We No Longer Have an Opiate Epidemic

Here we are, going in to the 2017 Holiday Season and tons of families are busy getting their Thanksgiving turkeys and making last-minute travel arrangements. Mom and grandma are cooking up a storm, dad is buying the latest carving knife, and lots of college kids are making plans to visit their families and stuff themselves with as much meat, sides, and pie as possible. Many families look forward to Thanksgiving as a time to spend reconnecting with each other. On the other hand, there are many families who completely despise the Holiday Season. For them, the Holidays are full of turmoil, stress, and family drama. No one seems to be able to get along. While some families experience dysfunction through the inability to get along, other families experience it by pretending everything is okay and not talking about the elephant in the room.

Often, the “elephant” is an addict. An addict who is trying to pretend that everything is okay and that there’s no problem, while they’re nodding out in the middle of talking and falling asleep at the table. They’re coming up with their latest story or fake crisis to dupe their parents out of money. They’re going to and from the house in search of drugs and are gone for hours, but they tell you they got a flat tire. For a long time, our society blamed opiates for this. Opiates were public enemy number one, but the reality is, it’s not just opiates’ fault.

We no longer have an opiate epidemic on our hands.
We have a drug epidemic.

We no longer have an opiate epidemic on our hands. We have a drug epidemic. What I mean by that is there are more drugs being abused by more people and it’s not just heroin and pills. It’s methamphetamine and benzos. It’s high-grade marijuana and edibles. It’s all the MAT drugs. It’s alcohol. And it’s a host of unknown, synthetic drugs being bought online by teenagers. It’s an overall DRUG epidemic. And it’s a huge problem that’s destroying families every day.

Lots of college kids come home during Thanksgiving for the first time since they started school. It’s the first time the families will see their loved one since moving out of the house and going out on their own. It can be really startling when all a sudden, there’s an addict sitting across from them at the dinner table instead of their son or daughter. College campuses are filled to the brim with drugs, just like every other place around the world. Drugs are everywhere. If you think your son or daughter is “too smart” to get mixed up with drugs, think again. I was a clean cut, responsible, A and B student in high school. By my Sophomore year in college, I was a full-blown addict, barely recognizable to my family.

A lot of families are unfortunately going to experience this type of surprise this year and what every family should know is there is help for addiction. Drug rehab is the best solution for any family who finds themselves shaking their heads after a complete meltdown of their loved one this Thanksgiving. Don’t let your holiday end in tragedy, get them help and into drug rehab immediately. No one needs to bury their loved one this Christmas…