Alcoholism and drug addiction are not new, but a few decades ago they were labeled as diseases, and now there are millions of Americans being prescribed drugs that have abuse potential, heavy mental and physical side effects and may even be fatal.
The scary, inbred connection with the pharmaceutical industry and doctors has led to the current disastrous epidemic of prescription drug addiction, with legal drugs killing more people in many states than illicit substances. Despite this undisputable evidence of carnage, the majority of doctors and addiction treatment centers continue to prescribe more drugs to addicts instead of helping them end the problem permanently.
One of the most common examples includes opioid replacement therapy for people who are addicted to drugs like heroin and oxycodone. These drugs often include buprenorphine or methadone, yet each are variations of synthetic opiates themselves and if taken over any substantial length of time require treatment just to get off them. There is also the fact that many states are seeing a significant rise in methadone and other opiate-related deaths.
Another commonly accepted practice includes an array of psychotropic drugs like anti-anxiety medication, antidepressants and atypical antipsychotics. However, sedatives such as benzodiazepines to cope with anxiety have an extremely high potential for abuse in themselves, antidepressants have been proven to cause erratic behavior and antipsychotics have been linked to causing diabetes, among other side effects.
“People seeking rehabilitation help for alcohol and other drug addictions are feeling lost and betrayed,” comments New Face of Recovery™ founding member Lucas A Catton, “They pay money to go to these treatment centers
with the hope of getting better, but many of the end up worse because of the drugs they are given there.”
Catton says he has personally spoken with thousands of people throughout the country in recent years who share this sentiment and who are seeking a more effective form of rehabilitation program. This continuing pattern is what led to the formation of the New Face of Recovery as a patient advocacy group seeking to improve conditions in the addiction treatment field.