Pubdate: Thu, 27 Apr 2006
Source: Indianapolis Star (IN)
Copyright: 2006 Indianapolis Newspapers Inc.
Contact: http://www.indystar.com/help/contact/letters.html
Website: http://www.starnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/210
Author: Dan McFeely
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)

INMATES GRADUATE FROM METH PROGRAM

ROCKVILLE, Ind. -- Forty-eight female inmates fighting an addiction 
to methamphetamine graduated from the Clean Lifestyle is Freedom 
Forever program today at the Rockville Correctional Facility in 
western Indiana.               It is the first program in the country 
to provide a prison-based treatment for female offenders with a meth 
problem. The program is designed to treat the addiction as well as 
help inmates make the transition back into society."I think I see ... 
women with purpose in their souls. Now you just have to see it 
through," Gov. Mitch Daniels told the graduating inmates. "When you 
do, it will be a big victory for you, for your families and for the 
state of Indiana."

Meth addiction is so powerful, experts say, that without treatment in 
prison, most addicts will return to abusing the drug once they get out.

Last fall, 23 male prisoners graduated from a similar program at the 
Miami Correctional Facility near Peru, Ind. Of those 23 men, 11 have 
been released through probation or parole and none have returned to 
the custody of the Department of Corrections, indicating the 
program's early success rate, according to state prison officials. 
The remaining men are still in custody completing their prison terms.

CLIFF is designed to run 15 hours a day, seven days a week. It is 
overseen by a mix of staff and outside drug experts. By completing 
the nine-to-12 month voluntary treatment program, inmates are 
eligible to shave up to six months off their sentence.

According to experts, there are no pharmacological treatments for 
meth dependence. Antidepressant medications can be used to fight 
depression, which often accompanies withdrawal, but the most 
effective treatment is cognitive behavioral interventions, which 
modify a patient's thinking, expectancies and behavior while 
increasing skills to deal with life stress.
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