Narconon Teams Up with Local Leaders in Discussions
About Drugs

Members of Narconon Arrowhead recently attended a symposium about the changing face of heroin addiction. For those unfamiliar, Oklahoma is the nation’s worst abuser of prescription painkillers according to data released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration as reported in Tulsa World. Abusing painkillers essentially means they are being used for non-medical reasons. Due to rising costs of pharmaceuticals, almost half of new heroin addicts began by abusing some type of prescription opiate. The data is alarming and overdose deaths due to heroin in Oklahoma have almost tripled in the past 6 years. The heroin epidemic is not only growing here but it is expanding across the nation. Several layers of community workers were present including:

• Local Police
• Fire Department and EMS
• Rehabilitation Representatives

The face of heroin addiction has changed. The term “junkie” no longer applies. It is more and more difficult to put a label on those who are addicted simply based on appearance. The drug has gone mainstream and it is no longer just a subgroup or subculture. As discussed in the meeting, the drug epidemic is a major contributor to such crimes as murder, rape, child neglect and robbery. Each side told their particular story on the impact addiction is having in their respective fields and in the community. At times the speeches got very emotional and it was clearly noticeable how devastating this epidemic is. The people who are in direct contact with drug abusers know this first hand.

The importance of this type of communication is crucial. The public has to be aware of the problem in order to have a grasp on what is really happening in their environment. Collaboration is needed because a unified front will be best equipped to handle what is happening. The rehabilitation aspect to combat drug abuse was also discussed at length. A Narconon graduate told his story of how rehab saved his life from the ruins of drug abuse.

One addict changing his life can make a world of difference. The treatment of addiction is the most important part of the entire circle. Once the addict stops using the damage to families and society at large goes away.

The symposium was held to help raise awareness of the issues going on. It is a step toward identifying the problems that are occurring in order to address the needs of everyone. Awareness is the best approach that hopefully will continue to lead to open and honest discussions down the road. It is important to bring in those who are recovered from drug and alcohol abuse. A person who is no longer using can provide much-needed insight into what is actually happening at a personal level when someone abuses drugs. Hopefully, this type of meeting will grow and spread so that we are no longer sitting in the dark about drugs.