Drug Detox May Turn Out To Be Growth Business In Affluent Mukilteo

In the city of Mukilteo, an affluent suburb at the northern extremes of Seattle, WA, soccer moms and corporate-exec dads are learning the really hard way about a disturbing new aspect of living the American dream -- the growing need for OxyContin detox and drug rehab for their school-age little ones.

OxyContin, related to morphine and heroin, is a highly effective narcotic painkiller originally intended for terminal cancer sufferers. It has come to be the drug of choice among a lot of teens and young adults all across America, and from all walks of life.

A recent function article in the Mukilteo Beacon reveals that the will need for detox and rehab applications among young high-schoolers might grow to be surprisingly popular in that American-dream neighborhood.

The article tells the story of how, not extended ago, a local soccer mom's idyllic planet of "soccer matches, Small League games, fund-raisers and ferrying her children between Houston texas detoxification school and their numerous activities, a universe away from the harsh realities of opiate addiction -- crime, continuous sickness and sacrificing family and mates for that subsequent fix"-- came to a crashing halt.

That was the day that Jeanmarie Trapp, a "scout leader, PTA president, and stay-at-home mom got the phone contact no parent wants to hear. Her kid was addicted to OxyContin, in legal trouble, and that was just the starting in the nightmare."

OxyContin use has expanded from its initially intended cancer discomfort to any chronic pain, even moderate discomfort. Even though OxyContin comes in time-release tablets of varying strengths, most addicts ultimately commence crushing the tablets into powder to defeat the time release mechanism, and snort it, or dissolve and inject the drug, for an quick higher. If you're a brand new user, death can take place following a single dose. And also if you are an experienced and habitual user, mixing it with other drugs or alcohol can also bring a swift finish to life.

OxyContin is so addictive, in actual fact, that Purdue Pharmaceuticals, the drug's maker, was fined $634 million by the government last year for deceiving regulators and physicians about how addictive and hazardous it can be in the incorrect hands. And these wrong hands in Mukilteo are affluent teens and college little ones.

"No one particular is immune to this," Trapp mentioned. "People need to have to take their blinders off and quit thinking that it can't occur to them. Usually, kids commence experimenting with prescription drug abuse about 12 to 14 years old. Little ones that age are so naïve - they have no clue in regards to the dangers and unwanted side effects of prescription drugs. It is critical to attain and educate impressionable young kids ahead of it's too late."

"This is everywhere, not just 'somewhere else,'" Trapp said. "Every financial level, each and every household is at threat; it really is a problem that's not going to be solved by myself. It's a complicated challenge, and to solve it, individuals might have to rethink their opinions and their prejudices concerning the whole situation."

Trapp has produced a assistance group that meets as soon as a week at her real estate office, and is organizing public outreach projects to spread the word. "This is not a support group exactly where we talk about our stories," she stated. "We're an action group."

When a person has turn into addicted to OxyContin, they are within a grip which will look impossible to have absolutely free of. Youngsters particularly never have an understanding of the power with the drug, and also the difficulty of acquiring clean, Trapp told the Beacon. In reality, kids typically progress to heroin from OxyContin addiction, she added. Numerous addiction experts contact OxyContin "heroin inside a pill", and within the Appalachian area on the south-east U.S., it's nicknamed "hillbilly heroin".