They lost sons to addiction. Now they’re pushing for needle exchange to go beyond Miami

Losing a loved one is painful enough. But it is more painful if you can’t get justice for them. When you lose someone to drugs, how would you be able to get justice? Especially if it was their own choice that led them to addiction? Losing a precious life just one thing that drugs can do. Before it leads to death, it can make a person suffer in different ways. No other people would even know such pain than the mothers of those who lost their lives to drugs.

Two mothers who lost their sons to addiction is now pushing for needle exchange to go beyond Miami. Two mothers, who both lost sons to a drug overdose on the streets of Miami, now fight to save other families from the very same heartache. Cindy Dodds and Joy Fishman are both advocates working to expand Florida’s needle exchange program.

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Seven colorful painted bricks lie at the base of an oak tree next to a cracked sidewalk and empty lot in Overtown, a tree adorned with a white cross in memory of a man claimed by addiction there 2 1/2 years ago. The monument is weathered, three of its bricks fractured. They bear the man’s name: Kyle Dodds.

In 2016, the 24-year-old was on his way to work when he stopped to buy drugs near the oak tree. He snorted the drugs on the spot and died before he even made it back to his car, killed by a lethal mix of heroin and synthetic opioids.

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Preventing drug addiction could start with teens

Teenage addiction is a serious problem that needs an immediate solution. The number rises so fast that it seems like it’s so difficult to keep up. A lot of teenagers today are very daring to try drugs and a lot end up getting addicted to it. For a long time now, drug addiction and getting out of it has always been a struggle. Many have tried- there are those who failed while others were able to make it through.

In Clarence Middle School Today at Clarence Middle School more than 350 students heard stories from drug addicts themselves about the dangers and the struggles they face. Clarence Town Justice and Drug Court Director Mike Powers had the idea to put the addicts in front of the students to make more of an impact.

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“I bring some of my drug court kids out to speak to these students one on one up close and personal,” Powers explained. “I have found over the years with a lot of the programs I have done that the most effective speakers are the [drug court] kids… kids get tired of hearing adults tell them what they can and can’t do.”

One of the drug addicts that told his story was named Kevin. He started using alcohol and marijuana when he was in his early teens and became addicted. Now, decades later, he’s finally clean and he’s sharing his story with these teens.

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How running ‘helped me to reach my clean Sundays’

It’s a known fact that exercise greatly contributes to our health. In fact, it is highly recommended that aside from eating healthy, we all need to exercise to have a balanced and healthy life. But aside from this, it is so amazing that it can also help those who are suffering from addiction. Here is a man who can attest that exercise, specifically running has helped him reach “clean Sundays”.

Ronnie, from Glasgow, is a former addict who has used running as a tool to help him towards recovery. Similarly, Iain Murphy has found inspiration through running to help him in his battle with alcohol. Both men feel the challenge and peace of mind they have gained from exercise has helped them turn their lives around.

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Ronnie is a recovering drug addict who runs regularly because it makes him feel “alive”.

At three weeks clean he started running while attending a Glasgow rehab centre and from struggling to run one mile within six months he was running 13.

“I ran the Great Scottish Run half marathon and my time was 1:46:50,” he says.

“I was buzzing, a natural high, I did not know you could feel like that without drugs.”

The natural high of running was different to the one he had been seeking since he was 11 years old.

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Bronx man arrested on drug charges in Danbury

Drugs are a serious problem that the government is trying to solve for a long time now. More than ever, it is in this present time that this problem has been so challenging. The number of people using it is increasing and so many crimes take place because of it- its dangerous effects. Also, people are not even scared to carry or to sell drugs in spite of the fact that they can actually be arrested.

In Danbury, A Bronx man was arrested on drug charges after police said he ran a red light in Danbury. Lenny Cubilette, 32, was pulled over Friday evening after police said he ignored a red light at the intersection of Main Street and Garamella Boulevard.

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The officer searched the car after he thought he smelled marijuana, according to police. The officer found more than a half an ounce of cocaine and more than a half an ounce of marijuana, police said.

Cubilette was charged with failure to obey control signal, sale of greater than or equal to a half ounce of cocaine/free base, distribution of controlled substances less than 1,500 feet from a school, possession of a controlled substance or greater than a half ounce of cannabis, non-student with drugs near a school or high school, and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence.

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Detox unit helps patients tackle addictions

When it comes to addiction, in one way or the other, everyone will be needing help. Getting addicted is easy but once you realize the consequences of such a decision and would like a way out, sometimes it won’t be that easy. Good thing that there are now a lot of drug addiction treatment centers that people can go to for help.

In fact, there are now more detox units that help patients tackle their addiction. Schools and hospitals around the country participate in recognizing Jan. 22-27 as National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week. According to drugabuse.gov, National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week is a health observance week for teens that aims to shatter the myths about drug and alcohol use.

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Medical providers and facilities in local communities are available to help those struggling with addiction, during Drug and Alcohol Facts Week and any time.

East Alabama Medical Center has a Medical Detoxification Unit at EAMC-Lanier in Valley where patients are treated for several days before returning home or moving to a long-term detox facility.

When someone who is addicted to drugs or alcohol decides to stop using, their symptoms can be severe and can be dangerous to detox without supervision.

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Punjab govt takes concrete steps to end drug addiction in youth

All over the world, drug addiction is considered a serious problem because, in reality, it really is. It has been affecting so many people, especially the youth. We often see in the news youths who become victims of drug addiction or the number of those who are abusing drugs is fast increasing. This is the same case even in Punjab. In fact, their government is taking concrete steps to end drug addiction among youth.

Over three lakh drug addicts were treated in Punjab in 2018 and more than 63,000 people are currently being treated, out of which 25,000 are heroin addicts, a top police official said on Tuesday, January 15. The retention rate is 91.71%, Director General (Special Task Force) Mohammad Mustafa told reporters. The Special Task Force, constituted by the state in April 2017, has been implementing a three-pronged strategy of enforcement, de-addiction and prevention (EDP) to combat the menace of drugs.

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The action plan named Comprehensive Action against Drug Abuse is aimed at choking the supply of drugs through enforcement and reducing the demand through de-addiction and prevention.

Mustafa said a multi-layered monitoring and implementing mechanism has been put in place. The Cabinet sub-committee on drugs headed by Chief Minister Amarinder Singh is monitoring it.

He said the outpatient treatment being rendered at 168 Outpatient Opioid Assisted Treatment Clinics is a great success.

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Discount Drug Mart offers free pouches to dispose of opiates

When it comes to drugs, not only the abuse or addiction to it is the problem. Other more issues may come in the way that makes the solving of the problem a lot more difficult. There is the issue of improper disposal of these drugs which can cause harm to people and the environment. This is why in Lorain City, a discount mart is offering patients who receive short-term opioid prescriptions a medication disposal pouch at no cost.

These pouches will help patients dispose of unused opioid prescriptions by deactivating the drug and rendering the drug irretrievable for misuse, according to a news release from Discount Drug Mart. Discount Drug Mart and the Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services Board of Lorain County recently announced this joint effort to raise consumer awareness about the importance of safe medication disposal and help take unused opioid medications out of circulation, the release said.

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Pouches also are available upon request at the pharmacy counter at any Discount Drug Mart at no cost.

Also, a tamper evident locking medicine bag is available upon request at Discount Drug Mart locations, according to the release.

Elaine Georgas, executive director of the Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services Board of Lorain County, joined Joseph Muha, Discount Drug Mart’s corporate counsel and director of Pharmacy Compliance, in announcing the partnership.

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