Several city health centers now equipped with prescription drug drop boxes

The abuse of prescription drugs is becoming a serious problem in many parts of the world. Also, there are a lot of people who do not exactly know how to properly dispose of their unneeded or expired prescription drugs. Given this, in Cincinnati, several of the city’s primary care centers are now equipped with prescription drug drop boxes, the health department announced Monday.

Health Commissioner Melba Moore said the boxes allow for a responsible means of disposing of unneeded or expired prescription drugs. “We believe that the easy access to the drug take-back boxes will be yet another drug abuse prevention measure to help curb the addiction crisis,” Moore said in a written statement.

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The organization PreventionFIRST! worked with city officials to purchase the prescription drop boxes through a grant from the Ohio Department of Health.

“Many homes have unwanted or expired prescription and over-the-counter medications,” said Mary Haag, president and CEO of PreventionFIRST! “When these medicines are no longer needed, they should be disposed of promptly and safely to reduce the chance of someone accidentally or intentionally misusing these medications.”

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Two rival politicians accused each other of using drugs

Drugs are everywhere. This also means that everyone talks about it and anyone can be involved in it. Whoever you are and regardless of your status in the society, you can be a victim of drugs or if not, you might be using them. Drugs can be in any setting, even in politics. Here are two rival politicians who are accusing each other of using drugs.

It’s been described as a “political pissing contest” — literally. Two feuding politicians in Bridgeport, Connecticut’s largest city, spent much of the past week accusing each other of being on mind-altering substances after getting into an ugly fight in the comments section of a local political blog. Naturally, they could only settle their dispute one way: by challenging each other to a public drug test.

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Calling it a “modern twist on the classic political duel,” the Connecticut Post reported on Monday that Bridgeport City Councilman Ernest Newton and Board of Education member Maria Pereira had both handed over plastic cups of urine and passed their respective tests.

As it turns out, they’re not the first ones to go through the humiliating ritual. Both front-runners in Ukraine’s presidential election submitted to live-streamed drug tests earlier this month, and the state of Georgia once made screenings mandatory for candidates running for state office.

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Former drug addict helps others using his experience, yerba mate company

Addiction can turn life upside down. In most cases, people fall into destruction because of it. However, there are also those people who admit their addiction, yet they took the courage to seek help and get out of it. In fact, there are those who serve as an inspiration to others, setting as an example and helping them better understand the effects of drugs and how it can change one’s life.

Five years ago, Wes Hurt struggled with addictions to cocaine, opiates, and alcohol. Today, he runs a company that helps others recovering from addiction. In 2014, Hurt founded CLEAN Cause, an Austin-based yerba mate tea company, to help people recovering from addiction by allocating 50% of profits to sober-living scholarships. He said he not only wanted to be an entrepreneur but also have an impact.

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Hurt said his addiction started in high school, when he began experimenting with drugs and alcohol. In the span of 20 years, Hurt went to six rehabilitation centers and ended up in a psychiatric hospital. After realizing he was truly hooked, Hurt said he continued postponing the recovery process like a New Year’s resolution.

“That was one of my more difficult realizations about my life,” Hurt said. “I knew there was going to be a long battle back.”

It wasn’t until Hurt was dismissed from his former company, had no money left and lived in a warehouse after his wife kicked him out that he realized he wanted to change.

“CLEAN is the product of that extremism in a healthier way,” Hurt said. “It speaks to something bigger, which was an explicit purpose in life that gave my actions reasons (to fight) for recovery.”

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Recovering addict shares her story with local opioid council

The availability of drug addiction treatment centers and the many initiatives led by the government and different organizations have helped many people who are abusing drugs. Although the problem with drugs still exist and the number of users is increasing, if there is one good thing about, it’s the fact that there are many of them who are also trying their best to quit and live a new life. Many of these recovery addicts also share their stories to inspire others.

At 27, “Hope” found herself serving three years in prison after a stint of abusing prescription drugs and later addiction to heroin. She said she started abusing drugs because of the trauma she experienced as a teenager. Unsure about how to cope, she turned to drugs. “I wasn’t addicted to the drug. I was addicted to the numbing,” she said. “I wasn’t using to feel something. I was using to not feel.”

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The Madison County resident grew up in what she described as a “very loving, Christian home.” She attended a Christian academy and went to college. At 16, she was raped and Hope said she didn’t know how to handle the shame she felt. She said her lack of self-worth led her to stay in a mentally abusive relationship, which created more trauma. She said getting “mixed in with the wrong crowd” also contributed to her abuse of drugs.

Following a car accident, Hope began abusing prescription pills. Two years later, she transitioned into using heroin. While Hope stopped using drugs while she was pregnant, she said her inability to cope with pain led her back to using drugs.

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