The end-of-the-year holiday season includes Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. While the holiday season is a very special time of year, it places additional demands and stresses upon all of us. For those who are using drugs and alcohol, or are in early recovery, the holiday season presents its own special challenges.
Holiday Drug Risks
Coupled with holiday demands stemming from family and social get-togethers, shopping and gift-buying, and a host of other seasonal events, there is also an increased opportunity for substance abuse. Drug prevention measures are vital this time of year in reducing the risks and dangers of holiday drug and alcohol use, and abuse.
The Thanksgiving holiday is being cited as the single highest day of alcohol consumption during the year. The holiday season unfolds following Thanksgiving, and alcohol is traditional fare at holiday parties, family get-togethers and all manner of holiday social gatherings and events all the way through to New Year’s Day.
Individuals who are alcohol-addicted, prone to over-indulge in alcohol, or who are in early recovery will find the socially-accepted abundance of alcohol throughout the holiday season a risky situation, both to self and other people who will be affected by their conduct.
Furthermore, illicit recreational drugs are becoming more common as standard party fare in some social circles, and can be a source of life-threatening consequences, especially when combined with holiday alcohol consumption.
The risks presented by driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol are amongst the most dangerous. Endangering the safety and the lives of passengers, as well as other drivers on the road, is an ever-present holiday risk. The consequences can be tragic, life-altering—and deadly.
The executives and staff of Narconon Arrowhead are fully aware of the added risks and dangers drug and alcohol users face during the holiday season, and are launching a holiday drug prevention program designed to raise awareness of the risks, and some suggestions for minimizing those risks.
Holiday Drug Prevention Program
Narconon Arrowhead, a long-term residential drug rehabilitation and education center in Southeastern Oklahoma has long known the vital importance of drug prevention in preventing people from falling prey to substance abuse, while at the same time helping those in recovery to maintain their sobriety.
Raising awareness of the actual risks of chemical substance use and abuse during the holiday season is an effective action undertaken by the rehab center in its ongoing efforts to help those individuals already struggling with addiction to make it through the holidays and into effective drug or alcohol treatment.
Executive Director of Narconon Arrowhead, Gary W. Smith, author of the Life Cycle and Mechanics of Addiction, has made the publication available for download free-of-charge to anyone seeking to understand addiction and its effective resolution. It is a new look, and a hopeful one for those who may despair of ever breaking free from chemical substance abuse.
Another part of the holiday drug prevention program is the center’s participation in the annual community Christmas parades of McAlester, Eufaula, and Muskogee, Oklahoma. Narconon Arrowhead’s holiday parade float entry in each of the local community parades shares its effective drug-free message with the children, youth and families all along the parade routes.
And as it does every year, Narconon Arrowhead shares its holiday message of hope throughout the holiday season, standing ready to help addicts and alcoholics overcome their addiction, and once again live a drug-free life.
If you need more drug prevention information or materials, or if someone you love is struggling with substance abuse this holiday season, please contact us at 1-800-468-6933 or visit our website at http://www.narcononarrowhead.org.
