“Keep coming back, it works if you work it!” This is what is chanted at the end of every meeting, but what if you have “worked it” and you still keep going back and getting drunk or loaded? Now, most people in the program will say things like, “Well, you must not have really done the steps right,” or  “You didn’t go to enough meetings,” or  “You didn’t pray to your Higher Power,” or  “You know you did something wrong or else you would still be sober!” But what if the truth was that you did nothing “wrong,” that in reality you did not fail the Program, but rather the Program was just not a right fit for you, and in fact, it fails for most people? Hopefully even this little bit of knowledge would start to alleviate some of the guilt and shame that many carry due to numerous relapses and going in and out 12-step programs for many years.

If you were to investigate substance abuse facts from the government’s department of defense, you would find the startling figures. Drug abuse has consumed the lives of so many of our youths and adults. Millions of people neglect their health to all kinds of drugs and alcohol. They also indulge in prescription pill abuse. The individuals who abuse prescription drugs also need treatment because they are tolerant and dependent of drugs and will go to any measures to get it.

There are about seven million people in the United States who abuse prescription pills according to the government. This figure comes to be more than the combination of people that abuse other hard core drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and ecstasy. The number of people who abused drugs heightened since the year 2000 when it was three million. Over a period of six years, it rose to seven million and that is a high figure to swallow.

Drug abuse has become one of the leading problems in today’s teens. This growing problem is present, even in Colorado. In fact, according to statistics, approximately 46,000 Colorado teens have used an illicit drug within the last month. Drug abuse in teens can lead to many other problems that can extend well beyond adolescence. Studies show that teens that engage in drug usage are more likely to commit crimes, engage in casual sex, and commit suicide. They are at a high risk for vehicular accidents, contracting HIV, and drug overdose. These generally result in death. Protecting your teen is the best way to prevent drug abuse.