Young Adults Drink More Around Friends

A recent study found that young adults consume more alcohol when they are around a greater number of friends. The study took place in natural settings, not a lab. The subjects recorded when they had a drink, and how many friends were around them at the time they had a drink. Though both sexes showed a significant increase in the amount of drinks they had when a greater number of friends were around, the peak in consumption was especially prevalent in males.

Young adult’s drinking is affected when others are around them. Young adults also have an unrealistic view of others in their social circle. Many times, they see their peers as more daring than they really are. This can lead to attempting to live up to unrealistic expectations they place on themselves. They believe they need to make more daring decisions, and take steps to achieve that. With substance abuse, this can quickly lead to addiction.

Addiction treatment can often be tricky with young adults. Many times, they see treatment as a form of punishment, and therapists as extensions of parental authority. This can cause the young person to not be as open to retaining valuable knowledge gained in rehabilitation as their older counterparts. To truly reach, and treat, young adults a program must be designed specifically for them.

Harmony Foundation offers a young adult recovery track that caters to the unique circumstances of young people. If you would like to learn more about what Harmony’s young adult program offers, please contact us for additional information.

Decrease in Oxycontin Use Leads to Spike in Heroin Use

Around 2010 the Oxycontin epidemic was growing out of control. The strength and availability of the drug led to many people becoming addicted to the famous painkiller. The days of having to visit a dark alley to achieve a strong opiate high were over. Individuals misusing the prescription drug were on the rise.

In 2010 a misuse deterrent was introduced. This changed the formulation of the drug to make it more difficult to crush or dissolve. The idea was to lower the ease with which a person could snort or inject the drug. The plan achieved what it set out to achieve, as the number of individuals checking into addiction treatment centers who had used Oxycontin in the last 30 days dropped from 45 percent before the formula change to 26 percent in 2014. Addicts entering rehab who had used Oxycontin in he last 30 days has nearly halved in 4 years.

However, of the 19 percent of users who stopped taking Oxycontin during this time, it’s estimated that 70 percent of them switched to heroin. The secondary effects of the formula change had devastating results in the addiction world. Making it more difficult to abuse Oxycontin didn’t make addicts stop using drugs, it just made them switch drugs. Concurrently with this trend, heroin overdoses have skyrocketed in the last 4 years.

Changing the drugs formula, in the big picture, didn’t work. They changed some things, and addicts found a way around it. This is true of many scenarios that arise in addiction. Attempting anything, outside of relentlessly pursuing recovery, is typically useless. Many addicts will need professional help to get clean and stay clean.

Harmony Foundation provides the professional care necessary to help you or a loved one achieve a lasting recovery. If you would like to learn more about what our program has to offer, contact us for more information.

Overcoming Addiction

A recent study has shown that individuals who are able to overcome a substance abuse addiction are less likely to develop an addiction to another substance. The study found that 27 percent of those that had never developed addictions, or never recovered, and 13 percent of those who had recovered from their addictions had developed an addiction to a different substance after three years. The study shows that those who have recovered from their addictions are less than half as likely to develop a new addiction to a substance other than their original drug of choice.

Recovering from an addiction to drugs or alcohol requires drastic changes to one’s life. The addict has to change their life to stay sober long term. To ensure lasting recovery, new groups of friends are acquired and relationships with families are mended. Many times, the individual in recovery is a totally different person than they were in active addiction. They have left more than the addiction behind; they’ve left their old way of thinking and living behind. It makes sense that individuals such as this would be less likely to revisit addiction.

The study highlights the need to get proper, individualized treatment, and recover fully. Those who work to recover at full capacity are less likely to develop another addiction to a different drug. Those who give it half effort end up with the same likelihood of developing another addiction as those who never attempted to recover at all. Getting sober cannot be achieved by exerting anything short of a full effort.

If you or a loved one want to recover from a substance abuse addiction, and are ready to take the steps necessary to achieve it, contact Harmony Foundation to learn more about what our program can offer you.