{"id":18093,"date":"2024-10-12T18:52:08","date_gmt":"2024-10-12T17:52:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/?p=18093"},"modified":"2024-11-26T20:18:33","modified_gmt":"2024-11-26T19:18:33","slug":"local-organizations-share-addiction-experiences-challenges-resources","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/2024\/10\/local-organizations-share-addiction-experiences-challenges-resources\/","title":{"rendered":"Local organizations share addiction experiences, challenges, resources"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By\u00a0 <\/span>Charlotte Caldwell<\/a><\/h1>\n
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September 6, 2024<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n
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LIMA \u2014 The\u00a0Lima Police Department<\/a>\u00a0recently posted on its Facebook page about an increase in overdoses in Lima over the past few weeks.<\/p>\n

With September being National Recovery Month, where organizations try to increase public awareness about mental health and addiction recovery, local organizations and law enforcement agencies shared their experiences with addiction and overdoses and the help that is available.<\/p>\n

The problem<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lima Fire Chief Andy Heffner said his department responded to 85 overdoses so far this year. He said the overdose numbers have risen and fallen throughout the year, with about one-week breaks in between. He believed the numbers were based on the drugs available in the area.<\/p>\n

Project Auglaize County Addiction Response Team Project Coordinator\/Peer Support Specialist Brittany Boneta spoke on the reason for the overdose spikes.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWhen it comes to overdoses, one is too many,\u201d Boneta said. \u201cI think the number of overdoses comes in waves. There could be a really bad batch of heroin or fentanyl that gets distributed throughout the county that could lead to a spike in overdoses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Heffner cited the Drug Enforcement Administration\u2019s\u00a0website<\/a>, which said seven out of every 10 pills seized by the DEA contain a lethal dose of fentanyl. The website also said 2 milligrams of fentanyl can be enough to kill someone.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt only takes one time when Narcan is not available that you could lose your life. If you get clean, you will never have to worry about an overdose, and neither will the people that love you,\u201d Heffner said.<\/p>\n

Bath Township Fire Chief Joe Kitchen said his department used Narcan 21 times on patients from August 2023 to August 2024. The department also distributes Narcan to families just in case an overdose occurs.<\/ins><\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough we have only left behind a few kits so far, I think it gives the family of a known addict some peace of mind that they could assist them in the event of an OD prior to EMS arrival,\u201d Kitchen said.<\/ins><\/p>\n

Another problem is a tranquilizer called Xylazine is being mixed with fentanyl, which does not respond to the usual methods of reversal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are always new drugs\/drug combinations being introduced on the streets that make it difficult for those in the treatment world to keep up with and know how to effectively treat,\u201d said Jamie Declercq, the vice president of clinical operations for Lighthouse Behavioral Health Solutions. \u201cRight now, we are seeing an increase in substances (such as Xylazine) across the county which does not respond to Narcan, so that is likely one reason for the increase in overdose deaths.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their stories<\/strong><\/p>\n

Boneta was addicted to opiates and crack cocaine over a seven-year period, and her addiction journey started when she was prescribed Percocet by a cardiologist for a heart condition when she was 18.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere wasn\u2019t a drug I wouldn\u2019t use,\u201d Boneta said. \u201cI was an honor roll student in high school with more trauma than almost anyone I know, and when I went off to college I wasn\u2019t educated on the true dangers of drugs, the thirst to fit in, and all of my trauma stuffed down.\u201d<\/ins><\/p>\n

When her doctor stopped prescribing Percocet, she bought them from drug dealers, not knowing they were laced with heroin.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the drug supply of the fake Percocet ran out, I was just buying actual heroin. The heroin was starting to have fentanyl added to it, and before long that was all I was consuming,\u201d Boneta said.<\/p>\n

Boneta was eventually sent to prison for drugs, and during that time her 6-year-old son was involved in a house fire and suffered serious injuries.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was transported from the prison, in my orange jumpsuit and shackles on my wrists and ankles, to say my goodbyes to my son. I think seeing him lying there in a coma covered in bandages was something so soul-shaking that I knew this was my rock bottom,\u201d Boneta said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy son had countless surgeries and was getting better and stronger as the months went by, so I decided I was going to completely reset my life and work my butt off just as hard,\u201d Boneta continued. \u201cI completed as many recovery groups and classes as possible and started learning coping skills and tools to use when I was released from prison. I knew that I wanted to help other people like me and show them that people can understand what they are going through and not have judgment towards them.\u201d<\/ins><\/p>\n

Diane Urban, of Delphos, the founder\/president of the Association of People Against Lethal Drugs, started APALD because her youngest son died from a fentanyl overdose. Her older son is also a former addict, and her niece is in active addiction.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was clean for the last nine months of his life, he came to live with me, and he relapsed due to an ingrown wisdom tooth that was coming in, his face was swelling up, and because he had Medicaid, we couldn\u2019t find him any help anywhere except for a place in Van Wert, and it was a two-week out appointment. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to me, he relapsed, and I found him dead in his bedroom from a fentanyl overdose,\u201d Urban said.<\/p>\n

Challenges to get help<\/strong><\/p>\n

Transportation, not enough of a variety of local recovery options available and financial barriers were all cited as issues addicts face when they decide to get help.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor peers that are needing inpatient treatment or sober living, we have to send them to other counties for help,\u201d Boneta said. \u201cThere is definitely a need for more substance abuse treatment in our county.\u201d<\/p>\n

Declercq said Allen County also has a need for inpatient or residential treatment, and people who need that care have to go to one of the major cities nearby.<\/p>\n

Urban dealt with having to go outside the area when her son got help.<\/ins><\/p>\n

\u201cSeven years ago when I had to get help for my son, we had to go to Columbus. There was no help to get in right away because (Coleman Health Services) was so backed up,\u201d Urban said. \u201cThere can never be enough resources because what happens is all these resource centers and rehabilitation centers, they keep you for a period of time then they release you, and a lot of people when they get released like that, they don\u2019t have adequate support for more of a long-term stay, more of them tend to relapse.\u201d<\/ins><\/p>\n

Urban said her son got treatment for free with Medicaid, but in her experience, organizations prioritize people who have insurance.<\/ins><\/p>\n

Auglaize County Sheriff Mike Vorhees also mentioned a challenge with people not having a way to get to treatment.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t provide transportation yet, but that\u2019s something that we\u2019re working on,\u201d Vorhees said in regard to the services Project ACART provides. \u201cIt depends on who it is. If it\u2019s an elderly person, we can work with the Council on Aging; if it\u2019s a veteran we go through Veterans Services.\u201d<\/p>\n

Financially, Declercq said Lighthouse Behavioral Health Solutions\u2019 case managers help people apply for Medicaid, or the local mental health board has options for those who don\u2019t qualify for Medicaid.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the most frustrating barriers for seeking treatment is those with commercial insurance or Medicare, as those companies only pay for very limited services,\u201d Declercq said. \u201cCommercial plans typically pay for a short detox stay and limited individual\/group counseling sessions, but do not pay for the intensive level of treatment that a program like Lighthouse offers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThirty days of treatment and\/or 10 individual counseling sessions are not enough to truly treat a person who has been in active addiction for years,\u201d Declercq continued. \u201cOftentimes even one year of intense treatment only touches the surface of the issues that someone in addiction needs to address.\u201d<\/ins><\/p>\n

Available help<\/strong><\/p>\n

Project ACART has only been around about a year, and Boneta is working part-time and is the only employee. She has reached out to 19 people so far, and only two have denied treatment. She put together a resource guide in 2023 including mental health and substance abuse centers; residential detox treatment centers; 24\/7 support services; substance use support groups; where to find Narcan; food pantries, hot meals and clothing; housing assistance and shelters; and low income and subsidized housing.<\/p>\n

Boneta received help from peer support specialists through Coleman Health Services during her addiction. Now, as a peer support specialist, she uses a combination of her own experiences and formal training. She equated her role to being like a cheerleader. She is available to clients day and night to connect them to agencies to get help or just talk about their struggles.<\/p>\n

\u201cI meet people where they\u2019re at and treat every situation differently. Some of the things I do are assessing needs and struggles, setting goals, advocating for my peers, giving resources, facilitating engagement with my peers and their families or service providers, and encouraging and uplifting them,\u201d Boneta said.<\/p>\n

Project ACART\u2019s services are also free because of an Ohio grant.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany people in active addiction do not have housing, food, clothing, money or insurance, but they should still have the opportunity to get the help they need,\u201d Boneta said.<\/ins><\/p>\n

Declercq said Lighthouse Behavioral Health Solutions also recently opened a peer support center in Lima for clients to have a place to go for sober activities.<\/p>\n

\u201cDowntime\/boredom is often a trigger for people who are early in recovery, so this gives them a place to fill that time in a positive way,\u201d Declercq said. \u201cOur peer supporters offer a unique support system to our clients because they are people with past lived experience in addiction who are able to show them that life beyond addiction is achievable and fulfilling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coleman\u2019s seemed to be the go-to choice for law enforcement referrals, and Urban also directs people to the organization.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy oldest son was a success story, he went to Coleman\u2019s, got treatment, got on the MAT (medication-assisted treatment) program, Suboxone, and he\u2019s thriving today. Owns his own house, owns his own business, married, doing absolutely wonderful. He\u2019s like eight years clean,\u201d Urban said.<\/ins><\/p>\n

Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Securities\u00a0Recovery Within Reach<\/a>\u00a0program also provides a list of recovery resources and offers ways to pay for treatment.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Source: https:\/\/www.limaohio.com\/top-stories\/2024\/09\/06\/local-organizations-share-addiction-experiences-challenges-resources\/<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By\u00a0 Charlotte Caldwell September 6, 2024 LIMA \u2014 The\u00a0Lima Police Department\u00a0recently posted on its Facebook page about an increase in overdoses in Lima over the past few weeks. With September being National Recovery Month, where organizations try to increase public awareness about mental health and addiction recovery, local organizations and law enforcement agencies shared their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[73,32,68,122,119,36,19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18093","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-addiction","category-crime-violence-prison","category-drug-use-various-effects","category-fentanyl","category-prevalence","category-treatment-addiction","category-usa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18093","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18093"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18093\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18093"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18093"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18093"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}