Pubdate: Tue, 23 Nov 2004
Source: Weymouth News (MA)
Copyright: 2004 Weymouth News
Contact:  http://www2.townonline.com/weymouth/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3594
Author: Michael Verseckes
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?143 (Hepatitis)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/oxycontin.htm (Oxycontin/Oxycodone)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)
Cited: http://www.Learn2Cope.org

DEALING WITH THE GRIM IMPACT OF HEROIN

Heroin is at an all-time low in cost and an all-time high in purity.

Heroin is a bigger problem in the Northeast than anywhere else in the country.

There isn't a community in Norfolk County that hasn't felt its effects.

A panel sponsored by District Attorney William Keating's office held an 
open forum on Nov. 17 to discuss the problem of heroin, which is emerging 
in recent years to become more than just a vague concern.

The group, consisting of the Weymouth police department, Learn 2 Cope, New 
Hope Transitional Support Services, and members of the Norfolk County 
probation department, was joined locally by the Weymouth Youth Coalition 
and the Weymouth Heroin Use Prevention Coalition.

The groups joined forces with Keating to outline a problem encroaching upon 
the area.

With the help of the district attorney's office, data is currently being 
collected to establish statistics which will shed light on the status of 
heroin and other drug use for the county.

If nothing else, the results have shown so far that awareness and early 
intervention are the best measures of preventing what looms on the horizon 
from becoming a catastrophic reality.

In recent years, the average age for heroin users has dropped from 28 to 
17, and from 1995 to 2002, the need for clinical help more than doubled.

As the problem begins its escalation, treatment programs and support 
networks may not have adequate funding necessary to meet the need.

David Abrahamian, clinical director of New Hope TSS, said that although the 
problem could get worse, access to the drug and developing an addiction are 
as easy as ever.

"Seventy percent of heroin users start on painkillers and things like 
OxyContin," he said.

As tolerance increases after extended use of prescription drugs, Abrahamian 
said that people are looking for something more potent.

"All it takes is an average of three to four uses over a short time to 
become addicted," he said.

Currently, the level of purity is around 60 to 80 percent, but Abrahamian 
said that 15 years ago, the percent was no higher than 10

"And now," he said, "the price has actually gone down to $4 a bag. It's 
actually cheaper than a six-pack of beer."

Addiction becomes a further health risk when people try to do without 
heroin, but experience the onset of withdrawal.

"Withdrawal symptoms can take affect after 12 hours," Abrahamian said. "The 
symptoms peak at around 36 hours, at which point people will do anything."

This includes needle sharing, which aids the spread of HIV and Hepatitis C.

"These might look like scare tactics, but I've got news: be scared," 
Keating said.

"When you're addicted, it's not a decision any more," he added, echoing 
Abrahamian's remark about the lengths people will go when addiction develops.

The spread of this deadly narcotic becomes even harder to handle when 
addicts seek treatment.

Many insurance companies will not cover the costs for treatment, and in 
their current state, treatment facilities cannot meet the needs of people 
seeking help, Keating said.

As damaging the effects are to a person's health, addiction does equal harm 
to family and friends.

Joanna Peterson has suffered through what heroin is capable of, which 
almost devastated her family beyond repair.

Peterson has nothing but fond memories of her son growing up in the Boston 
area. Her son's attributes indicate a child with talents in both athletics 
and technical areas.

Her son, Scott, played football, travelling as far as Florida to compete in 
tournaments.

After high school, Scott decided to join the National Guard, where he was 
recognized for showing outstanding physical dexterity.

Scott went on to receive training in the complex field of aviation 
mechanics through the Guard, and found a decent-paying civilian job after 
returning home. In the meantime, Scott was considering joining the Army 
full time.

"He was always happy and confident. He would always communicate with the 
family," Peterson said. "He never hung up the phone without saying, 'Bye, 
Ma, love you.'"

All of a sudden, Peterson noticed that her son had begun to change, and he 
eventually lost his job.

"His old friends started to disappear, and new ones started to pop up," she 
said.

Peterson knew that something was wrong, but couldn't quite figure it out.

"One day, Scott's girlfriend came into where I work and told me that my son 
was using heroin," she said.

"I just got up and left my job. I was thinking, 'How could it be heroin?' 
It's a double drug. It takes away a person's very existence and does 
terrible damage to their family."

Peterson began to scramble to get her son professional treatment. She would 
take him to treatment centers, only to be turned away because of the lack 
of space.

"It takes three to five days to get standard treatment," she said, but the 
future of treatment is in jeopardy.

"$11 million was put back in the budget, but that will only last until 
June," Peterson said.

Then, just when Peterson thought she was making progress, the efforts of 
her struggle were repeatedly undone.

"It turned into three-day cycles," she said. "I'd get him into a treatment 
program and he'd come home after three days and start to use again."

This continued until Peterson finally asked her son to leave home.

Peterson recounted the image of her son leaving.

"He was a shell of the boy I brought up and loved," she said. "It was the 
hardest thing to do. I was watching him lose everything he had, and I was 
losing it with him."

To keep an addiction going, research says that people easily fall into the 
trap of theft and end up in prison.

Scott was forced down this road by addiction.

"I went to visit my son in jail for nine months every Sunday for a crime he 
would never have committed without the addiction," Peterson said.

Upon his release, Scott was moved into a sober house and given a 
construction job. When things were turning around, he relapsed and was put 
back in jail for 60 days.

Scott's story, however, doesn't end the way the stories of many others do.

"Today, he's alive," Peterson said. "I'm fortunate. Others are not so."

Looking to the future, she said, "We have to warn children and warn them 
early."

Peterson has started a support group with assistance from Keating's office 
to reach out to families who have been affected by heroin.

"When we were thinking of a name, my son suggested we call it 'Ma,'" 
Peterson said.

That's the name Scott uses to refer to his mother, which would be adjusted 
to stand for Mothers Against Heroin.

The group ultimately decided on Learn2Cope, which now meets weekly.

"We don't have all the answers, but we have each other and are there for 
each other," Peterson said.

Learn2Cope can be contacted at http://www.Learn2Cope.org
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