Comments by "Anita K" (@Anita-k) on "VICE News"
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~14:57 "Drug treatments in prison should only be the last resort...!" - Finally a video about opioids that made sense, at least most of it.
I also liked these last few words at the end of the video; (beginning with that sentence I started my comment with).
As someone from Austria/Europe I think drug users shouldn't be incarcerated at all, specially if they're not violent and didn't commit any crimes besides using drugs.
There aren't enough good programs in the US.
Methadone and Suboxon/Subutex don't really work for most of the really heavy drug users, when it comes to opioid withdrawals. That's why these programs fail so many patients and they relapse way too often...
That's why we have morphine programs in Austria and they work. I could reduce my dosage from 1000mg Substitol/day (abusing it "iv" at the beginning) to 400mg/day and normal use over the period of ~8 years.
These are minus 60% which is huge for me because nothing else has worked for me before.
Admittedly I could only reduce successfully due to the fact that I got "take home" (after the first 3 years) and not abusing my meds "iv" any longer.
Thankfully I hated needles anyways, so kicking this habit was not so hard like for a long-term heroin "iv" user. I just wasn't able to stomach swallowing this amount of pills from one day to the other; instead of snorting or smoking H because of severe stomach issues. After two or three days I always started to puke my meds out; it took a special diet and stomach-protecting meds to fix this problem.
Btw I didn't relapse because my morphine is nearly the same as H, the only difference:
It's strong, pure and always the same dose. - I'd be crazy to throw my money out of the window for some H from the streets, risking my "take home" and getting arrested on top of that!
I've had a severe accident before I've started using H. This left me in pain, in multi-disability with PTSD, anxiety and depression. - Noone including my doctors would've been disappointed or surprised, if I'd stayed on the 1000mg Substitol/day dosage for the rest of my entire life...
But I wanted, did and do reduce my daily dosage for myself.
Btw, in Germany and Switzerland they even have a heroin "iv" program for the long-term heroin "iv" users. Of course there's nothing like a "take home"-option after the first few years, usually the patients come to the clinic twice a day for their fix (morning & evening). For those who don't live too far away that's a success and they're able to work during the day (if healthy enough).
There're always doctors and medical staff in these clinics. Not only in case of an emergency but also to assist with health problems and even helping the users who have troubles with their veins.
As far as I know, the statistics are good in the areas which have such a clinic. Logically there're less illegal opioids in the streets and the drug related deaths-numbers have dropped.
The numbers of drug related crimes have dropped as well in these areas.
Barely to no drug related deaths amongst the patients of the clinics is a good result imo.
(Like in every country of the world, there're new generations of addicts of course. The statistics and numbers shouldn't be mixed though, because they've no contact to the H from the H clinics).
From my point of view, the US could learn a lot from these programs and studies in countries like Portugal, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
We all have a life here in Europe, despite being addicted.
A very high percentage of us (the healthy ones) is working regular jobs and paying taxes.
We all have at least a home, a small apartment; even the ill and disabled ones. Sure, there're a few complete idiots who aren't able to keep their small apts, but every country has some of these people who are unable to manage their money and bills. Usually they go couch-hopping or they share an apt till they've figured it out.
But there's NOT such an amount of HOMELESS POPULATION amongst the drug users like in the US!
Edit to the topic "new generation of addicts":
Opioids are highly addictive, statistically 23% of the people who have used opioids for whatever reason - against the pain after an accident, diseases, curiosity (it doesn't matter) - become addicted sooner or later.
This is a fact.
(We literally fall in love with the wrong type of drug).
If it'd be sugar, fat, caffeine or alcohol, nobody would give af.
This "war on drugs"-ideology is harmful, dangerous and ridiculous.
The US is full of people suffering from obesity. But nobody dares to criticize that because body-shaming or fat-shaming is most likely politically incorrect (or whatever).
Obesity is also dangerous, unhealthy and in most cases an addiction. Often mixed with or based on diseases and sometimes mental health issues.
Reminds me very much of a drug addict's background.
A deadly addiction nonetheless.
Lol, imagine a "war on fat" against McDonalds & co...
As long as we haven't solved the problem that humans can become addicted, there'll always be a new generation of (drug) addicts.
We should learn to treat them the best way possible to stop society from falling apart!
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Tbh, this is why I NEVER entirely stop a medical treatment prematurely.
They'll NEVER prescribe you the same substances again, if they know you don't physically need them.
It's their main goal to eliminate certain substances entirely and they'll prescribe you everything else, except benzos in this case.
The way I got them prescribed was admitting to already (ab)using them daily ... back then ~3 decades ago, it's mostly been other people selling their original brands/pills, no street chemicals, so this wasn't really a risky move.
I remember, how doctor(s) tried to persuade me to take a whole bunch of antidepressants instead of benzos, I tried them and refused ... imo this is also why so many people die now, but nobody's yet talking about everybody being on antidepressants now for "mental health reasons".
(Shoulda watch video first, maybe they do but I highly doubt, it'll change much).
Edit:
This was disappointing.
A high percentage of youngsters dying/"teenage deaths" goes back to them trying drugs and already being on antidepressants, these meds are also very strong ... I remember they also knocked me out, especially "in combination", they're also very physically addicting, but doctors acted so surprised back then.
So really nothing new here.
LOL, 31:50 the guy's basically admitting he's putting his finger into his a** trying to stop diarrhoea, the US "war on drugs" has failed and granted, it'll take them another 5 decades to admit it.
Benzos and other substances have always been mixed with opioids - the opioids change of course - the only constant are the deaths and the poor quality of life for us addicts; like e.g. dying from withdrawals in prison.
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