winnie1202

My husband is just finishing up a 28 day alcohol program. He is 50. In his program there are about 40 people with 90% of them under 25 and pill addicted. This program has been around for 4 decades and talking to one of the counselors tonight she said even 10 years ago that stats were so different with mostly older and alcoholics.

Can someone tell me what the catalyst was for this change? Was it just opportunity? Pills easier to get? Easier to use? It's a revolving door for these kids. They always have a soft place to land with parents providing a bed and food after rehab and no expectations and yet another credit card to pay for another program because they have used up their medical benefits for this service.
Do these kids ever get better??

NotSoSmart

I would imagine some do when the enabling stops and they have to feel full consequences of their actions. Others will move on to be lifelong addicts, just like the hard core alcoholics of 10 years ago started out drinking with buddies. Some gave it up and moved on, others couldn't and will struggle with it for the rest of their lives.

My A is in a program with a lot of early 20's women. She says that some are OK but most are not serious about the program, not there b/c they want to be but b/c someone told them to be. She said many don't make it through to the end and a few are creating drama that is affecting the whole program. But she ignores it and focuses on her goals, not what her 20 year old roommate is doing.

BeingStill

These kids have the same odds of getting better as a 50-year-old alcoholic. Addiction is an equal opportunity destroyer.

EJG123

As the mom of a 23 yr old addict, I think the catalyst was media. There's more coverage of pill abuse and celebs that have been under the influence but remain popular. Three are a lot more commercials on TV advertsing drugs for sleep, depression, hyperactivity, sexual dysfunction, etc. Shows like That 70s Show made it seem like all kids smoked pot back then. And now it's been legalized in several states. Finally there's the Internet where kids think they can find out all they need to know about drug use.

The first thing my kid abused was dramamine because she saw a news show on TV about kids who did it and she "thought it looked fun" despite the fact that the show was warning of its perils. That part she totally dismissed because "it would not happen to her".

So far my kid just got worse. Maybe she will get better someday but that's up to her.

outtolunch

I was in highschool some 40 years ago. A substantial portion of the school population was into drugs, including some of the teachers.

As I understand it, the pot smoked then cannot compare to the potency of pot in 2011. Of course back then, cocaine/crack and crystal meth were unknown. Heroin was a vague inner city issue, unheard of in suburbia.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ( DSM) first published in the early 50's and subsequently revised many times, barely touched upon the now endless variations of disorders that are now treated with pharms.

Pharms were not yet the big business they are today. Some of the drugs developed for end of life pain are now prescribed by dentists for rather routine procedures. Medicating children was unheard of.

It's mind blowing that pharms are now marketed directly to the end consumer. We are told to ask our doctor for what ever product is being sold and never mind those pesky side effects. I mean why feel a tad sad when medication will allow you to prance through a field of flowers filled with happy people? Why bother coping when there is a medication that will take the edge off? We all deserve to be happy campers, eh.

So it's a combo of potency, availability and affordability.

Another fundamental difference between then and now is the whole concept of rehab/treatment. Back then, typically only the functional middle-aged and the well heeled alcoholic might have gone off to a rare and distant rebab. I mean who else could afford to take off for weeks and seek help for alcoholism?

And lastly, over the years, many health plans began including inpatient treatment for the magical 28 days that will change your life forever. Repeat, as necessary.

outtolunch

Probably the same odds as a 50 year old.

Freedom1990

Interesting. When I went through rehab in 1986, all of us were in our 20's (I was 28), and it was a variety of addicts and alcoholics.

winnie1202

NOTSOSMART - That is what my husband says about the young women there. Lots of drama and not terribly serious about getting better.

outtolunch

Based on my limited experience with my daughter's rehabs, it was non- stop drama. When it's a co-ed situation, the emphasis trends romance/ hooking up.

I avoided those places that accepted court-ordered patients. Looking back, mama- ordered rehab was not any different. While I don't think my daughter's rehab experiences caused any harm, at best, rehab was a temporary pause in the downward spiral, because she was not ready to be done.

At the time, it fed my codependency because afterall, I took action to create endless opportunities for her to just snap out of it. I was more delusional than she was, at the time.

Justlizzyd

My sister's first experience with rehab was in high school back in the 80s. My mom said all it did for my sister was make her better at lying.... Her last run at rehab was a few years back, as a full grown adult court ordered. I guess she was just at a place where she was sick and tired of being sick and tired. She has been doing excellent in her recovery ever since with no relaps.
I guess like with anything, you get what you put into it.....