The following is from a gentleman in recovery who has devoted his whole life to helping others, especially those involved in drug abuse/addiction.
His name is Patrick Dieter, CDP, CADC II, BHT, and he hails from Madison, WI. Patrick is also in recovery from drug addiction, and has been around the block more than a few times.
Patrick specializes in all forms of Transpersonal, client-directed, and experiential therapy. "Since there is no such thing as normal, I believe that therapy is actually intended to help people return to their original, extraordinary state, and then to keep growing from there," he states. He currently utilizes a great deal of Motivational Interviewing, which is strength-based and non-judgmental.
By Patrick Dieter:
"Many of you have heard from me about my belief that the only solution to our drug problem is to legalize it first, putting the street dealers out of business, and removing most of the diseases and deaths connected with unexpectedly large doses or contaminated stuff going into the veins. It will also bring the price down to a normal level, removing much of the motivation for the criminal activity that now attends the black market on drugs.
Yes, there will still be problems connected, and we certainly must deal with things like allowing the kids to get drugs, (which is an epidemic right now as the dealers recruit as young as possible for their customer base), and the social and family problems connected with addiction. These things cannot be dealt with by our criminal justice system -- it is not designed for it. It is for punishing actual crimes. It is a hammer, not a scalpel, and so everything looks like a nail and gets pounded. Thousands of relative innocents crowd our prisons to overflowing as we speak, and we pay the huge bill to keep them there, when their only crime was in trying to feel good, or to cope with horrible trauma, or mental health problems by using. It is true that criminal acts can also be addictive and so some people who started doing crime on drugs may continue to do it for a rush.
We can use our current expertise in advertising and marketing to change people's compulsive behaviors. Doing so made a huge difference in getting people to stop smoking compared to any laws passed. It just needs to be seen as "uncool" and learning natural ways to get high could even be taught in school instead of just drudging through rote memorization of facts. People could actually see drugs for the disgusting, antisocial act that it truly is, and there will be no value in using, since the "cool" people won't be doing it. Peer pressure could be pushing more toward learning meditation and other bliss-inducing techniques.
Many of you are aware of how powerful experiential education can be, if you have done any seminar work. What if that were taught in schools, or offered as part of a free drug treatment service that would attend legalization. It is insane to try and convince people that getting high is bad for them. They merely need to learn how to satisfy this natural need in healthy ways."
For more on Patrick Dieter click here.
Since the war on drugs is, and has been a dismal failure for the past 40+ years, it's time to start listening, and implementing the ideas of people in the field of substance abuse, and health care since drug addiction is a public health issue of the 1st order.
Peace...
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If you or a loved one needs help with any type of drug abuse/addiction problem, contact these sites depending on where you live. SEMCA (Wayne County residents), CARE (Macomb County residents), PACE (Oakland County residents), Drug Free Detroit (City of Detroit residents). For those residing outside the State of Michigan, contact SAMHSA for assistance. For assistance with medical marijuana issues contact The Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, Michigan Medical Marijuana Certification Center, or greentreesdetroit.com, phone number: (313) 967-9999, or (248) 677-2888.
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