The dangers of drug-trafficking in New Jersey are well-known in the addiction community. Our location between New York and Philadelphia, combined with the many major roadways and seaports, make this state a well-documented center for illegal drugs.
But few talk about the "other" drug culture in New Jersey – the sometimes legal, sometimes illegal, practice of abusing painkillers.
Illegal practices, prescription forgery or shopping aggressively for doctors who will write unnecessary prescriptions, are prevalent in the state, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. There is
even a case of a Morris County doctor bartering painkiller prescriptions in exchange for work performed for him.
Why are so many people in New Jersey focused on drugs?
Almost every great debate in psychology comes down to the same basic argument: nature vs. nurture. Do we behave the way we do because of our genetic make-up or is our behavior shaped by our environment?
Members of the drug and alcohol treatment community generally believe addiction is a disease, something people are genetically predisposed to. I agree. There is a lot of evidence to support that claim.
But there is also a lot of evidence that the type of medical treatment people receive can affect whether or not they become an addict. In fact, I believe that by over-relying on pain medications, we're creating new addicts every day.
Last week, I was participating in a group therapy session at Sunrise Detox in Stirling with 14 patients. Eight of those patients were addicted to pain medication, not alcohol or illegal drugs.
These patients weren't addicted to anything before they were prescribed pain medication. Most of them even drank socially throughout their entire lives with no problem.
They are different from our traditional definition of an addict. They're people that we, as a society, have nurtured into addicts.
For example, one of my patients was recently put on methadone after having major knee surgery. That's a recipe for disaster. The guy is asked to convalesce and before he can even fully recover from his surgery, he has a major addiction problem to deal with.
Over the last six months, we've seen more and more chronic pain patients check in to our detox center in New Jersey.
I wonder why so many doctors insist on giving their patients large doses of medications when the risks of addiction are well-known and there are other options out there, such as physical therapy, acupuncture, massage and non-narcotic pain medications.
I'm not saying that narcotic pain medication has no place in the medical world, but the status it enjoys now is far too prominent. We owe it to patients to allow them to explore their options more thoroughly.
If given a real choice, I believe many would turn down the drugs from the start. Chronic pain is a serious condition, but so is addiction.
At the very least, patients should be screened for a predisposition to addiction. If they fall into that category, use of narcotic medications should be avoided at all costs.
Problems this large don't go away on their own. Here, in New Jersey, we must be vigilant if we are going to curb addiction.
Ira Levy is a detoxification expert at Sunrise Detox, a private luxury detoxification center with a location in Stirling, New Jersey. He can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 561-533-0074.
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written by Amy, April 21, 2010
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