DRYDEN GETS A WAKE-UP CALL

New-Age Drugs Are Common In City

You probably feel safe living in Dryden - oblivious to many of the bad
influences facing larger cities.

After all, small communities in Canada don't have problems with things like
new-age drugs do they?

"More than you could even imagine," says Eric who has recently taken the
initiative to start a local chapter of Narcotics Anonymous (NA) Eric, who
only uses his first name, according to the rules of NA, is a recovering
drug addict whose habit controlled his life for 25 years.

He stresses that his isn't a rare story in Dryden - the drugs and addiction
are here, but historically, the support system has not been.

"This is a wake-up call for Dryden and the surrounding area," he says. "We
have to acknowledge this is a problem and do something about it, or we're
going to lose more people."

What's more, those at risk are not only middle-aged prescription drug abusers.

"I'm getting calls from kids who are doing some very scary drugs," he says,
recalling a telephone conversation he had recently. "I talked to a
15-year-old girl who bought OxyContin on the street in this city. She
ground it up, mixed it with enough water to fill a syringe, and then her
and two of her friends injected this stuff into their bodies - using the
same needle."

OxyContin is just one drug, readily available in Dryden, destroying lives
at an alarming rate.

OxyContin

OxyContin, like morphine, codeine and heroin, is an opium derivative. It's
the brand name for the time released form of oxycodone, a high-potency and
highly addictive painkiller.

Originally intended to treat pain in terminally ill cancer patients and
those suffering from chronic pain, it was once dubbed a "miracle drug."
Now, the manufacturers of this "miracle drug" are facing over 400 lawsuits
in the U.S. alone.

It seems that in recent years, these pain killers have begun to be
prescribed for everything from moderate to severe pain and sales took off,
with an estimated $1.6 billion in worldwide revenues in 2003.

According to the lawsuits, the manufacturers "made representations or
failed to adequately and sufficiently warn individuals regarding the
appropriate uses, risks and safety of OxyContin."

Simply put, unmonitored or careless use of this drug can create a path of
destruction.

Oxycodone works by bonding to the pain receptors in the brain so that the
sensation of pain is reduced. Eric explains that, for some people, this
binding can develop a whole new personality - someone very unlike the original.

As a recovering addict, his warning goes something like this:

"Imagine if you went into the doctor with a sore elbow, and the doctor
handed you a prescription for OxyContin. At the same time, he tells you
there's a good chance that in a month's time, you'll need more of these
pills than he can prescribe for you. To get by until your next
prescription, you may feel compelled to buy them on the street for $30-$50
each. To support your new habit, you may resort to begging, borrowing or
stealing. Ultimately, you could end up losing your job, family and/or life
- - but your elbow will feel much better. Is it worth it?"

Eric says he's recently spoken to a young local man who has already lost
his home and car to an OxyContin addiction. Now he's about to lose his wife.

"What's he got to lose after that?" he asks.

Doctors say the majority of people who take this drug do not become
dependent on it, but admit they are seeing an increasing number of those
suffering from addiction.

Unfortunately, the news gets even worse. OxyContin has become one of the
new recreational drugs of choice among young people and Eric says this
includes the young people in Dryden.

Abusers crush the time release tablets and ingest or snort them - or dilute
them in water and inject them.

Crushing or diluting pills disarms the timed-release action and causes a
quick, powerful high, similar to the feeling experienced with heroin. "I've
been talking to local kids who are high school age," says Eric. "Some say
they've even been on the drug at school. They need to know that the better
this stuff makes them feel - the more addicted their bodies are becoming to
it. If they don't seek help, they'll have three choices in the long run:
jail, institutions or death."

According to a W-Five report on CTV, in 2003, pharmacists dispensed 2.8
million prescriptions for oxycodone drugs in Canada - most of them in
Ontario. That's the equivalent of two tablets for every man, woman and
child in the province. But Dryden's got a lot more than 'Oxy' making the
rounds.

Morphine

Like Oxycodone, another popular and highly addictive painkiller called
morphine has reared its ugly head in all large and small communities across
Canada.

Aside from those who have become addicted to it during treatment for
chronic pain, there is also an abundance of this drug being sold on the
street. "When you're talking about drug abuse, these drugs make their way
to our city in one of four ways," notes Eric. "Fraudulent prescriptions,
doctor shopping, (where individuals go to several doctors to obtain
multiple prescriptions, and then sell the drugs) over-prescribing or
pharmacy theft." Like most other drugs, morphine abuse leads to a plethora
of horrific side effects, and cannot be safely taken at the same time as
many other medications. The above mentioned are drugs that are manufactured
under the rigid guidelines of pharmaceutical companies. Other, even more
dangerous, drugs are not.

Crystal meth

One of the nicknames for methamphetamine, crystal meth is a powerful
nervous system stimulant, made in basement and garage 'labs' from cheap,
over the counter ingredients.

Snorted, smoked, injected or swallowed, crystal meth delivers an initial
rush, followed by an increase in activity for up to six to eight hours.
"Sound good?" asks Eric. "They also lose their appetite and become
paranoid, irritable and possibly violent. It damages blood vessels in the
brain and users may end up with open sores they can't stop picking at." All
of the calls the local NA has received concerning this drug come from young
people, including teens.

What he wants kids to know is that addictions to drugs like this happen to
anyone, starting slowly and then quickly building into something that will
take over all aspects of their lives. "There's plenty of this stuff
around," he notes. "And because anybody can make it, you never even know
what you're taking from one time to the next. I know a young man who went
to a party with his girlfriend and they both took crystal meth. She got
really sick, and he got into a fight - it scared him, but not her."

When Eric says "anybody can make it," he's not kidding - the directions for
it are on the Internet, complete with what to say when you ask for
ingredients at the local pharmacy and hardware store! Crystal meth users
develop an instant tolerance to the drug, causing a constant need to take
more and more of it to achieve the same high. Overuse can cause memory
loss, heart failure, convulsions, stroke, damage to your immune system,
etc... including death. "Kids will go out to a party and try this stuff
'just once'," explains Eric. "The next weekend they have a chance to do it
again. Then, before they know it, parties don't seem as fun if there's no
drugs involved. They're starting to spend all their time just thinking
about how much fun they'll have on the weekend. The next thing you know,
you're using on a Tuesday and can't keep your head straight for school or
anything else." A poll of several Dryden High School students indicates
that the majority is aware that these drugs and others are available to
them should they ever have the desire and money to try them. Many will make
the self preservative choice to stay as far away as possible, but others -
some who just want to feel a sense of belonging, and others who think
addiction could never happen to them - get drawn into the trap. Scott
Urquhart, the principal at Dryden High School, says staff is aware of the
choices facing teens today, which is why they've already brought a
substantial amount of drug awareness material into the curriculum and
frequently have speakers come in to discuss the topic.

"We work in concert with the police and Northwest Health Unit," explains
Urquhart. "We believe we have a responsibility to educate and arm our
students with enough information that they can make responsible choices."
Aside from marijuana, local high school students say the drug they hear and
see the most of is 'ecstasy'.

Ecstasy

The popularity of ecstasy probably came about because of its main effect of
increasing emotional and sensual awareness. Considered a "sociable drug,"
it can also increase energy levels for partying. The key thing to remember
with ecstasy is that it, like crystal meth, is not manufactured in a
controlled environment - or even by individuals who have a clue as to what
they're doing! Because of this, the high a person experiences can differ
wildly between one experience and the next.

More importantly, so can the side effects. According to most of the
published material on this drug, the majority of deaths caused from ecstasy
occur after ingestion of one to three tablets, and may resemble the
symptoms of heatstroke. Other side effects include muscle aches, liver and
kidney failure, heart problems, severe anxiety and depression that could
hit a few days after taking ecstasy. Still, with all of this to lose, many
teens from Dryden use this drug and even host or attend E (ecstasy)
parties, where the main goal is to experience the high with several of
their friends.

Many, many more

"There's also plenty of cocaine and crack cocaine use in our area," says
Eric, who notes that use of this drug is divided evenly between youths and
adults. "There's been recent problems with 'roofies', a potent tranquilizer
that has become the date-rape drug of choice in recent years."

What the recovering addict would like to know is what Dryden is willing to
do to help curb the destruction these and many other drugs are causing.

He stresses that the new drugs come with new side effects and different
signs of addiction, adding that the days of the red or glassy eyes are
gone, and that some serious behaviour problems may be indicative of a drug
addiction."I'm dealing with kids and adults of all ages," he says. "A
little while ago, I spoke to a young man who thinks his only way out is to
take a run at a pulp truck. Some parents who can't stand to see the
symptoms of withdrawal in their kids are actually buying the drugs for them."

Several local parents have contacted The Dryden Observer in recent months,
some reporting that the drug use in school-aged kids is not limited to
those in high school.

"There's been drugs brought into our elementary school - they've even had
the drug dogs at local elementary schools," says one woman who chooses not
to use her name.

What can a community do?

Admitting there's a problem and establishing a safe local support system is
the first step for the community in dealing with drug addiction, says Eric,
who has personally paid most of the expenses of getting NA up and running
locally. His bid to create a new awareness has extended from the media, to
the high school, local police and city mayor, Anne Krassilowsky. "I knew
there was a problem, but not to the extent I'm hearing about at this time,"
says Krassilowsky after meeting with Eric. "I find it quite frightening
that this is going on in our community, and think that NA will be a major
step in dealing with it. It's outstanding that Eric has agreed to commit
his time and resources to this service, because it's obviously something we
need."

Can Narcotics Anonymous help you?

The local chapter of NA meets on Saturdays at 8 p.m. at 75 Van Horne Ave.
(go in the back door and it's the room immediately to your left). "I want
to stress that NA is not affiliated with anyone," says Eric. "Our goal is
to deal with the effects that drugs have on your life - the law is not
involved in this program. We are exclusively a support group, and the basis
of that support is anonymity." For those who don't want to attend the
meetings, but who have questions about themselves, or possibly a loved one,
they are welcome to call NA, any time of the day or night at 221-9797. "The
first step is to pick up the phone," says Eric. "If you think you've got a
problem - then you probably do."