In recent years, a growing number of prescription drug addicts are turning to heroin as a cheaper alternative.

When one thinks of a heroin addict, they might think of a transient or homeless person. In the 1960’s, heroin users were usually young men who began using it around the age of 16 and for the most part were from low-income neighborhoods.

Today though the typical heroin addict, on average, begins using the drug at the age of 23. They are also more likely to live in an affluent neighborhood and turn to heroin to replace their prescription drug addiction.

“They’ll have a medical procedure of some kind and will be prescribed opiates by a doctor or a dentist,” said Cary Quashen, founder of Action Family Counseling. “When they run out, they’ll ask their doctor for more until their doctor stops prescribing them.”

Not only do prescription drug addicts choose heroin because of its fairly easy accessibility, but also because heroin is cheaper to buy.

Related: Why Prescription Drug Addicts Turn To Heroin; How To Help

“When people who are addicted to prescription drugs go to a dealer and ask for the same type of opiates they were taking, they realize that they are extremely expensive,” Quashen said. “The dealer lets them know that they can get the same high from heroin for a lot cheaper. And the dealer tells them, ‘you don’t have to shoot it, you can smoke it.’”

Although a first time user might be nervous about using needles to inject heroin, the idea of smoking it might seem like a more acceptable option. Regardless of the manner in which a person uses heroin, the outcome is usually the same.

“Addicts become not only physically addicted, but emotionally addicted as well,” Quashen said. “There are 143 overdose deaths per day, a majority of which are opiate related. Drug overdoses from heroin and opiates have surpassed car accidents as the single greatest cause of accidental death in the United States.”

About Action Family Counseling

Action Family Counseling has drug and alcohol residential treatment locations in Santa Clarita, Piru, and Bakersfield; Intensive Drug and Alcohol Outpatient in Santa Clarita, Simi Valley, Ventura, Pasadena, and Bakersfield, Action Family Counseling is here to help you.

Action Family Counseling’s primary goals are to maintain abstinence, stabilize co-occurring illnesses, and increase quality of life. We support and reinforce change in behavior patterns so that adolescents and adults, or clients and their families can fully indoctrinate the philosophies and principles needed to remain abstinent and stabilized for life.

Action Family Counseling accomplishes this by providing an effective treatment approach developed by the Department of Health and Human Services that includes a multi-disciplinarian personalized approach by a treatment team. Once a patient is identified, we provide an initial screening and assessment, which allows us to properly diagnose and place patients in the appropriate treatment setting.

Once a patient completes our intake process to our residential program he or she receives 24-hour crisis management, individual counseling, group therapy, family education and counseling, treatment planning, routine and random toxicology screening, pharmacotherapy and medication management, education about Alcohol and Other Drugs and mental health issues, self-help and support group orientation, case management services, and discharge service planning with a transitional service plan to our Intensive Outpatient treatment program to ensure a continuum of care.

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