Judge it!
What an inflammatory, one sided article!!! ALL studies show that the vast majority of diverted methadone comes NOT from the clinics but from PAIN MANAGEMENT programs, which started prescribing methadone to pain patients in the wake of the oxycontin scandals. Methadone clinic patients keep their meds in a lockbox, but pain patients can keep their meds wherever they want to, and they are being sold and stolen and traded sometimes by the patients but more often by those who steal from them. Pain patients can get a month's worth of methadone from the pharmacy in ANY state, but I see no senators "expressing concern" about that, even though that has been PROVEN to be where the increase in diversion is coming from. It's much easier to pick on addicts.
In addition, Pat Miller and others are trying to legislate something that should ONLY be decided by a doctor and a patient, i.e. how long someone should remain on their medication. People have the mistaken assumption that methadone is supposed to be taken briefly and the patient hurriedly weaned off to enjoy a "normal life" as your article said. The facts show, though, that the relapse rate for those weaned off methadone is 90%. However, for those who REMAIN in treatment, the success rate (those staying off illicit drugs and leading responsible, productive, crime free lives) is anywhere from 65% to 90% depending on the clinic. Clinics who practice adequate dosing and good patient care are the ones with the higher recovery rates. Many long term opiate addicts have done permanent damage to their brain chemistry (see the current issue of "Newsweek" magazine or the HBO special "Addiction" for more info on this) and will never again be able to produce endorphins--the natural chemical that regulates mood and controls pain. This results in patients being severely depressed, anxious, exhausted and beset with cravings when off opiates nad for many it never goes away, leading to almost inevitable relapse as the patients struggles to feel "normal". Methadone restores a normal balance to brain chemistry without causing a high or euphoria, enabling the addict to go about their business and live a "normal life"--the one Pat Miller said she wannted them to lead. It's very odd that in one breath they say they want them to live a normal life and in another breath they say they want their medications restricted so that even long term stable patients who have met an 8 point criteria, and waited years to be awarded takehomes, should give them up and report daily to the clinic, making it impossible to live that "normal life".
In closing, the use of the word "meth" (and also the term "fix" within the article) is inflammatory and causes people to associate the medication with methamphetamine.
Legal Meth - An I-Team 8 Investigation
Full story: WISH-TV 8 Indiana News
Prescription drug abuse is a problem that is only getting worse. That's a fact I-Team 8 has reported on for years.
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Why can't the people that need this medicine get a prescription from their doctor and go to the drug store?
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Indiana tax dollars at work, paying for junkies habits
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First and foremost, news agencies like WISH-TV 8 are biased and obviously ignorant! When a news agency lists Methadone as "Meth" they are portraying a lie!!! It's not like your average citizen has a pharmacology or M.D. degree, so immediately when a citizen sees the word "Meth" they obviously think of the illegal drug Methamphetamine (a.k.a Crank, crystal, etc.) They do this on purpose to make a person not in treatment seem like they are taking illegal drugs. Like this joke of a reprter said in her video report, "people drive from states as far away as Kentucky to get their "FIX." If that isn't biased, then I don't know what is?!?!? Ask yourself this, if a person goes to the pharmacy to pick up their insulin for diabetes or blood pressure meds for hyper tension, do we say oh they are going o get their "FIX!" Wha ever happened to reporting the facts, instead of reporting on one's own belief? Methadone has been studied for over 40 year's, and is he "gold standard" for addiction treatment. Methadone is also, being prescribed for pain patients mainly because of it's long half life, so it provides the patient with extended pain relief. Methadone isn't just used for addiction treatment. Methadone is highly regulated, and with all these laws passing it isn't going to be effective, which means many people will end up relapsing, which leads to the purchase of illegal drugs, crime rates going through the roof, dieases will become more prevalent and so on.... Methadone patients have to submit to random urine tests every month, you have call backs when you receive take home medication mind you each bottle has a styrofoam seal that can't be removed, and also each botle is shrink wrapped so the patient cannot take his/her medicine early or sell it, on top of that the bottles have child resistant caps. When you are randomly called in each month each bottle is checked, and if the seal or shrink wrap is removed you "LOSE" ALL TAKE HOME MEDICATION!!! Counseling is also a requirement, alonf with group meetings like "Early Recovery" and "Relapse Prevention." Many clinics aren't run by the state, so that means each patient has to pay for their treatment out of their own pocket. That's righ folks, your tax dollar's don't pay for our treatment!!! This is a life-saving medication, and is the difference between a patient maintaining their sobriety and remaining a productive citizen or going back to using illegal drugs and committing crime. Methadone allows people to have their spouse back, their faher back, their son/daughter back. You are no doubt going to see comments by groups like HARMD or MAMA, wanting to make things so strict that it is a burden for an addict to want help. The reason they hate this medicine so much, is because they have lost loved one's because their loved one took this medication illegally (which they bought off the street) and passed away because they took a medication without medical supervision.. Also, more times than none this person mixed Methadone with drugs like benzodiazipines (i.e. Xanax, Klonopin, Ativan, Valium, etc.) This is preached in Methadone clinics by counselors and medical staff, mixing drugs that aren't prescribed for you is a death sentence. Methadone patients have a board of pharmacy check done on them every month to see if they have been trying to obtain narcotics from family doctors or dentists. Anyway these groups are trying to punish legal, law abiding patients for seeking a treatment that has saved thier life and their families. So, everytime you see their comment's, I ask you to take what they say with a grain of salt. Sorry this is so long, but I am sick of ignorant reporters that are supposedly educated???? God bless all!
~Sinrboy~ |
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Richard,
I have to pay $336 a month for my methadone that would cost less than $30 from a drugstore. This comes out of my pocket, not your tax dollars. |
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why is it everyone wants to push people to get off street drugs, and then push to take away what works for them to stay clean and lead a normal existance? I'll tell you why. There are people so miserable in there own lives they want everyone else to feel that way. Walk a mile in my shoes and then tell me what works best for me. I've been an addict for years, methadone (not meth) is the one thing I found that allows me to work and spend time with my family without chasing street drugs down. I have been in methadone treatment for 3 years and have been free of my past life style the whole 3 years. It's easy to tell others what they should do when your judging from a distance. We have to work up to having take home doses. And being away from the clinics, not going every day, lets us lead normal lives not having to think about constantly going out of our way to get our medication. But it takes a long time to get to that point, to meet certain criteria week after week. And to answer Deborah, some do go thru doctors to get methadone but those people dont have councelors that talk to them and help them to understand what their reasons were for taking drugs in the first place. And to work on what triggers us to use drugs, and what to do when those feelings come up, you cannot learn on your own. These councelors help us learn these life changing and life saving tools. And I am thankful for finding the clinic at the time in my life when I really needed the help.
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I'm sorry for posting again, but i'd just like to say to RICH....I mean Dick,that if he had any idea whatsoever, about any of the goingson in a methadone treatment center, he would have refrained from his comment on tax dollars. We all know that we pay for our treatment, just like any mistake in our lives we -pay for them in one way or another. Monitarily, emotionally, physically, well, you all get my point.
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why not just send them home with a fresh batch of herion.really whats the difference if they just keep using,and never lower the dosage.a guys on treatment for 12 years its obvious this program doesnt work.the clinics are just there new dealer. p.s and marijuana is still not legal but we pump this poison to who ever wants it? only in america.
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If they would have medical marijuana in this state it would curb this "meth"
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Methadone treatment could be a very beneficial PART of a good substance abuse treatment program, however in the State of Indiana the law does not require additional modes of treatment along with the daily dose of methadone. Addicts of any kind should be treated in all aspects not just the physical. I believe that more people would be able to be completely drug free (that includes methadone) if we treated the whole person so that he/she had the ability to cope with their emotions, problems, etc. without the use of any mind altering substances. Currently methadone programs in the State of Indiana are concerned mainly with getting their money and meeting any guidelines they are required by law to meet. They are not in the business of getting people off of methadone and teaching them to live a clean and sober life. If they did that they would be in essence slitting their own throat because they wouldn't have enough clients to sustain themselves. I know this because I have worked in the field of substance abuse and mental health for the past 10 years and for a short stint I was the director of a methadone program. Once again, methadone treatment has some serious potential, but it needs to be used appropriately and in conjuction with other proven methods of treatment. That won't happen until the State of Indiana forces the methadone treatment programs to comply.
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My fix is a monthly supply of insulin. Glad I am able to get a 30 day supply or my illness would be out of control as I don't have the time nor the energy to go to my pharmacy every day for insulin. What is the difference?
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The pervasive lack of understanding of Medication Assisted Treatment is frustrating to those of us who see the other side of Methadone, and are frustrated by not only the lack of understanding, but more by the stigma that has to be endured by those whose lives have dramatically benefitted from it.
Methadone Treatment is the gold standard in the treatment of Opiate Addiction. Using and opiate to treat opiate addiction is treating fire with fire in Forest Management and is done with much regularity. Are there occasional fires that get out of control when using this method? Yes indeed, but the benefits far outweigh the harms. Speaking of $, did you know that for every $ spent on Methadone treatment, we actually save $7 (incarceration, medical costs, lost work revenue)? That is a good return! I wonder how much those posting negative comments about Methadone Maintenance Treatment really know about the subject (including the author of this article!), and invite you to read up on the subject. www.sccdads.org and under "Featured Information" you will find the pdf file labeled "Professional Perspectives on Addiction Medicine." I personally know thousands of people on Medication Assisted treatment and they are happy, healthy productive members of society, in part due to this life saving medication. |
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I can't believe how sheltered some folks are. This drug is sold on the streets to the people who do not have transportation to acquire it. Are drug addicts trustworthy sources to release these amounts of methadone to? It is easy for a doctor to say it is for a certain individual, when the individual is helping out his/her drug buddies and making money selling it at the same time. Giving an addict another high is not a solution. If they think peeps aren't using it to get high and get their friends high, they are wrong!!!!
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EXCELLENT POST; you bring-up things I often forget about. Like the "tax dollars" - My treatment COST me more than my CAR payment!!!! Just reminds me, how MUCH of working, productive citizen, I am! Sky~ |
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Going to the "clinic" is simply trading one addiction for another. CRC and other "treatment" programs like this are no better than drug dealers, they in fact are drug dealers selling methadone to addicted people under the guise of a "treatment" program and charging an arm and a leg for it. These folks would walk through hell to get this stuff every week. I know I have a brother that goes to Richmond every Friday and no matter what else happens getting that weekly fix is number one, and he is ALWAYS out by Monday. My sister in law died a year ago from a combination of methadone and xanax.
No one is monitoring this, it's all about the money as long as you pay and show up at the clinic you get the methadone, and you can keep getting it as long as you want and keep paying. I would like to see a full scale DEA investigation into this company and all others like it. |
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MMMMMMMMMM! METH! I love meth and am smoking it right now. I just got home from work, cooked for the family, have a nice house, vote, pay my bills, have great credit, never been in court, AND LOVE METH, COKE, AND WEED! IT'S REALLY NO BIG DEAL! Some people just can't say no, and I say, screw them, but don't ruin it for those of us who can!
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Because of Methadone Treatment, I am the proud mother of a beautiful daughter......my biggest and bestest accomplishment! Doesn't sound like much, but it took me 40 years to do it...and believe me, I wanted a child since I was one myself! Before MMT, I couldn't even imagine myself changing a diaper...let alone the responsibility of raising a child. My other "baby" is an organization that I am founder of.... Methadone Support Org, an organization that supports those in medication assisted treatment.....whether for substance abuse or pain. I am in the position of being in touch with thousands of very grateful methadone patients...who thanks to this medication are now living very productive and "normal" lives. Not just living...but THRIVING. So I see DAILY the impact this medication has. There is a petition online....to try and stop the hysteria and further restrictions of Methadone.(http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/360... ) Please, open your mind......take a look at the petition and read the "comments" next to each of the signatures. They tell the TRUE stories of the people that have signed....and how this medication has SAVED their lives. I was touched by a child who signed, "Shawn R"...and told about his experience growing up with a heroin addicted mother...and how he watched methadone treatment change her life and ALL of their lives. This child said it better than I could ever say it....and I hear his story countless times...from grateful family members and loved one's. How can one argue with that?? I am SORRY for the loss of anyone that has had someone die from a methadone related cause. We are ALL sorry, but punishing all of the people who's lives have been SAVED accomplishes NOTHING. METHADONE SAVES LIVES!
In closing...if you need help/support/info on methadone, please come and visit our website and forums!....Carol http://www.MethadoneAnonymous.us http://www.MethadoneAnonymous.us/forum.html |
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You cannot smoke methadone, "The man". This is not about methamphetamine.
To those who claim we are just having a ball out there getting high on methadone, I just don't know what to tell you as you will believe whatever appeals to you. Methadone is used precisely because it does NOT cause a high in stable, tolerant patients. It controls withdrawals and cravings and replaces the missing endorphins that long term opiate use causes in the brain--that's it. Are people concerned with getting their meds? Sure--but not because of that fantastic high you imagine. We need the medication at the same time on a daily basis to keep our disease under control just like anyone else who takes long term medication. If people mix methadone with certain other meds, then yes, they may feel overly sedated and may even die. Do some MMT patients do this? Yes--but the number is low. Clinics have an average success rate of 65 to 90% of patients illicit drug free. And the patients least likely to be diverting the medication are those with extended takehomes. You folks have no idea of all the standards we must meet and hoops we much jump through to get extended takehomes, and the years in treatment that must pass before we get them, and the continuing urine tests, saliva tests, medication callbacks, bottle returns and other indignities we endure to prove that we are stable and not using. For 40 years methadone has been used in clinics without all this hubbub and protest. Everyone knew that methadone had very little value as a street drug--it is not something most addicts enjoy. It was occasionally sold on the street, yes--almost always to other addicts who could not get on the program and were unable to get their drug of choice and wanted to avoid getting ill. No one else wanted it. In recent years, methadone has been prescribed increasingly as a painkiller, and that is where the bulk of diversion and deaths are coming from. Teens and young people see this drug in medicine cabinets and take it, feel sedated but not high and think well, maybe if I take more--so they do, and then they fall asleep and never wake up. In all these 40 years of methadone treatment at clinics there has not been any large scale problem with diversion and deaths. Now that it is being prescribed for pain all of a sudden people are dying and all studies show that this is where the vast majority of diverted meds are coming from--NOT from the methadone clinics. Yet the finger of blame points irresolutely at the clinics because it is just so much easier to blame the addicts, to punish the addicts, to take privileges away from the addicts, to mock and deride and insult the addicts. Education is the answer to this present problem--education of doctors, patients (on storage, on mixing drugs, on disposing of unused meds, etc) and teens who do not realize what they are taking and abusing. |
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I'm sorry, you are wrong, tax dollars DOES NOT PAY for mine, I have to pay for it my self and so does everyone that goes to the clinic that I go to. I pay 375.00 a month out of my pocket, not yours!!! so please before you talk about us junkies make sure you don't sound like one yourself, by not knowing what you are talking about. |
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Greetings,
Thank you for your interest in our plight. This is Michael, the patient in the story. Not only have I been in treatment for 12 years, I have been in recovery for 12 years. More than 90% of opiate addicts treated in traditional abstinence based facilities relapse... including me, after more treatment centers than I can remember. More than 50% of those treated with MAT, as long as they stay in treatment, don't relapse. So if you what you really want, Senator Miller, is for us to have a normal life, thank you and I look forward to legislation that makes treatment easier. And in case anyone wondered, take at homes as spoke of in this article are given only after years of stability and no illicit drug use. We are monitored all the time and if we relapse, we loose our take at homes. I have been in this system for years. I even spent a few outside of the U.S. on methadone. I am of the opinion the system in place already, when used properly, is sufficient and new regulations will only make the problem worse. Why should we think we will do better with new rules when we can't use the ones we have already? Thank you, Pam, for telling the truth. You are right, diverted methadone from clinics is only PART of the problem. In fact, reliable studies I can supply show almost all methadone used illicitly come from prescriptions filled at the pharmacy and almost none from methadone clinics. In other words, the genesis of this problem is from your medicine cabinets and not from my locked medications bag. If it's right to deny us these life giving meds because they might end up in the wrong hands even once... My hope is this begins a dialog that offers the good people in Indiana and America a chance to see and know the truth. All I want, too, is to live a normal life... and that is what I am doing on methadone. Just ask anyone that knew me when my disease was active; abnormal is well established:) Respectfully, Michael Hansen |
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Daily Horoscope for December 23
Sagittarius
Slow down! You're trying to do too much and it's driving you - and everyone else - up the wall. What's more, if you're in too much of a hurry you'll start to become accident-prone and that will make you even more het up. Try to take any setbacks or domestic mishaps in your stride, otherwise you'll end the day feeling like a nervous wreck.
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