Working in her Bellaire office, Crossroads Counseling Services clinical supervisor Rebecca Kinkade tries to determine what can be done to address the heroin epidemic sweeping through the Upper Ohio Valley. The problem seems to be getting worse, as area hospitals continue seeing more patients ...
Profuse sweating, extreme chills, frequent vomiting, nausea, insomnia and muscle pain are just some of the challenges awaiting someone headed toward heroin or opioid withdrawal. “Imagine the worst flu you’ve ever had, and multiply that by 100. That is what it’s like to withdraw from heroin,” said Jeremy Sagun, operations manager for Substance Abuse Services at Northwood Health Systems. “Going through detox with these individuals can be an extreme challenge,” he added. Sagun joined Northwood Director of Operations Ed Nolan to discuss the cases their agency handles at its ...
As the opioid epidemic continues to ravage the country, addiction counselors are addressing risk factors and calling for better treatment options. Joy Graham, a professional clinical counselor in Woodsfield, has 15 years of experience treating patients with addictions. Graham said the biggest risk factor and predictor in the development of addiction is a history of childhood trauma. “The more trauma history — abuse or neglect — the higher the risk for addiction. An addiction is all about numbing emotions you don’t want to feel. People who have gone through healthy ...
Sean Beckett, a recovering addict, said the reality of opioid withdrawal keeps people from going cold turkey. It seems obvious, but it’s a reason that makes the most sense. “It’s like the worst flu you’ve ever had times 100,” he said. “Everything hurts, and fluids are coming out of everything.” It lasts nearly a week, according to Beckett. Dr. Neal Aulick, an emergency room physician at Ohio Valley Medical Center, said the body experiences a drastic shift in this process. While pain receptors have grown accustomed to little irritation and the body’s ability to pass ...
Jim Lee — a retired 45-year employee of West Virginia’s 1st District Circuit Court — said the drug court program he helped to start more than a decade ago is proving successful, but more drug rehabilation centers are needed across the state to tackle the serious problem of drug addiction in West Virginia. Lee, a former chief probation officer in the 1st District, worked with former judge Martin Gaughan to establish the drug courts in 2005. Lesser offenders who have not been convicted of violent crimes are eligible for the program. Lee said it currently takes three months for a ...
For years after a person’s addiction to drugs or alcohol, the effects remain. However, the company that one keeps in the initial stages of recovery can make all the difference. Recovery from addiction, for some people, can depend largely on the company involved. Paul Hall, a recent ...
