What is the new proposal? It is going a little easier on first-time offenders provided that they agree to supervision and treatment. We all make mistakes. We all think we are above getting that first ticket, not being able to handle our liquor, being able to get high whenever without getting addicted. We are wrong, though. Just today I was driving down one of the main streets in town and a brown van kept going over the white line. Drinking? Hmm. So as I decide to pull up and get away from the driver, I see that it is actually a little old lady who looked to be at least 70. Maybe she’s never had a ticket or been a drunk driver but if she keeps driving the way she is, she will end up being pulled over.

The new proposal is going to bring a second chance to the first-time offender in making sure that he or she realizes what could happen if he continues to drink and drive. Innocent lives could be lost. His own could be (which would sadden his family) and if he did live, he would most likely wish for death because of the guilt. But with the new proposal, he can be supervised and he can get the treatment he needs to make sure he does not repeat such a foolish and possibly fatal mistake again.

 I’m still proud that Texas is one of the harder places to be legally. I’m also proud that we want the best for all of our citizens and want them to come out of a situation having learned a valuable lesson and striving to improve and be the best that he or she can be.

Don’t mess with Texas. We are seriously willing to give you a second chance because we believe in fairness and forgiveness. Make the best of it and the best of your life and down the road we will pay it forward and tell someone else the same thing so that you and yours are kept safe as well.  We want you to live free but we also want all potential innocent victims to live free as well.  So don’t blow your second chance, okay?  (Because you know what?  We think you deserve a second chance.  Show us that we’re right.)

Making a living selling drugs is not making a living.  You are behind bars in a prison of your own making.  First off, you are going to get caught eventually.  If you think differently, think again.  We see it in Texas newspapers every day.   A traffic stop yields 150 pounds of pot, a million dollars worth of cocaine, $11,000 worth of prescription drugs.  It happens all the time. 

A raid discovers counterfeit money and drug possession.  How?  Someone has tipped off the authorities.  Either during a drug deal gone wrong, revenge or that kid at the local high school got in trouble with Mom or Dad and decided to come clean in order to offset his or her punishment. 

Seriously, how does a person make a living selling drugs?  More and more “clients” are students.  If you get a Texas Mama finding out you are selling drugs to her junior high son or daughter, you may find yourself picked up and sentenced to more years in prison than you have left to live multiplied by ten or twelve. 

Making a living drug dealing is not really living.  You cannot share stories over dinner with your parents about a huge sale.  You can’t celebrate with the neighbors and tell them the reason you were able to put a pool in is because their high school kids are some of your best customers.  You are suspicious of every person you come in contact with.  You can get hooked on your own product.  You are constantly looking over your shoulder.  You live in fear of a drug bust or someone pulling a drive-by shooting, usually hitting the wrong house and injuring some child. 

Fast food may not be what some people dreamed of doing but if you are having a rough time financially, knock off the “pride” and try for a job there.  It is a lot more respectful than having undercover agents arrest you in front of your kindergarten-aged son or daughter. 

Think twice before you make a drug deal.  Then think twice again.  Making a living pushing drugs is not making a living.  It is a crime that hurts not only the person you are selling to, but their families, your own family and more and more, minor children who are suppose to be protected by adults.  We all have a responsibility when it comes to that. 

Are you making a living selling drugs?  Stop, get out now and rebuild your life and character.  Because if you get caught in Texas, chances are high that you will not see the road to freedom again in your lifetime.  Do you honestly think living high on the hog for a few months till someone narcs on you is worth it?  Can you really live with yourself if you contribute to a young person’s road to addiction?  Ask yourself that when your view from the top is a set of prison bars on your window or the funeral procession of a child who lived down the street.

This post is not about tearing down a father who, no matter what his sentence, will be serving his own self-inflicted life term. It is instead a post about how our addictions truly do affect those around us, and our younger children can become terminal victims by getting into the drugs we may have in our possession

When a person is addicted to drugs, when he or she is in the middle of that high, right and wrong, common sense, rationality, it all takes a back seat. Truthfully, have you ever woke up in the morning with a serious hangover from the night before, possibly not even remembering certain events? Did you ever smoke crack or take heroin and wake up, not necessarily remembering but instead, yearning for yet another fix?

If you are a parent of young children, or even if you have teenagers around, once you are out of touch with reality, you have no idea what they could be getting into. This does make you responsible. If you are lucky, nothing happens. At worst, maybe you catch your teenager stealing your cigarettes or some beer from the fridge and you ground him or her for simply following your actions. But if you aren’t so lucky, you could be like a North Texas family, a father from Utah, parents all over this country and others as well, losing a special blessing like little Lane, a bright and cheerful, smart and inquisitive young boy who already had dreams of what he wanted to do when he grew up. He wanted to be a cowboy.

If reading this makes you want to hug your own little ones a little closer, if it makes you want to re-think that addiction you secretly (or not so secretly) have, then don’t hesitate. Reach for the phone and make plans to get help now. Become what a parent truly is to a child, a hero who is always there. Do it for your sons, your daughters. Do it so that the death of little Lane was not in vain. If you make the decision to get clean based on the death of Lane Owen, you can know inside your own heart that he is up there looking down with a smile as he knows he has helped you win a tough competition, lassoing your addiction.

Okay, this is not an article against politics but let’s face it, the first paragraph got your attention, right? The truth is, yes, there are more arrests. With the economy today, people are turning more to drugs and alcohol to forget, to feed their depression and to just get through the day, the night, the week.

But think about this: every dime spent on cocaine, heroin, marijuana, alcohol, every dime is taking away from helping yourself in other areas. You could put that money towards a class or trade school. You could put it in savings. You could buy a family board game and spend time with your children, memories that will last a lifetime in a much sweeter way than them witnessing an arrest and visiting you in jail.

Drugs and alcohol can make you forget the outside world for a little while but it will not go away. Sooner or later, we all have to face our actions and deal with the consequences.

Think about what is really important in your life the next time you make a drug deal or buy a case of beer that will be gone by morning with you being the only drinker. Buried within those walls you have put up is a person who once had dreams, a person who has loved ones, perhaps a spouse or children, a person who MATTERS. Yes, you matter.

I don’t apologize for using “the man” tactic as an excuse to get you to notice this article. I simply wanted to get your attention so that you get the true message of this article: with this economy, many of us are bound to feel sorry for ourselves, and yes, even with good reason. But sinking into the forgetful addiction of drugs or alcohol is not the answer. It puts us further in debt, sets a bad example for our children, and costs us everything dear to us.

This economy makes us feel out of control but guess what? There IS something you can control. You can a) stay away from the pitfalls of addiction or b) reach for the phone and call that number there at the side and get into rehab. The feeling of taking control of a seemingly hopeless situation will increase as you learn the tools to stay clean.

In this case, “the man” is really the addiction to drugs or alcohol. Stick it to him and show him you can overcome his power.  Oh, and if you do not have insurance and you are broke?  See what programs the government offers to help addicts get clean.  A little-known positive in these rough times.

Both genders are remarkable in their own ways for many reasons. This post and the next will focus on each individually. With the old addage of “ladies first”, this one will be about women.

From soccer moms to single mothers, from teens to older women, addiction does not discriminate against age or lifestyles. Whatever the reason that a woman has turned to drugs or alcohol, however hopeless she may feel, it is imperative for her to understand that she is worth saving and there is a way out.

Here in Texas there are many rehab programs to help women to overcome addiction. One of them is the Genesis recovery program. This is a year long recovery process, ensuring that someone has the time needed in many cases to become thoroughly detoxed and build the tools necessary to keep a relapse at bay.

The Genesis program in Wichita Falls is led by a woman who has herself traveled the road that many addicts travel. She lost everything and became homeless because of addiction and then one day back in 2001, sought help through divine faith and began her journey back to sobriety and getting clean.

Because of her own battle, she has become the perfect combat buddy for other women who find themselves trapped in an addiction. She knows what these other women are going through. She knows what it is like to be homeless, to be addicted, to feel hopeless.

The Genesis program gives women a safe haven. Many of them also have to get away from significant others who are either using, making them use or being abusive. Most addicts do have a dual diagnosis of some sort, whether it be depression or a physical ailment on top of the drug or alcohol addiction. This year long recovery program allows them to focus on what is important, their health, their hope, their victory.

Genesis means beginning. For these women, it truly is. The beginning of a new life free of drugs and alcohol. The beginning of new friendships and support. The beginning of realizing the strength one has within herself. The beginning of the realization that she always deserved this help, that she is redeemable, that she is worthy, that she does have something to offer the world.

For more information, call 940-723-5663. This call will be the beginning of working your way back to being the wonderful person you were, you are and that you were meant to be.

Dana Plato was a talented actress. However, the producers of Different Strokes did not go the route that so many do and fired her for being pregnant. It was then that this writer, who was the same age as Dana Plate, stopped watching the show.

When Dana Plato died, I grieved in the way of a normal fan. I felt sadness and as a mother, my heart went out to her own child. When her death was ruled a suicide by overdose, I felt somewhat aggravated at her for leaving that legacy for her son. Still, I had been taught to not judge others and instead hugged each of my own three children a little tighter that day.

I have never believed in suicide but I have learned that addiction destroys our common sense and our thinking, leading us to do things we never would have considered before being taken over by drugs or alcohol. The fact that she was addicted to prescription drugs is not in question following a forgery for Valium.

We all have things we have to deal with in our lives. If we have an addiction, it can make those situations multiply into catastrophic events whether they are or not. To this day, I can not fathom leaving a legacy of suicide behind for my children to cope with but I have never walked in the shoes of someone such as Dana Plato.

If you have heard of the suicide of Dana Plato’s son this week and you have an addiction, then I urge you to seek rehab. Think about this: what you do affects other people. Suicide affects your loved ones. If you don’t believe me, think about Tyler Lambert. Don’t let his death be just another story. If you have children or loved ones, even if you are a teenager or college student just starting out,, then do yourself and your loved ones a favor. Get help. Spend the summer in rehab and begin a new life for yourself free of addiction.  Suicide is not the answer to the questions you are surely asking yourself if you are addicted to drugs or alcohol. 

Help really and truly is just a phone call away. Don’t leave a legacy of tragedy for your family. Do it for yourself, for them and for the future. For every person who gets help after reading this article, know this: you are stating that you want to break free and if your choice was affected by a certain young man’s suicide, you are showing that young Tyler Lambert did not die in vain.  You could be keeping your own loved ones from a depression-caused suicide by seeking help for your addiction now.

She may have been frustrated a few times with you but she never stopped loving you. Picking up the phone and saying, “Mom, I want to get clean. I want to break the cycle of addiction” will be the most beautiful words she can hear if drugs have taken over your life.

Now stop right there. Perhaps you are saying to yourself that this does not apply to you because your mother has passed away or you are a mother yourself. Well, yes it does, actually. Making a Mother’s Day decision to get clean in honor of your mother would be the most beautiful gift you could give, not only to her memory, but to yourself and your other loved ones as well.

If you are a mother, don’t you want to be around to see that child’s first date? Be there to take pictures of him and his date as they stop by on the way to the prom? Be there for her wedding? Be there for the birth of his own son, your first grandchild?

Mother’s Day celebrates mothers everywhere. Moms do not want fancy jewelry or vacation trips away from you. A simple “I love you and I want to overcome my addiction so I’m going into rehab” will be the most priceless gift you can give her. By making this decision in a time of celebrating what a mother is, you are showing her that all those years of her love and prayers and strength were worth it because you felt it through the chains of your addiction.

By deciding to get clean during the special celebration of Mother’s Day, you are showing your children that you want to be a good mother to them, that you want to get away from addiction and became the wonderful mother they deserve and that they know you can be.

The time to get into rehab is now. No matter what time of year, the time is now. Every day, it is now. Yet, since we are about to celebrate Mother’s Day, what greater gift can you give in honor of such a special day? Make the call to the rehab center. Then make the call to the ones you love the most.

Happy Mother’s Day.

Creatively, there is a place to do that. By going to http://www.familyfriendpoems.com/family/addiction-poems.asp, you can see poems that have been written by other people who have experienced what you are experiencing. Some of the poems are written by children who grew up with drug addicted or alcoholic parents. Some are written by addicts themselves. Some are written by both, as many times a person who grows up in an environment of addiction can fall into the same pattern. 

Some of the poems are written by siblings. Some are written by spouses and significant others. There is one common denominator in all of them. Drug addiction affects everyone in an addict’s life as well as the addict himself

As you read the poems, you are given the opportunity to comment and share your own story. You will find that you identify with several of these poems. There is a kinship among people who have lived the hell of an addiction, either as the addict or a loved one.

Feel free to share your feelings or your story. Perhaps even feel inspired to write a poem of your own. The creative gene shows itself in many ways and for those who can write, expressing one’s self through addiction poems such as these can be a positive form of healing.

If you are still in the throes of addiction, now is the time to get yourself clean. Take the time to contact the number on the sidebar and begin your journey to freedom today. Indulge in the creativity of writing as you go along. Keep a journal, write a poem. Who knows, perhaps some day you can write a book that will even help others, sort of a pay it forward situation.

Haven’t written a poem before? Give it a try. Simply put your feelings into words. Want to know a secret? Poems do not always have to rhyme. If yours does, great, If it doesn’t, great. Either way, expressing yourself, being creative and seeking help are going to start a new beginning for you in so many ways, your only regret will be in not doing so sooner.

What is your opinion? Mine is that I believe random drug testing at work is okay. I think it can steer some people clear of making one bad decision at a party because he or she does not want to have the bad luck of going to work Monday morning and having that random test done. That example alone has saved potentially thousands from falling victim to drug addiction.

Ask yourself this: are you worried about a random drug test at work? If so, then you need to see that as a red flag. Something that makes us nervous is something that needs to be investigated within ourselves. Are you taking a few too many prescription pills after that accident you had? Prescription drug addiction is on the rise and one of the most common substance abuse problems around. Are you sneaking a joint at that Friday night party at the dorm? College campuses and high schools are rampant with students smoking marijuana. However, if you are nervous about the possibility of a drug test, what does that say?

Stop. Get help now. Texas rehab centers work to ensure a person gets clean and has the tools to stay clean. They are not out to “get” you, they are out to help you. Success is what is at the root of rehabilitation.

So if taking a drug test is making you a little anxious, consider the real possibility that you have a problem. Do not look at a random drug test at work as a violation of your privacy, look at it as a tool that helps you and your co-workers come to terms with the fact that one of you may very well have a real substance abuse problem.

Remember, random drug testing is not about getting someone in trouble. It is about getting a person help and ensuring that a potential drug problem does not wreak havoc for co-workers. If you are worried about failing a random drug test at work, then consider getting help now and thank your employer for caring enough to have drug testing done.

The first step in seeking help is accepting that you do. Yet, what if you have realized that step but you feel you are in a catch-22 because even though you have accepted it, you can not afford a rehab program? Stop that type of thinking. There is help available.

There are free and low cost drug treatment organizations available. Texas and drug treatment centers know that the most important thing is helping someone who has an addiction. When that happens, drug offenses decrease, people do right by the law and their families and suicides and accidental overdoses and alcohol poisonings decline.

In the current economy, it might be easy to use not having health care or money as an excuse but there are drug rehab centers that understand this and still believe that the ultimate goal is getting clean. Whether you are male or female, pregnant or homeless, there are several treatment centers that will step up and help.

Many people do not get the drug treatment they need. Most believe it is because of denial or to protect their reputation at work or in social circles. Perhaps in some way both of these are true. However, it is also because some people simply can not afford health care, let alone drug rehab. There IS a solution.

Go to choosehelp.com and make the call. Someone will help you with an assessment and see what rehab facility will best suit your needs based on the type of addiction you have, any dual diagnosis that may be involved and your financial situation. You do not have to go without help simply because you can not pay. You do not have to go without help simply because you are embarrassed. There is a rehab center available for every type of addiction. What there isn’t, is an excuse any longer to not get help, to not get clean, to not start the beginning of a new life without drugs. Even in these tough economical times, there is help available.  Make the call.