Prisons, county jails, drug abuse-partners if you're lucky

  Prisons, county jails, and drug abuse are partners. (actual mug shot)

Prisons, county jails, and drug abuse usually travel as partners in addiction, and many of those now abusing prescription drugs will end up either incarcerated in the county jail, or prison at some point in their life if they continue on. In fact, if you’re lucky, maybe you’ll get caught committing a crime, and jailed to save you from yourself before you end up deep-sixed, or maybe missing some body parts, like me.

Being the resourceful people that addicts are, however, they usually manage to avoid incarceration for quite a while as their tolerance for the drugs steadily increases, until at some point, their resourcefulness is outweighed by the size of the gorilla pounding on their backs. Then the person is ricocheting around neighborhoods like psychotic pinballs in a never-ending quest to assuage the withdrawal demons, but unable to keep up with the increasing costs. Enter criminal behavior.

Many teens, and adults who abuse drugs know that first-time offenders usually receive probation unless the crime is violent, and even then, light sentences abound. They know that a slap on the wrist, maybe drug treatment, and a fine are standard sentences for most non-violent offenses. However, what they are not looking at is the fact that they have a criminal record that will haunt them for the rest of their days making it that much more difficult to find employment, get certain professional licenses, and return to a productive life. Spending years, even decades in jails and prisons is anything but fun, and it certainly isn’t a hood status symbol as some believe.

Traveling down the road of addiction you can expect to take detours leading to unpaved routes with a prison, or county jail waiting at the end of the drive. Once out, there is about a 65% chance that you will be back within 2 years. The percentage is even higher that you will return to using drugs. And once caught up in that trap, you now have 2 very real problems on your hands, addiction, and the revolving door of justice.

Having spent 22 years in prison as a direct result of drug addiction, I can tell you that no one has a novel way of avoiding the consequences of substance abuse. Been there, done that several times over, and more often than not, failed. If you are an addict, you can’t control your use of drugs. If you could, your life wouldn’t be in the fine mess it is right now. And if you are just starting out, your life will become a fine mess. You do not want one of these mug shot photos, above, received from one of the fine mess' I got myself into, believe me.

Yes, prisons, county jails, and drug abuse are partners in the lifestyle of addiction, and if you do end up incarcerated at some point in your life, consider yourself lucky because you are still alive, and able to take control of your life if you choose, unlike the countless others who have fallen to the beast.

Don’t let it get any worse. If you are contemplating using, talk to someone, even me. My email is available on this site. Parents, talk to your children about drugs when they are young, and do it frequently. Studies have shown that there is up to a  50% less chance that your children won't use drugs and/or alcohol if you talk to them often about it. Those who have a problem with drugs, ask for help. Resource information is available on this site.

In the flow...

Follow me on Twitter: Crash Test Addict

Prescription drug abuse epidemic