AHS Views

“People using these (prescription drugs) recreationally have no idea what they’re getting into,” emergency room physician Dr. Lawrence Wilson commented after yet another Texas prescription drug death. One more reason to ensure that anyone taking prescription drugs gets the addiction help they need before they, too, end up in the hospital or the morgue.

The patient in question, a young adult, had come into the ER with a prescription drug overdose and, as far as the doctor could tell, she left in stable condition and things seemed under control. But it appears she died from a combination of prescription drugs. What the doctor obviously was not aware of was that this person needed addiction help. Not even the overdose was enough motivation for her to stop.

That’s because she was addicted - she needed professional addiction help services.

Bill Irving, a local alcohol and drug abuse counselor, says prescription drug abuse is “so accepted right now it scares me to death.”

Where are people getting these drugs? Many are getting them right out of the medicine cabinet but according to Dante Sorianello, a Texas DEA agent, adults and teens often get prescription pads and write their own prescriptions. Or they pretend they’re in pain then go to several doctors with the same symptoms to get more than one prescription. Or they get them on the Internet - with 70% of Internet pharmacies you don’t even need a prescription to get the drugs and it doesn’t matter how old you are.

They use the drugs themselves and give or sell them to others.

But it’s all much harder to control than street drugs because it’s buried within the medical system - officials are used to looking on the street.

There are plenty of addiction help services available in Texas and across the U.S.  Check with a specialist to find out which one is best for your situation.