Drug Addiction, Treatment, and Hope

Several years ago, they called me, desperate – their child addicted to fentanyl, her entire life – once promising –  upside down, repeated overdoses, Narcan, barely here, almost gone, over and over. Bad things had happened to her, very bad. We all sat together, talked, and she was hopeless, alone.

Drug addiction is a national scourge, from California to Maine, national and state-by-state, ultimately a personal disease and national tragedy. Treatment is often unavailable, recovery inconceivable. But the crisis can be stopped – with effective drug treatment, prevention, and adequately funded law enforcement.

We could spend all day on how drug prevention changes attitudes. The Partnership for a Drug Free America, with whom I worked, proved it. We can also restate the obvious – that strong, consistent law enforcement drives out and deters drug traffickers. But more needs to be said about treatment.

Effective problem-solving – like effective treatment of any disease – includes access to proven methods, adapted to the situation, with accountability, monitoring progress, adjusting for lack of progress, making tough decisions, being consistent, watching feedback loops, until you succeed.

The same is true of drug treatment, trying to end the scourge of addiction. The problem is, since addiction is non-linear and attacks the body and brain, things get complicated fast. Addiction breaks the human spirit, robs a person of free will, their reason, and hope; it takes over a life.

Beyond that, adapting to the “situation” is different from general problem-solving. Where we might use proven engineering methods to rebuild any house, or surgical tools to rebuild any shoulder, drug treatment, to be effective, requires applying proven methods to a unique person’s addiction.

Accountability is also a challenge. Methods and applications might be promising, but accountability is not just about a provider, therapist, or doctor. Accountability resides within the conflicted, addicted person – the one getting treatment, cravings versus prayers, work versus discouragement.

Finally, if you can get the right method, right fit, right accountability, right provider, right attitude in the person being treated, there are always setbacks – they are the norm – which trigger discouragement, possible backsliding, renewed hopelessness, and a need for learned resilience.

Throughout this whole process, addiction attacks the conscience, the will, body, mind, and spiritual strength of the person under attack, and all those around them. It is a spiritual battle. Watching feedback loops is vital, positive steps reliably supported, negative ones anticipated.

My thoughts drift to Winston Churchill, of all people, who was often down during World War II, internally discouraged, wrestling his “black dog” (depression), yet somehow always got back up, started each day anew. His life was riddled by failures, until he saved the World with unbreakable resolve, personal courage, and a determination not to lose – against all odds.

Reflecting on that unending battle to keep a winning attitude, bend his actions to that attitude, rally in darkness, have faith when there was little but breath, he said: “Success is final, failure is not fatal – it is the courage to continue that counts.” With wit and realism, he added: “Success is…stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” There is a secret: never giving up.

On the national and state levels, all these points lead to a solution. Policy makers with little grasp of how hard this problem is need to listen, fortify themselves for the long fight, and lean into the mission of restoring public health and public safety…by beating addiction and its evil promoters.

In particular, governors – acknowledging every state is different – need to vet, make available, and apply proven methods for ending addiction, even as they fund and re-empower law enforcement.

They need to insist on accountability, care enough to compel federal-state-local coordination, then manage and measure it, bringing solutions and attitude. That is how the problem will be solved. Real solutions do take time. Those solutions are needed now. It is time to begin.

And … the girl described above? After repeated attempts at treatment, on the edge of forever too often, almost nowhere to go, running away, she is today...healthy. The combination of a loving church, loving friends and family, having a place to heal, and her own courage changed everything.