that of your children, and their children’s children. 

This problem won’t go away by itself.

When it comes to considering which drug rehab program to select,  the cost is always one of the key factors that comes up for consideration.  The following might be helpful in setting your budget for a rehab program for yourself or for a loved one.

Free programs are available in the USA through a portal site at SAMHSA.  You can inquire through their website and receive recommendations for any location in your state and you can find out which ones a free of charge.  Also available are low cost programs,  or fees that are relative to your income level.   If you or your loved one did a free program,  you will have a better idea of what is offerred in this range.  I have heard these programs referred to as “do it yourself drug rehab”.  I think the main reference there is pointed to the fact that there is not going to be a lot of personal counseling,  or anything much beyond a place to dry out and stay clean for 2, 3, or 4 weeks.   The ususal protocols in these programs are meetings based,  and can include receiving medication as a substitute for the drug of choice,  but not all have this aspect.   You will need to inquire with the specific facility intake staff to find out how each program is run. 

There are moderately priced programs available as well,   many of which will be covered partially or fully by your private health insurance.   These programs are usually meetings based,  provide satisfactory meals,  clean quarters,  and adequate staffing for the number of clients serviced.  You might be looking at between $5K  and 18K  per month for these programs.  

There are also some very expensive models for rehab.  These are usually meetings based,  have doctors on hand with prescriptions ready to write,  sumptuous meals,  elegant quarters,  tennis courts, pools,  perhaps hiking trails etc,  and the staff complement will be almost always professionals with degrees after their names.   Pricing can be expected to be from $20K to $60K per month or even higher.  You are paying for a tastefully and professionally run facility that would compare to a health spa or recreational venue.   Some find that this type of environment is more conducive to a  comfortable rehab experience.

Please note:  in all 3 categories of pricing,  you will find GOOD or VERY GOOD  programs,  and AVERAGE programs,  and UNSATISFACTORY programs.  If you want help in selecting the most EFFECTIVE program that is in your budget,  you would be wise to call one of our counselors at drugrehabreferralservices.org  - they have been up and down the list a thousand times and can save you both time and money by matching your budget and resources with the very best available pro0grams available.

Detox is such an important factor in the overall recovery plan, that it deserves a second look. Often detox is used as a substitute for “recovery program” which it is not designed to do, and cannot do. I’ll break down the subject simply into 3 sections, A, B, and C.

A: ALWAYS consider detox for at risk situations. These include alcohol cessation, prescription medication cessation or tapering, multiple addictions such as heroin/xanax, or any situation where the person’s health has deteriorated to the point where medical supervision will help them to get through the initial come down, and still be alive for rehab.

B: BEFORE the person leaves detox, have a plan in place to transfer from the detox setting WITHOUT DELAY into a rehap program, which will hopefully be a residential program. In detox, often the person has a good result and will be feeling well, at least better than they have in quite a while. This is a dangerous spot, as if the pattern of addiction has not been dissected and eradicated, the person is subject to relapse at this point. Many people have tried to substitute detox for rehab, which can only result in a repeating losing scenario when used this way and can take a toll on not only health, but family and other relationships. Before detox is completed, get the rehab program lined up so the person can transfer directly from detox to rehab.

C: CHOOSE a detox program wisely. Ask if the protocol involves leaving detox with a prescription. If it does, STEER CLEAR. You should be looking for a detox that will only use the medications that it does, to prevent seizure or other complications. The use of these very necessary medications should be gently weaned off before the person is ready to transfer to rehab. Choose your detox just a carefully as you can. Rehab can not occur if you have left the person still addicted to an artificial mood altering substance - for the basic reason that a person’s addiction has been doing just that for as long as they have been using. So CHOOSE your detox wisely.

I hope this summary has been useful. For more information and guidance please call one of our helpful counselors at Drug Rehab Referral Services.