Methadone Patients Left Searching For Freedom

One strong movement across the globe today in the fight against substance abuse is called harm reduction, simply trying to minimize damages. In theory this may sound okay and have some notable qualities, but it only reaches toward half the goal of full rehabilitation, which is the ultimate reduction in harm for a drug-using population.
A major component of the harm reduction ideology is methadone maintenance for opiate users, namely heroin. Methadone is a synthetic opiate that has also been used for chronic pain and has a much longer half-life that is typically administered through outpatient clinics. According to the latest available data from INDRO, an advocacy group for harm reduction out of Germany (where methadone was first synthesized), there were nearly 200,000 methadone patients in the United States, which was well above any other country mentioned.
Despite the outward appearance of the maintenance and harm reduction theory and practice, there are many arguments against its effectiveness. A collaboration of organizations make up the Drug Abuse Treatment Outcome Studies (DATOS), which issued a report on a multi-city study of status of patients before and after various types of treatment, including outpatient methadone treatment. Results of this study that was done in the 90’s show that there was actually a slight increase in heavy alcohol use and only a minimal decrease in the percentage of patients not being employed full-time and suicidal ideation. Perhaps the most obviously overlooked flaw in this type of treatment is that the patients are STILL ON DRUGS.
According to J.J., a 30 year-old former heroin addict from Michigan, “I was on methadone for 5 years and it was much harder to get off than the heroin. You can’t skip a day going to the [methadone] clinic or you immediately get really sick. It’s a trap either way.”
J.J. got on methadone for fear of the withdrawal from heroin, which is extremely uncomfortable, to say the least. This route is advised by doctors often, as many feel that people addicted to heroin need other drugs to ease the withdrawal process. However, the withdrawal from methadone is much more violent than heroin or other opiates, and many patients require a medical detox to step down to somewhat stable levels to avoid violent pains and other serious symptoms.
The truth is that a drug-free alternative is not only available, but successfully helping opiate addicts fully recover from their addiction. The Narconon® Drug Rehabilitation and Education Program is based on the secular research and discoveries of L. Ron Hubbard pertaining to drug addiction. The program consists of a uniquely effective withdrawal phase, confront and communication exercises, a dry heat sauna detoxification program that rids the body of physical drug cravings and a series of life skills courses to not only fully rehabilitate individuals but also to prepare them for life after drugs.

Next Story©2003 Narconon of Oklahoma, Inc. All Rights Reserved. NARCONON is a registered trademark and service mark owned by Association for Better Living and Education International and is used with its permission.