BANGOR, Maine — While the number of pharmacy robberies in Maine is already nearly double the figure for all of last year — it hit 45 as of Monday — law enforcement officials say most of the robbers are being caught.
Good police work has led to the capture of four out of every five criminals who have tried this year to rob drugs from pharmacies, according to Maine Public Safety Commissioner John E. Morris.
“Of the 45 robberies, 37 have been arrested,” he said Tuesday. That is a clearance rate of about 82 percent.
Drugstore robberies in Maine jumped from just two in 2008 to eight in 2009, 21 in 2010 and 24 last year, prompting the creation of a 17-member Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force last February by Gov. Paul LePage and the Maine attorney general’s office. Many Mainers are addicted to diverted prescription pills and rob pharmacies to get drugs to use and sometimes sell, said Roy McKinney, director of the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency.
When their supply dries up, addicts commit robberies to feed their addiction, the MDEA leader said Tuesday. “They’re getting it for themselves, but they also are selling them amongst each other.”
MDEA investigators find that the painkiller oxycodone is the most sought-after prescription drug at the street level, he said.
Twenty-three of the 45 pharmacy robberies in Maine this year — a little more than half — have been at Rite Aid stores hit by drug addicts desperate for prescription pain pills, McKinney said.
The most recent drugstore robbery in Maine occurred Monday night at the Rite Aid on the corner of Union and Fourteenth streets in Bangor, which has been robbed twice in the last 10 days and four times in the past six months.
“We are working with law enforcement to find out exactly what is happening in the area,” Rite Aid spokeswoman Ashley Flower said Tuesday, referring to the high number of robberies at that one store.
“We are implementing extra [security] measures at the store,” she added, declining to provide specifics.
“Once you publish them, they aren’t really effective,” Flower said earlier when asked whether a security guard would be added to the store at Union and Fourteenth. A GPS tracking device was used to find the most recent robbers of that store, according to court documents and a prosecutor.
Other national pharmacy chains — CVS with six, Walgreens with three, and Walmart with two — also have been robbed this year in Maine, and six Community Pharmacy locations — three in Gorham, two in Saco and one in Corinth — have been hit.
Single robberies at Goggins IGA in Randolph, Shaw’s in Ellsworth, Jenson’s Pharmacy in Rockland, Unity Pharmacy in Unity and the Hannaford grocery store in Bangor also have been reported this year.
The prevalence of Rite Aid, which has 79 stores in Maine, may have something to do with its being targeted so often.
“We obviously are taking these very seriously and we’re working with the authorities,” Flower said, echoing a statement she made 10 days ago after three pharmacies in Bangor and Brewer — including two Rite Aids — were robbed within just over an hour’s time on Sept. 30. “We’re committed to providing a safe environment for our associates and our customers.”
The Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force says it has been working to:
• Improve the state’s prescription drug monitoring program, a database for doctors and pharmacists that could be used by law enforcement.
• Implement a diversion alert program to track people who doctor-shop in order to get multiple prescriptions.
• Develop a long-term controlled substance disposal solution.
• Educate the public about the dangers of prescription drug addiction and its effect on families and communities.
“Prescription drug abuse is a crisis in Maine,” states an interim report from the task force published in July. “Deaths attributed to prescription drugs are also on the rise. The societal problems created by this issue are far too numerous to list here, but they impact every level of society and touch on the lives of everyone.”
Two of the task force’s goals — educating the public and disposal — go hand in hand, said McKinney, who is part of the prescription drug monitoring subcommittee.
Surveys show that about 70 percent of those who become addicts get their first taste of diverted drugs “out of the family’s drug cabinet,” he said.
Educating people about locking up prescription drugs and how to properly dispose of them is key, McKinney said.
“If they are no longer needed, destroy them,” he said.
The effort has started to work, but more can be done, Michael Wardrop, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s resident agent in charge in Maine, said recently. Maine has ranked first in the nation for the amount of drugs collected per capita in the last four National Prescription Drug Take-Backs sponsored by the DEA, and at the end of September turned over another 13,900 pounds, he said.
“It’s almost seven tons taken out of the house,” Wardrop said.
Wardrop, who earlier this year worried about whether the DEA would continue to fund the prescription drug take-backs, sits on the Maine Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force. He said he is working to classify the collected pills and other drugs as residential household solid waste instead of the current designation of hazardous waste, a change that would cut future disposal costs significantly.
The diversion alert program, once implemented, would provide “prescribers with drug crime information from local law enforcement to assist in determining whether patients are legitimately in need of controlled substance prescriptions,” the interim report states.
Maine is one of 41 states that has a prescription drug monitoring program. The task force wants to increase “real time reporting” as well as the scope of the program, according to McKinney.
“It’s a resource for doctors to check and determine whether or not a patient who has presented themselves is going to other doctors, in order to cut down on doctor shopping,” he said.
Some doctors input the data daily and others do it weekly, McKinney said.
“Someone can go through quite a few doctors in a week,” he said. After a week, “it’s old information, frankly.”
Part of the problem is funding to update the data, McKinney said.
“The other part is for law enforcement to have more streamlined access to that program when it’s needed for bona fide criminal investigation,” McKinney said. “Rather than court orders and subpoenas, have a streamlined administrative program, which many states have.”
All pharmacies are required to have video surveillance cameras to help catch criminals, and that is a tremendous resource, McKinney said. No one, so far, has been seriously injured in a pharmacy robbery in Maine, even though robbers have threatened pharmacy clerks with guns, knives, machetes and even bombs.
It is clear that those who hold up drugstores in Maine are desperate because they typically do not like to face and confront their victims, McKinney said. Still, they continue committing the crime even though most are caught and arrested, he added.
“They are thinking short term — but that’s the addiction,” McKinney said.
It goes without saying that the rise in these incidents directly reflect the magnitude of prescription drug abuse in Maine. It’s equally saddening and shocking. There is no doubt that many hours of our law enforcement’s time goes toward the collateral damage of these addictions and they should be applauded for their efforts and determination for finding a solution. The plan that is outlined above hits on many important issues for the prevention of further abuse but as a state we must make it a TOP priority to help those currently struggling with an addiction because just one’s addiction not only affects a family but also our communities. There needs to be a conprehensive treatment plan for the staggering population currently in trouble or we will just end up paying for these people with our tax dollars during incarceration with no sustainable solution.
And start arresting the people who are passing on their pills. It is all around us and we are paying for them.
it only hurts those who have recuring pain and not addicted. if they are not abused such as crushing and snorting that is when they get in trouble, have you ever got addicted form haveing a tooth pulled and just taking meds after i have not. if you follow directions one every 6 hours like it says no problem.the party ones ruin for everyone and its not right to make all suffer that dont abuse
I agree- for those who need it it’s essential for pain management and we can’t deny them of that. I was in a car accident with a moose and because I could not keep down Oxycotin I was put on a fentynal drip. After coming home from the hospital I was gravely ill and didn’t know why. I was actually withdrawing from the painkiller.
Ones who abuse anything are always the ones that ruin it for everyone and although methadone is an acceptable short term solution we need a long term solution, desperately.
glad you made it that is like hitting a stone wall yikes.
Thank You kindly
Completely wrong. You can experience withdrawl effects from a singular dose of the more powerful Opiate medications. As far as usage, when prescribed, it can be administered however the patient pleases. If you have a bottle of Oxycodone’s you got from your friendly doctor-dealer, you can snort em or shoot em or whatever you please. They cannot tell you have to take your medication. You probably got Vicodine for your tooth. Thats the weakest of all the painkillers. Its hardly a good example in regard to how you “took it like it said and was fine.” Yeah, of course you were. There’s 100x more tylenol in those pills than there is hydrocodone. People get addicted when they break their bones and are given powerful painkillers for long term pain management, as HeartMaine describes. You dont get super addicted by having a tooth pulled, that is such a silly premise and using it to support your opinion is rather lame.
And, I dont know what parties you’ve been too, but all the ones Ive been to where people were using Opiate wasn’t much of a party, unless you consider sitting around being doped up a party. Probably some of the most uneventful, tame parties ever. Half the people are usually sleeping. They are hardly ruining anything for anyone except for themselves.
you dont know what you are talking about i crashed my bike had a watch type thing on my wrist that when i pushed it i got a hit of demoral you jerk i broke my femur the biggest bone in your body and i am not an addict you talk out your backside
Who are you to assume anything about me?
I do know what I am talking about. Ive probably done more opiates in one dose then you took all day. Demoral is garbage. Its low potency and doesn’t last long . Only incompetent doctors and physicians still give it to people. There are far better and safer synthetic pain-killers they could be giving people. Go chew on a Fentanyl patch, or shoot half a bag of Heroin or smoke a couple 30mg Pecocet’s followed up by insulfating a few milligrams of Lorazepam and then maybe we’ll talk, smarty pants.
Also, you never said anything about breaking your Femur, previously. Maybe had you done so, my previous post would have been constructed differently. As far as I am concerned you said “Do what they tell you and you wont become addicted. Only people who use illegally become addicted.” and that is utterly silly and completely false. I also find it very hard to believe you were on a liquid, self-administered Demoral and experienced no negative effects after stopping use.
Did I say you were an addict? Did I say everyone who gets on pain meds turns into an addict? Why do you equate “addicts” with addiction? They are not the same thing. One is a mindset, the other a result of chemical imbalances.
Maybe you should relax a bit, chief. I can see the angry vein on your forehead from here, and that is a feat cause not only do I not have the best vision, but its also 4 in the morning so its really dark out.
you are an arrse you should go through what i did bet you could not handle it if you were here right now i would show you man to man i mean toe to toe and i dont lie you make me want to barf
blah blah blah. Cry more, tough guy. You don’t make any sense, at all. Incoherent posts, run on sentences, no logical structure nor flow to your ideas. If I was there right now… yeah, I am not, so rather then deal in what if’s, how about you go barf.
Once you publish them, they aren’t really effective NOK NOI
She has shown over and over, its more important to get every little bit of info out before the next guy, then be a help to the overall problem.
did you read the article that was a quote fom the store rep after they heard about the kestone cops in brockton no one will give her secrets any more just news
This is a classic ‘story’ which misses the actual story, which is what MDEA would prefer. It’s basically a press release for them. Oxys are synthetic heroin. Maine has become a giant lobe of synthetic opium addicts needing a supply. Hence unprecedented pharmacy robberies and a nice incoming trade from Mass. to serve the unsupplied and desperate need. Important to note that nearly none of the pharmacy robberies involve actual weapons — but the ‘bad deals’ among dealers are ramping up the execution-style homicide rate in rural central Maine. A perfect storm of opportunity ($$$) and need (addicts). To cut the crime you have to cut the supply. The only viable interim solution is easily available methadone to get the addicts out of the lifestyle of being an addict. Jobs, also.
Methadone Clinics bring in people who were not otherwise living in this region who also have a drug problem. Methadone has proven that if it works as they are currently administering it, it takes five plus years to complete the program. The average nicotine addict falls off the wagon seven times before quitting for good. These are powerful drugs and these addicts (1800 a day in Bangor) are falling off the wagon at least as many times. Which then in turn helps further support the illegal drug trade in Bangor.
The concept of treating a drug problem with a drug is a failed concept to begin with. It’s simply a money maker for Acadia et al. It’s shameful really.
Another problem. You can’t take someone from the ghetto’s of Bangor, get them cleaned of their drug addiction and then put them back out in the same environment which helped create the problem to begin with.
“The ghettos of Bangor??”
BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!
The closest Maine gets to Ghetto life is Kennedy Park in Portland, and most real ghetto dwellers (East St. Louis, Oceanhill-Brownsville, Compton, Camden New Jersey, Chrome Acenue, Great Brook Valley, and bunches more) would think they died and went to Heaven if they were moved to Portland.
Anyone who says Bangor is a Ghetto, or Bangor is horrible, or super dangerous or whatever, is living in a very small world.
Oxy’s (I’m assuming you mean the one’s of the -condone variety mentioned in the above article and not the true Oxy’s as in Oxycontin) are not synthetic Heroin. Oxycodone is Codine, not Morphine. Similar in action and function, but not the same. Classifying any Opiate Medication as analogous to Heroin is a bit of a stretch. The main active ingredient in all Cough Syrup’s (Dextromethorphan) is a synthetic Morphine analogue, with opiate like effects, you know… Fact is, Morphine was the first plant alkaloid ever isolated. It started modern medicine. It is responsible for our understanding of alkaloids and natural plant chemicals. It birthed every single pill ever, in essence. Chances are you just might owe your health to Morphine (if like nearly every other American some form of pills for somesuch are part of your diet).
The narcotic pill trade in this state is mostly from old ladies selling their meds and people running them up from the pill mills down in Florida. Mass doesn’t really have much to do with it at all and aside from the recent coverage it has gotten due to the murders, Mass really plays a small part in our states drug/crime problem.
The clinic is run as a for profit business. Most people don’t go there to get off illegal dope, they go there to get on legal dope. Until the structure of the program changes and the profit motive is removed, it will not be effective.
Cutting crime does not mean cutting supply. The supply will never end. Thats not how the pharmaceutical industry or prohibition works. Haha… Prohibition works… comical… Cutting crime means changing drug policy and nothing shy of that will change anything.
The robbery that happened at Guilford Rite Aid on 3/10/2012. As i remember it, someone took the robbers get away car as he was inside Rite Aid. He stole a mail carriers vehicle from across the street and fled. The mail carriers vehicle was found on Harlow pond road where it was left and the thief got away in a waiting vehicle. At that time the police knew who the robber was but i have never heard of his arrest. Did i miss something?
Here is a question. What has the Justice System done to these criminals that have been caught?
nothing……are they supposed to?
Bite them hard enough and they will get the message. At the Soup Kitchen we have had to cut down the quality of the meals to basic basic. Same needs to be done in jail and prison. When there are more mouths to feed at the family table and only so much money what do you do?
You are right. They need to make it miserable for them so they won’t want to go back…..ever
Send them into treatment
You can only treat them if they want to be treated. You can’t make them do anything, and a trained eye can tell if they want to or not.
I was wondering the same thing — it is one thing to arrest them, that is all well and good. But in the same breath, without something else being done “above and beyond” the arrest to make it “not worth it” to continue committing these robberies, then they will continue, IMHO.
Nothing seems to work except harsh treatment. When I got a spanking as a kid, you can make up your mind I didn’t do that again! You have to punish the bad behavior…. not reward it. They can say what they want, but without punishment, they keep doing it over and over and are in and out of jails their whole lives.
I agree with you 100% – a harsh punishment is needed – do the crime, do the time. But, I think there also has to be grace and mercy (aka:treatment options) available for those who truly want the help, that way we don’t keep seeing them in the papers and in and out of jail. There should also be some sort of 3-strikes you’re out policy – go straight to jail, do not pass go, do not collect $200- for those repeat offenders. If you can’t stay “out of trouble” long enough to make it past your conditional release or your probation, then you obviously were not ready to be released in the first place.
I totally agree. Treatment is needed. If they could come up with a jail rehab, it would be good. They must stay until they “want” to change and go through treatment. As it is now, they go through “so called treatment” tell them what they want to hear and they are good to go. That has to stop. We obviously don’t have room in the prisons for them kind of people, be something needs to figured out.
Don’t know that I’m going for the ‘good solid police work’ angle. Given that dope fiends are notoriously untrustworthy, I’d say there’s a lot of “Don’t do the time, drop a dime” stuff going on in the background. Plus most are typically so self-involved that they just go home and start wheeling and dealing right out of the house. And the beat goes on…
Randall Flagg: “Most drugstore robberies can be prevented by not giving over drugs or having an undercover posted in the store”
Bucksport has been twice this year,haven’t heard of anyone getting arrested from that yet.has anyone else heard?
I am seeing alot of Rite Aid in the list. Perhaps those pharmacy employees could be given guns and allowed to shoot would be robbers? Or hand them antibiotics in place of oxys. They are in too much of a hurry to stop and look closely at the drugs, right?
Post this headline in 6 inch letters on the front door of every pharmacy in Maine.
The methadone clinics are a huge factor in this mess. Addicts seek the high they get from it and when they no longer get the high they intentionally use street drugs so they can get a higher dose of methadone. The only ones benefiting are the pharmaceutical companies. I truly believe it would be better for all and more cost effective to have those who want help sign a contract to be in a lock down facility for 3 to 6 months where they can detox and then get intensive therapy. The state has done away with all but a couple long term rehab facilities. Get rid of the methadone clinics and give the addicts some long term help. As long as we continue the way we are going the problem is going to get worse.
Anyone else think it was stupid to publish the fact that GPS trackers were used, when the spokeswoman for Rite Aid just said “once you publish them, they aren’t really effective”. Way to go BDN. Nice way to help out.
My experiance with drug users who commit crimes is that they could care less about getting caught. They want drugs period.
This story could have been written with a different slant, and it would still be true.
Headline; “Almost one of five pharmacy robberies remain unsolved.”
My advise is to stop coddling these a-holes and putr them in a cell cold turkey for a couple of years.
Here’s a story for you Ms Ricker; Find out how inmates get their drugs in jail. I’d be interested to know about THAT supply-line.
Bangor, due to the presence of the methadone clinics, the availability of FREE healthcare, lodging, meals and on and on, is a “haven for the irresponsible” not that these folks are ALL the problem, but they are a large part of it.
Read the court news and police beat, and see the transients, those living is subsidized housing, and so on. It is a huge part of those committing crimes. The presence of all of this in Bangor, which many brag about, leads to the drawing of people to the area, who are not responsible enough to take care of themselves. Just look at who the drug store robbers are and you can see it easily: This last crew was holed up in “subsidized housing”. Great deal for those of us who do the “subsidizing”!
………”The prevalence of Rite Aid, which has 79 stores in Maine, may have something to do with its being targeted so often”……..
The author doesn’t seem to think it important enough to mention Rite Aids “kindly help yourself” attitude it displays towards the robbers, ie, “just walk in here with a note and you will get whatever yoou need, no one will hurt you, or call the cops til you are gone”.
………”Most drugstore robbers in Maine are caught”………Sure, but that doesn’t seem as though it stops the next guy from trying it! What are we going to tell the customer(s) or employee(s), one of these days, when one of them is hurt or killed, by someone flying high on whatever who crazily goes after someone with a knife or other weapon because he is so hyped up that he can’t think straight?
Rite Aid is being derelict in their unwillingness to protect their employees and customers! Of course they are not responsible for their employees, as they are covered by the Maine Workman’s comp laws and cannot sue their employer.
The customers however, are different. And one of these days, if this continues with no atttempt on the part of Rite Aid to stop its “open door policy” we will eventually see somone hurt or killed. Just a matter of time.
and a big lawsuit then the tide will change
I have been blessed and can say that neither I nor anyone in my immediate family have ever suffered from a prescription drug addiction… so if my questions seem “out of line” I apologize, but I am trying my best to wrap my mind around this problem.
Out of the people that are being arrested, how many of them want help? I know in a previous article it state John Harmon (one of the most recently arrested) has said he wants to “seek treatment”… Is this a common ploy among those arrested thinking they are going to get an easier sentence saying that than “I am happy in my addiction…”?
Do we have any statistics out of the people that are committing these robberies how many of them were originally prescribed the drugs for a legitimate problem VS them taking them from some one who truly needed them to begin with? I know that people spout off about the “abuse of prescription drugs” in Maine, how many abusing needed the drugs to begin with and then just got hooked?
I would love to see an addict (or some one in recovery) get on here and HONESTLY tell their story without the fear of being bashed by everyone that sits behind their computers withe self-righteous comments.
Your question is such a valid thought for a solution. I think that if help was somehow more accessible then a good percentage would seek help. Finding sobriety is such a challenging issue within itself. In the state of Maine, many facilities have a 4-6 month waiting list along with a burdening cost as well- regardless to if you have insurance or not. To put that in perspective it takes about three doctor appointments to get a methadone script. A 30 day program can cost between 1000-10,000 in Maine. Our economic trouble as a state with the accessibility of prescription pills creates a perfect storm for abuse. If people are stealing for a fix it’s hard to imagine they can come up with the money to be treated.
Occasionally they do comment on this forum, and always get the crap kicked out of them. This really is not the thread for honest information anyways–just honest opinion.
I guess my other question for you then would be – out of the ones that you have seen that come on here and comment – how many of them are willing to step up and take responsibility for their decisions VS playing the victim card? I would imagine if any of them come on and try to play the victim card they would “get the crap kicked out of them” as you say. But, why would that be the case if they are on here honestly seeking help and trying to do better?
The indivtiduals that have posted in this forum have never played the victim card that I have seen. It has been the public does not understand how diffucult it is to get straight, or I cleaned myself up so if I can do It anyone can. Some sympathize one way or the other, then it all turns into a big shouting match. Bangor residents are watching their city deteriorate before their eyes, and for the most part don’t care. They just want them gone. When carpanter ants are eating your house who cares what their story is, you want them gone. Thats my take on it anyway.
Pretty comical that you say that anyone who openly admits to using or having used gets the crap kicked out of them, verbally. Not sure what dummies you have been talking to. Not everyone who admits to previously using drugs doesn’t have a brain, or lacks a taste for debate. Im not super vain (I am vain, but not super vain as I dont wear a cape), but, as someone who has openly admitted using in a previous life, and as someone who oft times gets into it with people, I more often feel like I am the one doing the kicking, even if the person I am kicking is too dull to feel it.
What comment section on this site is the place for honest imformation? All the people here have the answers and mostly it always turns into impolite bantering/flaming sessions between people who have no idea what they are talking about. Not really a conductive atmosphere in regards to learning, what with all the know-it-all’s who know nothing.
I never mentioned anyones intelligents. Other than that it seems like different words to say the samething. You reinforced my point.
Ex-user who’s not afraid of the wolves ( and thus willing to divulge whatever information you require) at your service. Ill take the liberty of addressing some of your questions, as well.
I cant speak for everyone, but when I was seriously involved with drugs and around people who used, there was an air of ambiguity in regards to cleaning up. Most users I have known are not too comfortable in their own skin, either on drugs or not. Half the time they are doing things, they’ll be saying about how they’d like to quit. Chemicals are powerful. The rational mind can say “this needs to stop” while the user in you says “being addicted is only problematic if I cannot get my drug of choice”. Many addicts see their situation as the duality it is. Many do not. Saying the whole “ive got a problem line” most certainly is a way to try and get leniency in terms of sentences. The courts like to hear that, whether its true or not and defense lawyers are quick to inform their clients about the nature of the court system. Many people are comfortable with their addiction, but I doubt those people would tell a judge that, unless they weren’t too bright. Thatd basically be like saying “I like drugs and I dont see them as a problem.” WHOOPS! Not the best thing to say if you intend to keep your percieved freedom intact and keep the law and most people from chasing you constantly and treating you like you are sub-human.
Many people commit robberies for drugs after being prescribed narcotics. What ends up happening is they are put on something for an extended period of time and become absolutely addicted, chemically and psychologically. Often people are given these powerful drugs for short-term pain management, like after a serious personall injury. Once they heal up, its off the drugs they go. Physicians normally ween people off by decreasing the perscription and dose, however, due to the nature of Opiate painkillers and their addictive qualities, this often doesn’t work as expected. People often maintain their previous drug intake by resorting to illegal purchases. Many times, people on Opiate narcotics have them pulled for whatever reason. If ythey are off 1 pill on a count because they were in extra-pain one day and needed a bit more, or if they fail a test for weed because they took a hit to counter-act the absurdly powerful nausea that often comes with narcotics, off the pills they go. Cold turkey and then along comes Mr. Jones. There exist many reasons why people get their medication cut off. Of course, these are the people who really get into trouble. Being dope sick is unlike anything else, its the worst flu you could imagine and it also eats into your brain. Its as much mental as it is physical. These are the people who most often resort to crime to simply feel ok. There are, of course, many people who were never prescribed who are addicted and who do commit robberies. They are doing it for the same reason as anyone else, to get the means to feel ok. Which, brings me to an interesting point. People use drugs to feel ok. Whether its to escape phsyical pain, or mental/emotional pain, either way, they are escaping pain. The notion that someone who uses drugs for a medical reason is more acceptable then someone who uses them for pleasure has always puzzled me. It is basically all the same and boils down to a feeling of comfort. Yes, its true people who dont have a “medical need” use drugs as a form of “escape”, but, its also true that people who use drugs for a medical need also do so as an escape. Is there really a (moral) difference? I mean, aside from the fact that some people get them legally from college educated dealers in white coats and fancy stores and others get them illegally from street dealers in residential dwellings and at the McDonalds parking lot?
I think you’ll find that most people will not openly admit to past use or current use because of fear. Fear of the law, and fear of people. I have my go-arounds with the users here. I am not afraid of what they might say, nor do I care for their opinions. As far as the law goes, well, I am probation. Have been for sometime. I have been around these parts for roughly a year, as well. That should be insight enough into my current state, I suppose.
My name is DevilDude and I have done nearly every drug you can imagine. I am not ashamed.
Thank you for answering my post and for your honesty! And I definitely wish you the best going forward….
You are welcome. Appreciate your well-wishes. I am doing quite well, giving them up was not hard for me. Things and people change, and so do their tastes. I lost my taste for chemicals when I lost the thing which created the taste to begin with, I suppose. I dont have any animosity towards drugs, really, but rather, the people who most often use them. I refuse to be associated with scum of any sort and I have yet to really meet an honest drug addict. Cheers.
informative and interesting;however, what did it take for you to get off the drugs? if you would please divulge!
Got tired of it, partly. Being sick, having to deal with the ups and the downs and the pain and suffering. Drugs can be great fun, but all that fun comes at a very high price. What mostly did it is when the chick I had been with for nearly half a decade (and whom I likely would have spent my life) up and split without warning because she got into the Salt and literally became a different person over the course of a week. Her an I got into drugs together (more or less) and when she went, so did my desire to do them. I suppose, what it took was pain and hatred and lots of it. I dont hate drugs, or even dislike them, despite how damaged they have made my life. They didn’t damage me, but rather, the people around me and I hated that more than anything. Hated what most people become. Hated what she became. My bitterness is what drove me to sobriety. I refuse to be like the people I hate. In a world full of rather soulless users and addicts, there is no room for a person who can use and also be a decent, honorable person. It just cant work out. I know. I tried. If your involved with drugs, chances are you are surrounded by people who only care about one thing: drugs. And, if they should care about more then drugs, just give them time and before long it’ll be all they care about. Thats no way to live. I cared about more then drugs and when I realized the folly of my ways and paid in lots of blood and tears for my mistake, I resolved to never again make the same mistakes.
Also, it took about 10 days laying on a bed covered in sweat thrashing about without the strength to really do anything but roll over and puke or crawl into the bathroom to use the toilet, lots of movies (which all sucked horribly, at the time), lots of water, lots of me thinking “never again” and some good people to check on me and make sure I was doin’ alright every day. I went cold turkey. It was terrible. Its impossible to explain what its like to someone who has never experienced it, but, its the worst feeling you can imagine and your mind screams for even just the tiniest bump, as it would make it all go away. Its truly torture. There’s no sickness like jonesing for opiates and benzo’s and there nothing quite like a nice knife in the back to teach you a lesson in priority.
Why does this not shock me?
82 percent…that’s less than average.
Articles such as this one can be interpreted to suggest that we should have a reactive approach to the situation. This is like saying “Ahh let em rob the pharmacies – we’ll most likely catch em anyway.” The reality is that the drug/burglary situation is getting worse as shown with the increase in drug related theft compared to last year. Our law enforcement professionals are doing an excellent job apprehending the parties involved but curbing this crime is going to take a grassroots type collaboration of law enforcement AND citizens letting these drug seeking thugs know that their actions are not welcome in our neighborhoods. We also need the legal system to punish these folks once they are found guilty rather than hand out the typical slap on the wrist where they are sent to jail for 30 days or less, put in a cell with cable TV, and given more food than some of our working law abiding citizens can afford to eat.
No surprise. I don’t know how anyone in this day of age thinks they can get away with theft.
No? How about Wall Street?
There’s so much more to it in that aspect. I agree with you. It’s just that the average person has no chance of getting away with anything, and not that they should.
These people need the assistance of The Acadia Hospital to turn their lives around!