SUBSTANCE ABUSE IS KILLING KIDS

Must parents have their children arrested in order for them to receive
treatment for substance abuse?

The Thurston County Drug Court is an alternative to regular jail time
in a "special" cellblock.

But, what about treatment for kids who are not given that
choice?

Many insurance companies do not cover treatment for addiction, & if
the child is 18, or older, parents don't have the right to commit
their children, without that child's consent.

If a child gets any treatment, the recovery rate is ridiculously
small. What do parents get out of this experience? At best a few
nights of sleep, a huge bill, & a child equipped with more knowledge
of how & where to get better drugs & how to be more clever about
hiding their drug use.

Some kids even seek out the drug dealer who supplied drugs to a buddy
who died from those drugs. They want an even higher high! It's insane!

Addiction, clearly, is a medical problem. Any parent whose child has
died from substance abuse knows that we have lost the "war on drugs!"

When a child dies from substance abuse, it carries a hideous stigma.
Families are often isolated with grief & guilt because society,
cruelly, points a finger, at them, & blames the parents. Under their
breath they sigh, "Not my kid!" WRONG!! Addiction knows no boundaries.

An even sadder note, there doesn't appear to be a support group in the
Olympia area for parents who have had a child die, from substance abuse.

Susan Hubenthal,
Tumwater