The most frequently abused prescription drugs are also among the most commonly prescribed by doctors around the nation, including pain killers such as vicodin, oxycontin, and morphine; sedatives like valium, xanax, and klonopin; and stimulants such as ritalin and adderall.

Anyone can become addicted to prescriptions like these, and the downfall from these drugs is no less devastating than that of street drugs like heroin or meth.  Careers, families and lives are destroyed every day due to prescription drug addiction.  The good news is anyone can also recover.

Prescription drug rehab begins when we realize we need help.  Addiction isn’t a weakness, its a disease–and just like asthma or diabetes it’s treatable.  When we’re addicted we often feel that our drug is our companion, our safety blanket, and life without it seems terrifying and empty.  However, each day prescription drug rehab helps millions of people find real happiness again.

There are numerous options for obtaining prescription drug rehab.  Most include a medical detoxification, group as well as individual counseling, education and pharmacological therapies as necessary.  Acupuncture, massage therapy and hypnotherapy are also frequently used techniques in prescription drug rehab.

Treatment centers for prescription drug rehab offer a variety of means for launching your recovery on the right footing, beginning with a drug detoxification, but many studies have shown that detox is very rarely enough by itself.  One has a much greater chance of ongoing prescription drug rehab success after outfitting themselves with the battery of tools they will need to not only kick-off their new life successfully, but to maintain it.

Residential prescription drug rehab offers by far the highest success rates,  allowing clients the chance to step back from the discord of their lives and flourish in a clean and sober environment  for periods typically of one to six months, after which they transition back to their lives.

Change is always difficult and scary at first.  Prescription drug rehab is a chance for one to restore and get reacquainted with themselves.  Addiction takes away so much, but we can–and do–get it back.

If you or a loved one is hooked on prescription pills, there’s no better place to go for California prescription drug rehab than SouthCoast Recovery in Dana Point, California. SouthCoast Recovery has received national attention for its specialized program tailored to treat those struggling with prescription drug addiction. Whether it’s opiate-based painkillers such as Vicodin, Hydrocodone, Codeine, Morphine, OxyContin, OxyCodone; benzodiazepines such as Valium or Xanax or stimulants like Adderall or Ritalin, we can help.

California prescription drug rehab is a relatively recent development that coincides with the rising trend in prescription drug abuse. This is particularly being seen among teenagers and young adults who engage in “pharming” parties where party-goers add whatever prescription drugs they’ve brought to a community bowl. For adults, prescription drug abuse can remain undetected for long periods of time typically because of the way in which the drugs are procured. Getting drugs from a physician instead of a street dealer has a way of bypassing the stigma associated with being a drug addict and adds to the symptom of denial.

SouthCoast Recovery is on the leading edge of California prescription drug rehab programs that address psychological aspects specific to prescription drug addiction. Labeled the “white collar” addiction, people may invent symptoms to procure prescriptions, doctor shop, steal prescription pads, buy in bulk on the Internet or find pill dealers on the street. Because many of the prescription painkillers that are abused are opiate based, there’s also the chance that it could lead to the street equivalent, heroin.

When choosing a California prescription drug rehab program, keep in mind that there are aspects of prescription drug addiction that need to be specifically addressed. Detox can be dangerous and for this reason, medical supervision is highly recommended. SouthCoast Recovery offers state licensed medical detox, specialized inpatient programs tailored to prescription drug addiction, transitional living following inpatient and a combination of clinical and holistic therapies to help overcome the physical and psychological effects of prescription drug addiction.

Prescription drug addiction treatment can only work if it’s sought out. It might sound obvious, but the fact is that far too many prescription drug addiction victims suffer in silence, in isolation, without ever seeking or receiving the help they need. Prescription drug addiction treatment really does help prescription drug addiction victims get better…but only if those prescription drug addiction victims are willing to take the first step, by enrolling in a prescription drug addiction treatment center. In the end, anything less just won’t cut it.

If you’re here, you already know the truth: Prescription drug addiction is a devastating disease. Now, you know what you have to do. Prescription drug addiction, in the end, can only be as damaging as you let it be. Don’t wait another day to start rebuilding what’s been destroyed.

The 2008 MTF survey indicates a continuing high rate of prescription drug abuse among teens, with little change seen in the past six years. Nearly 10 percent of seniors reported past year nonmedical use of Vicodin, and 4.7 percent report abusing Oxycontin, both powerful opioid painkillers. In fact, seven of the top 10 drugs abused by twelfth graders in the year prior to the survey were prescribed or purchased over-the-counter. The top categories of abused prescriptions include painkillers, stimulants (Adderall, Ritalin) and sedatives (Xanax, Valium, Klonopin).

We attribute this epidemic to a few factors.  One is the lack of restraint by the FDA on pharmaceutical regulations and marketing practices as well as the nieve willingness of doctors to so willingly hand out harmful prescriptions to patients.  There is also the lack of understanding of parents about the dangers of prescription drugs and the perception of youth thinking that they are not as harmful as street drugs.  There is not a single source of blame here, but rather a shared responsibility.

Due to the abuse potential and addictive quality of these drugs, many young people who start off taking these drugs wind up requiring a full long-term rehabilitation center to solve the problem once and for all.  If you or a loved one is struggling with prescription drug abuse you can contact SouthCoast Recovery and speak with one of our drug rehab counselors for prescription drug treatment.

The 2008 MTF survey indicates a continuing high rate of prescription drug abuse among teens, with little change seen in the past six years. Nearly 10 percent of seniors reported past year nonmedical use of Vicodin, and 4.7 percent report abusing Oxycontin, both powerful opioid painkillers. In fact, seven of the top 10 drugs abused by twelfth graders in the year prior to the survey were prescribed or purchased over-the-counter. The top categories of abused prescriptions include painkillers, stimulants (Adderall, Ritalin) and sedatives (Xanax, Valium, Klonopin).

We attribute this epidemic to a few factors.  One is the lack of restraint by the FDA on pharmaceutical regulations and marketing practices as well as the nieve willingness of doctors to so willingly hand out harmful prescriptions to patients.  There is also the lack of understanding of parents about the dangers of prescription drugs and the perception of youth thinking that they are not as harmful as street drugs.  There is not a single source of blame here, but rather a shared responsibility.

Due to the abuse potential and addictive quality of these drugs, many young people who start off taking these drugs wind up requiring a full long-term rehabilitation center to solve the problem once and for all.  If you or a loved one is struggling with prescription drug abuse you can call and speak with one of our drug rehab counselors.

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By Nathan Wright Dana Point Times

Howard Larkin still carries his jail identification card in his wallet, a grim reminder of darker days. His former life ended abruptly in 1999 when he was arrested inside a Carlsbad meth lab and handcuffed to a telephone pole while drug agents gathered evidence to build their case against him. “They charged me with possession of chemicals to manufacture methamphetamines,” he said. “They told me 25 years to life. I spent three days in jail thinking, I’m going to die in prison.” Larkin avoided the sentence and found a new life at SouthCoast Recovery, a rehabilitation and wellness center based in Dana Point and San Juan Capistrano that treats drug abuse and the underlying problems of why patients turn to drugs. Now nine years sober, Larkin works with patients struggling to overcome addiction.

Many of these patients have never stepped foot inside a meth lab or approached a drug dealer. They didn’t have to. Their addictions began in an orange bottle with a white cap and a prescription label. The prescriptions range from opiate-based painkillers—OxyContin and Vicodin for example, which belong to the same drug family as heroin and morphine—to “benzos”—mood enhancers and anti-depressants like Xanax and Klonopin.

In the past few years many South County residents have arrived at SouthCoast Recovery looking for help breaking free of addictions to opiates and benzos, so much so that the center has developed specialized programs for prescription drugs. Often patients check in for alcoholism only to discover they are addicted to prescription drugs as well.

“When they first arrive they might not even know they need to stop taking their Klonopin,” said Tom Petersen, the court liaison at SouthCoast. “More than half of our clients are addicted to some form of prescription medication as well as alcohol.”

The ignorance of the dangers of prescription drug addiction is common, according to Robert Goodman, the co-chair of the Human Services Department at Saddleback College. “Many believe that since they’re prescribed and legal they are not, in fact, harmful,” he said. “Prescription drug abuse has been around as long as they’ve been prescribed, but it’s really been in the past half decade where it’s expanded greatly.” Authorities say prescription drug abuse is a national problem, attracting the attention of the Drug Enforcement Agency and other law enforcement organizations used to chasing cocaine dealers. “Prescription drug abuse has increased throughout the country and is definitely an area of concern to the DEA,” said Special Agent Sarah Pullen with the Los Angeles Field Division. “One of the primary means for obtaining prescription drugs is through doctor shopping, both in person and through the Internet. Street sale of prescription drugs is also common in Southern California.”

Experts say that getting prescriptions for legal narcotics including opiates, and for benzos, is not difficult for those who know how to play the game. Doctor shopping—visiting multiple doctors complaining of symptoms that are commonly treated with painkillers in an effort to get prescriptions—is one of the most effective methods.

“They go from one doctor to another, looking for Vicodin prescriptions,” said Dr. Michael Rudolph, a consulting physician at SouthCoast. “Unless the patient tells the doctors about the other prescriptions there’s no way the doctor would know about them. They’re not allowed to share that information because of HIPAA [Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act] regulations.”

Those with Internet savvy don’t even need to go through the trouble of doctor shopping in person. “You go online for an interview with a physician, you explain your symptoms, explain why you need the painkillers, and if the doctor agrees he will give the prescription through an online pharmacist,” he said. “The pharmacist ships you the drugs in an unmarked white box.”

And so the addiction continues in the privacy of the home, minus the trips to a drug dealer. The Orange County Sheriff’s Department does encounter prescription trafficking from time to time, but the problem isn’t as visible as heroin, meth or cocaine deals.

“It’s out there, but I wouldn’t say it’s a big problem,” said Sgt. Doug Doyle of the OCSD South Narcotics Unit. “We run across it maybe once every couple of months. Kids are buying OxyContin on the streets, but it’s expensive, about $80 a pill.”

While prescription abusers largely stay out of the police blotter, they are regulars in hospital emergency rooms. Dr. Kevin Hegewalk, an emergency physician at Saddleback Memorial’s San Clemente and Laguna Hills campuses, encounters the problem often. Some patients come in looking for more pills. Others come in suffering from medical problems caused by their addictions.

“They began taking [prescriptions] for a reason, maybe they were sick for a time, and now instead of treating an illness they’re treating an addiction,” Hegewalk said. “They get higher and higher doses and over the years they get dependent and it has a spiraling effect on their ability to function. It can make them very sick.”

Often addicts abuse prescription drugs addiction by taking them in massive quantities, or by simply crushing them into powder. “If the pill is crushed up it defeats the time release property, giving [OxyContin] a similar potency to heroin,” Goodman said.

By the time an addict arrives at SouthCoast he or she often requires detoxification followed with counseling, education and support. Patients live in eight homes in Dana Point, Capistrano Beach and San Juan Capistrano in either 30-day or 90-day programs, spending their days in wellness centers and their nights under supervision. Patients are not allowed to leave or host guests, although they are not under lockand- key. If they leave, they leave the program. “This is a voluntary program,” said Petersen. “Anyone who is here wants to be here.”

Patients in SouthCoast follow a 12-step program designed to acknowledge and treat their addictions. They also receive holistic and Eastern medical treatment including acupuncture. “It’s often the back pain that took [the patient] to the doctor to get the OxyContin in the first place,” said Grant Collins, a licensed acupuncturist who works with SouthCoast. “We don’t treat with drugs; we treat with herbal medicines and acupuncture, and we make the problems go away.”

Recovery isn’t easy, but possible. Howard Larkin and a majority of SouthCoast’s staff have suffered from addiction and stand testament to an individual’s ability to break free. “For a hit off a crack pipe I would have traded my mother and my father,” said Larkin. “Now I wouldn’t trade my life for the whole world.”

For a look at SouthCoast Recovery’s entire program visit www.southcoastrecovery.com.

A Local Issue, But Part of a Larger Problem

“Many feel that if a doctor can prescribe it, the drug can not be as harmful to your health when compared to what some might consider more conventional street drugs such as heroin or cocaine. According to the 2005 Partnership Attitude Tracking Study, 40 percent believe that prescription medicines are ‘much safer’ to use than illegal drugs. Furthermore, the same study concluded that 31 percent believe there is ‘nothing wrong’ with using prescription medicines without a prescription ‘once in awhile.’ The truth of the matter is, these controlled substances are not just highly dangerous; they can prove lethal.”

—Joseph Rannazzisi, deputy assistant administrator of the DEA’s Office of Diversion Control, speaking on Internet pharmacies and drug abuse before the House Judiciary Committee on June 24

“We no longer just fight traditional drugs of abuse. In just five years, the number of Americans abusing prescription drugs rose more than two-thirds—from 3.8 million abusers to 6.4 million. Fueling this increase is the proliferation of illicit Internet Web sites that make it possible, with one simple click, to purchase controlled substances.”

—Karen Tandy, DEA administrator, speaking before the Senate Committee on Appropriations in April 2007

“The abuse of prescription drugs is a serious and growing health problem in this country. According to the 2005 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, there were more than 6.4 million current non-medical users of psychotherapeutic drugs in the United States—more than the number of Americans abusing cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens and inhalants, combined. If we look at the people who are just starting out as new drug users, prescription drugs have overtaken marijuana and cocaine as the gateway drug of choice.”

—Joseph Rannazzisi, Deputy Assistant Administrator of the DEA’s Office of Diversion Control, in a written statement to Congress in July of 2007.

Ledger’s death in January was officially ruled as an accidental overdose on prescription drugs; primarily sleeping pills and anti-anxiety medication. Whether or not Ledger had been consistently using the medication enough to be considered abuse has never been determined, but the message is hard to ignore – Drugs prescribed by doctors can possess the same potency and be just as deadly as street drugs when misused, abused, or combined.

Prescription drug abuse is rising at an alarming rate in the United States. In the past year alone, 40% of new clients at SouthCoast Recovery have been admitted for addiction to prescription drugs such as Oxycontin®, Xanax® or Suboxone®, and as a result of the demand for effective treatment, SouthCoast Recovery has developed a specialized prescription drug program to add to their current 30, 60, and 90 day residential treatment programs.

Many of the people who will see the “The Dark Knight” batman sequel this weekend should be aware that Ledger’s tragic death is a stark reminder that the potential for abuse or misuse of prescription drugs is extremely high and can be deadly for anyone that ends up struggling with prescription drug addiction treatment. SouthCoast Recovery is proud to be nation’s foremost drug and alcohol rehab center leading the fight against prescription drug addiction and are willing to provide each client they serve with the detoxification, counseling, education, and support that their patients need to get clean and stay clean.

In addition to the primary services that SouthCoast Recovery has available to help those dealing with addiction, patients stay in eight beautiful homes throughout Orange County, California spending their days in wellness centers following a 12-step based program while receiving holistic, as well as, Eastern medical treatments, including acupuncture to help them in their battles against drugs and alcohol.

Recovery from Prescription Drug Addiction isn’t easy, but it is possible and a majority of SouthCoast’s staff has suffered from addiction and stand as a testament to an individual’s ability to break free.

Due to the physical dependence created by prescription drug abuse, addiction treatment begins in a residential treatment facility. The initial phase of treatment is detox. It is here, under medical supervision, that the symptoms associated with withdrawal from prescription drugs are managed, reduced and sometimes eliminated. The average length of time spent in detox is approximately seven days. During this time, you will be monitored medically and any psychiatric or psychological issues will be assessed.

After you are medically stable, you are generally referred to residential treatment to complete the treatment plan designed in detox. By the time most people enter treatment for prescription drug addiction, they have created quite a bit of emotional damage to themselves and loved ones. It takes time to recover from shame, grief, guilt, and rebuild a level of trust amongst the family. Recovery in a supportive therapeutic environment eliminates many of the outside distractions and allows you to focus on issues relating to your recovery. The length of stay is approximately 20 days and may be followed by outpatient therapy.

The discomfort associated with withdrawal from these medications is contingent upon the dose you are taking and the length of time you have been taking it. Some people take between 20 and 30 pills daily.

In addition to the physical addiction created by abusing prescription drugs, you may also experience deterioration in personal relationships, employment difficulties due to a lack of concentration and motivation, financial difficulties, legal problems, or psychological difficulties. Most of the people suffering from prescription drug abuse have experienced most of the above. So, I think prescription drug rehab is very important for living health life.

Lastly, some people have been found to mix alcohol with prescription medications to accentuate the feeling of euphoria. This mixture is often referred to as a “cocktail.” What this creates is the potential for an overdose and should be avoided at all costs.

If you require additional information on prescription drug addiction treatment, and about the drug rehab, wait till next blog.