Addiction in Tampa, Florida

The Opiate Crisis - Tampa Florida

Harrison Cowan, the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner’s Manager of Operations says that the opiate crisis is “worsening” as people with substance use issues are mixing heroin and fentanyl “to the point that they’re dying almost instantly”.

Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office says that people with drug and alcohol problems go so far as to steal to get money for opiates, with one drug ring stealing $2.4 million in tools from four local Home Depots alone, “they are using the stolen items to get the drugs they need”.

Cocaine in Tampa Bay

Cocaine is so plentiful in Florida that it is even washing up on Florida beaches.

The Drug Enforcement Administration says that the rise in cocaine use can be attributed to increases in availability and that the presence of fentanyl contaminated cocaine is also rising.

“Fentanyl/cocaine mixtures often target a user-base that is typically unaware that it is consuming fentanyl and thus more likely to have an adverse reaction than one who intentionally sought out the opioid”.

Drug users are so unaware of the risk they are taking using cocaine that when they do seek out drug treatment in Tampa, they might even be shocked that their drug test comes back positive for an opiate.

Families Affected in Hillsborough County

Child Protective Investigators in Hillsborough County Florida say that “it’s an easy decision to remove children when there is clear evidence of domestic violence, heroin, or cocaine use in the home.” Hillsborough removes more children from their homes, than any other county in Florida.

This often leaves family members taking the children in unexpectedly and at the same time desperately searching for a drug and alcohol treatment program in Tampa that their loved one can enter as soon as possible.

Drug and Alcohol Treatment - A Community Approach in Tampa Florida

Stem, a drug counselor who presented at an opiate education event at the University of South Florida in Tampa, said it perfectly, “It takes a family, it takes a village, to succeed and stay clean and sober.”

For many people they don’t know what to do or where to go for help with a drug or alcohol problem. The important thing to remember is that you are not alone. Talking to a drug counselor in Tampa, Florida can help.

What if my Loved One Refuses to Get Help?

Even if your loved one isn’t ready to get help for themselves, it doesn’t mean that you don’t have options. Talking to a drug and alcohol counselor that specializes in addiction issues can help you figure out a plan on what to do.

Talking to a counselor yourself can help give you the support you need. And many people find going to an Al-Anon Meeting in Tampa or a Nar-Anon Meeting in Tampa helpful as well. You need all the support you can get to fight this terrible disease. If you have any questions, please reach out for a free 20-minute consultation.

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Helping You Help Your Loved One with Addiction

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My top three self-care tips

Three self-care tips if you have a loved one with a drug or alcohol problem

Tampa, Florida is experiencing an overwhelming amount of people with drug and alcohol problems. But behind every person with a substance use issue, is a family member, hoping that their loved one stops using drugs.

It’s very easy for drug and alcohol issues to take over, not just the person addicted, but affect the family as well. If you have a loved one with substance use issues, these are the top three things that I want you to make sure you are doing.

Number one, I want you to make sure you are getting plenty of sleep. Number two, I want you to make sure you are eating healthy and number three, I want to make sure that you are exercising regularly.

These things might seem simple enough but just because something is simple, does not mean that it is easy to do. Let me explain, you know how when you’re riding on and airplane and they always give a safety brief. Every time they say the same exact thing. If an oxygen mask falls down in case of an emergency you are supposed to put it on yourself before you help the person next to you. That means that even if I am traveling with a baby who can’t help themselves I am still supposed to get my oxygen mask on before I help the baby. If your anything like me, that might be hard for you. I naturally want to help others and make sure they are okay. But think about it, if I am getting oxygen for the baby, I might not get my own oxygen in time, where would that leave us and then who will help the baby?

I can’t help anyone else unless I take care of myself first. I am going to say it again, because this is sooo important. Unless you are taking care of yourself, you cannot help anyone else. We naturally love our family members and want to help them any way we can. But sometimes when drugs and alcohol take over our loved one’s life, we really need to stop and think before allowing the cycle of drugs and alcohol to take over our lives as well. It’s very easy to get caught up in helping our loved ones, maybe they are sick from using, or hung over, maybe they lost their driver’s license and need a ride, maybe they were arrested and need to post bail. Unfortunately it can be a spiral sometimes, spinning out of control.

That is the reason it is so important for you to focus on the very basics of taking care of yourself. Starting with getting a good night’s sleep. It sounds so simple but sooo many of my clients have problems sleeping. And I bet if you’re reading this you might have had a sleepless night or two yourself. Some of the problem might be just worrying about your loved one, worrying if they are going to be okay, worrying about the drugs and alcohol taking over. You might be stressed from trying to find a drug rehab and knowing that the drug crisis in Tampa, Florida is very real. But it also might mean more than that. How old is your mattress? You might need to consider getting a new one or might even consider talking to your primary care provider about medical issues for not sleeping well. If you aren’t sleeping well, you are not going to be able to function well.

Eating healthy, it is so easy to go through the fast food drive through, just real quick when you are stressed. Drive times in Tampa are long enough and on top of that you are worried about your loved one who needs drug or alcohol treatment. I get it, I have been there. But it’s not going to make you feel good and it’s not going to help in the long run. Eating healthy and regular meals is so important. Especially when you are stressed, focusing on your nutrition during these tough times is going to help give you the energy to get through the difficulties.

I know I am not the only person who tells you this but exercise also helps with both your physical and your emotional wellbeing. It’s a great stress reliever. I for one feel so much better when I am exercising regularly. Even just walking around the block after dinner can help. Florida weather is normally beautiful, take advantage of it.

When a loved one is addicted to drugs or alcohol it can affect the whole family. It is important that you do everything you can to take care of yourself. And remember that you are not alone. Drug and alcohol problems are very real in Florida, especially in the Tampa Bay and surrounding areas. Finding help for your loved one, like a drug treatment program is hard enough. But you need to make sure that you get help as well. Take care of yourself. If you need anything else. Please reach out.

Notice of Privacy Practices and Why it is Important to You

It’s one of those many papers you get when you go see your doctor or other medical professional, The Notice of Privacy Practices. If you are like me you probably don’t read it all the way through, it’s just another piece of paper I feel like I have to sign, another law in our health care system. Well let me tell you… boy was I wrong in thinking that!!

In starting Quiet Water Counseling I am now having to read it ALL. All the laws and regulations on top of laws and regulations, and they all have to do with how you are treated.

You probably know the basic stuff, that you have a right (by law) to receive a copy of your medical record, you have a choice about who your medical provider talks to about your condition, and that your information might be shared to better treat you.

But did you also know that medical professionals can share all your health information with your health insurance plan to get payment? For some reason this has always bothered me. I guess I’m kinda old school like that, not wanting to share someone’s personal information with some stranger I don’t know. I get it though, does it really matter that my health insurance company gets access to my weight or blood pressure readings, probably not.

But there are somethings that I don’t want to share. There might be somethings that you might not want to share either. And I think that we all should have a right to keep certain things private. If you want to read my Notice of Privacy Practices you can find it on my website at www.QuietWaterCounseling.com. And please let me know if you have any questions.