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Balancing Treatment and Substance Use Disorder

We at Zero Unintentional Deaths often hear from family members at their wits’ end over the dangerous prescription opioid use of a son, daughter, husband, wife, or other loved one. They see a familiar person changing before their eyes into someone they don’t recognize. Someone who goes to extraordinary lengths – even commits illegal acts -- to get and use more prescription drugs. The family member often believes if only the person could stop using opioids – could get and stay clean – all would be well. 

The trouble is, the person often has real physical pain in addition to a substance use disorder.  One woman wrote a letter describing her husband’s 15-year history of inpatient and outpatient rehab, his jail time for three DUIs, his close calls with overdose. Despite all that, her husband is unable to see that he has a problem managing his opioid intake because he also has many health problems and significant pain.  

The husband gets multiple prescriptions from different doctors and pharmacies, lying to get what he feels he needs to survive. His wife despairs that he never seems to get caught. Despite the wreck their lives have become, she knows her husband is in pain and cannot do without treatment. 

“Have you found a type of rehab that helps these cases?  All the rehab and support groups my husband has been to have been filled with illegal drug users and so they haven't done him any good.”

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Posted under Substance Use Disorder on Dec 8, 2008 at 10:37 am | 0 Comments