Pubdate: Mon, 28 Feb 2005 Source: Daily Times, The (TN) Copyright: 2005 Horvitz Newspapers Contact: http://www.thedailytimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1455 Author: Steve Wildsmith Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment) DRUG TREATMENT NOT EASY TO COME BY Anyone who's ever struggled with addiction -- either through personal experience or through trying to help a loved one -- knows how difficult it is to get help. With virtually every other disease, medical help is only a phone call away during a crisis. If you have high blood pressure and start having chest pains, you'll have no trouble summoning an ambulance or sailing through an emergency room. Unfortunately, it's much more difficult to get help when you suffer from the disease of addiction. It's the very, very rare patient who, in a moment of clarity, decides to stop doing drugs and is able to find help the same day. Almost three years ago, when I'd come to the end of my rope, it was 48 hours before I could get into Peninsula Hospital for detoxification. That's a hellish wait, and it's typical for drug and alcohol treatment. Many addicts get so frustrated and feel so hopeless over the whole ordeal of trying to get help that they give up and turn back to drugs. Even after I'd made all of the phone calls and knew I would probably be admitted to Peninsula, I couldn't just sit and wait. Going through opiate withdrawal is excruciating, and as much as I wanted to stop using, I was physically and psychologically unable to do it on my own. So I bought dope and kept shooting up until roughly 12 hours before Peninsula admitted me. I managed to hold onto the willingness to get clean even during those dwindling hours. I was shooting dope, but I wasn't doing it to get high. By that point, any pleasure was gone. I only wanted to not feel sick, to feel somewhat human. And so even though I wasn't in full-blown withdrawal when I showed up at Peninsula, I still wanted to kick my habit. So many addicts run into red tape and financial roadblocks that they feel they're beyond help. Yes, it takes a lot of effort and diligence to get into detox and treatment, but it can be done. The key is being willing to do whatever it takes to get it. That might mean making phone call after phone call. It might mean driving three hours to another city. It might mean hanging on one more agonizing night, shaking and vomiting, until they can get you in the door. Granted, much of the red tape has been caused by addicts themselves. Over the years, treatment facilities and programs have functioned much like interstate rest stops -- a place for addicts to pull off, get healthy and get fed -- and then go back out and get high. They know that not every addict is like that. Unfortunately, many are -- it's the ones who demonstrate the most willingness, however, that these facilities and programs feel have the best shot at getting clean and staying clean. Here's a list of treatment programs, detoxes and facilities that might help you or a loved one. Keep calling. Don't give up -- recovery can be obtained, no matter how low you think your addiction has taken you. - - Buffalo Valley, 501 Park Ave. S., Hohenwald: 1-800-447-2766 (accepts TennCare) - - CADAS, P.O. Box 4794, Chattanooga: (423) 756-7644 (accepts TennCare) - - Center Pointe (a subsidiary of Helen Ross McNabb), 5310 Ball Camp Pike, Knoxville: 523-4704 (Accepts TennCare and indigent patients) - - Cornerstone of Recovery, 1214 Topside Road, Louisville: 970-7747 - - Cumberland Heights, P.O. Box 90727, Nashville: 1-800-646-9998 (accepts TennCare) - - Florence Crittendon Agency Substance Abuse Program, 1531 Dick Lonas Road, Knoxville: 602-2021 - - Good Samaritan Recovery, 319 S. Fourth St., Nashville: (615) 244-4802 (accepts TennCare) - - Indian Path Pavilion, 2300 Pavilion Drive, Kingsport: 1-800-366-1132 (accepts TennCare) - - Magnolia Ridge, 900 Buffalo St., Johnson City: (423) 232-4130 (accepts TennCare) - - Miracle Lake, P.O. Box 327, Etowah: (423) 263-2583 - - Mountain View Treatment Center, 1008 Highway 28, Jasper: 1-800-605-1531 (accepts TennCare) - - New Leaf, 1200 S. Willow St., Cookeville: 1-877-567-6051 - - New Hope Recovery Center, 233 W. Main St., Morristown: (423) 581-2411 (accepts TennCare) - - Overlook (Peninsula), 219 Court St., Maryville: 970-9800 (outpatient; accepts TennCare) - - Pine Ridge, 2800 Westside Drive, Cleveland: (423) 339-4156 (accepts TennCare) In addition, there are a number of local hospitals that have behavioral and emotional health units that offer detoxification and substance abuse treatment, including our own Blount Memorial Hospital and Peninsula Hospital in Louisville. There are also 12-Step programs that meet every day of the week throughout East Tennessee. I can provide additional information on those meetings, and on local halfway houses for men and women -- all you have to do is drop me a line or call. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth