Five ways that heroin use can kill you

Of all the drugs in the world, heroin remains one of the most dangerous.  And while taking any drug to excess open the doors for a variety of serious health problems, heroin features several particularly devastating effects that can snuff out the lives of even the healthiest individuals.

5 ways that heroin can kill

1. Overdose. Heroin use is an inexact science to say the say the least.  Different strengths of the drug are out on the street all the time, and the wrong one can lead to overdose in the individual who is unable to handle it.

2. Heart failure.  Heroin puts a tremendous strain on the heart, and many individuals who are addicted to the drug see their heart eventually just give out.

3. Suicide. One of the symptoms of heroin addiction is depression, which can lead to suicidal thoughts.  Many addicts feel hopeless and isolated enough to kill themselves.

4. Hepatitis B & C. Those who take the drug intervenously and share needles are at a high risk for these deadly diseases.

5. HIV/AIDS. Like Hepatitis, HIV and AIDS are contracted through the sharing of dirty needles.  In fact more heroin users have died from AIDS than overdose over the past 10 years.

For help conquering heroin addiction, contact Michael’s House today.  The resdiential rehab program at Michael’s House has helped thousands of people defeat addiction and go on to live happy, productive lives.

Irish youth using heroin at a shockingly young age

The Irish Examiner is reporting that there is a growing heroin addiction problem among children as young as 12 years old. The shocking report is based on the findings of Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine, that surveyed 86 teenagers in Dublin who were drug users and discovered that many had started using heroin at the age of 14 and many were addicted by the age of 16.

Mental illness played a significant role in the findings as well, with 52% of those surveyed having visited a psychiatrist at some point during their lives.

Families in the United States and around the world would be well-served to pay attention to these findings, as many of the drug addicted teens came from stable, two-parent family homes and did not exhibit any kinds of criminal behavior outside of the drug use.

Visit Michael’s House today and find out about their results-oriented resdiential drug rehab program.

Heroin claims the life of star baseball player

Michael Hutts was not a young man prone to trouble.  On the contrary, he was a Dean’s List student at Georgia Tech and a star pitcher on the university’s varsity baseball team.  So when his roommate opened the door to their dorm room and found Hutts dead of a heroin overdose, the pure shock of the incident reverberated across the entire campus community.

In an Atlanta Journal Constitution article last month, Hutts’ coach Danny Hall said, “Never was there even a moment where you thought, ‘Something is going on here. We need to check on this guy. We need to watch him closely.’ That’s what has made this even more shocking.’”.   Hall’s reaction typifies the insidious nature of heroin use in this country.  In the mind of the public, heroin addiction only strikes those from urban areas and the lower-rungs of the socio-economic scale.  But the truth of the matter is anyone – from the schoolteacher down the street to the meg-watt Hollywood A-lister – can be taken down HARD by heroin use.

So how could this happen to a kid who seemingly had everything going for him?  Swap heroin for cocaine and the answer may be found in what has come to be known as the Len Bias Effect - the deadly combination of heroin’s lethal power and the hubris of a young male in the prime of his life who feels that nothing can bring him down.   (Bias was the over first pick in the NBA draft in 1986 who died of a cocaine overdose hours after his selection.)

We hope Michael Hutts did not die in vain, and that the parents of great kids will find the time and talk to them about drugs, even if they’re on the Dean’s List and can throw a 95-mile per hour fastball

For resident drug rehab programs that change the lives of individuals with addiction and their families, visit www.michaelshouse.com.