Drugs are out of the picture now that I have completed the Narconon program
When I was 17, I began attending a high school that was away from home. I had never once tried any sort of drug or alcohol. One night my roommate at school offered me some LSD. I figured that just one time wouldn't hurt me. How wrong I was. The next weekend I went out into the town that our school was in with my roommate, and ended up smoking marijuana for the first time.
Then in June of 2002, I moved into my first apartment of my own. I was loving life. I had an okay job, and my brother David lived across the street from me. I would go over to his apartment after work and visit with him. One night he introduced me to a friend of his. As the night went on, his friend started putting out lines of crystal meth. Not wanting to look weird by being the only one not doing it, I joined them and did a couple of lines. I made the same mistake as before, I thought that I wouldn't get addicted. The next time my parents saw me, which was about a month later, I was 60 pounds less than I was when I moved into my apartment.
I had also made friends with a couple of people from my apartment complex. I would hang out with them a lot too. Well, the people in my complex were also heavy users. I could get anything that I wanted in my apartment. I soon began using ecstasy, smoking marijuana regularly, and using cocaine on a daily basis. I soon got to the point that I could not function during the day without doing a line of cocaine or smoking crystal meth.
It wasn't long after that that everything started to go downhill. I called in sick to work because I couldn't leave without my dealer getting to my apartment with my fix. I lost my job. I started using the money that I had left to go and buy more cocaine instead of paying the rent. I soon lost my apartment after that.
I then moved in with my brother David, and we continued using for another month. Then he was evicted and arrested. I went to stay with my brother John outside of Houston, TX for a week. My parents came back into town for the holidays, and my brother David and I decided to tell them everything. The next day, I think God heard our cries for help. I received a phone call from a man named Eric Mitchell. He told me about the Narconon program. I went to the airport about 3 hours after I got off the phone with him, and came to Narconon Arrowhead.
When I came to Narconon, they didn't tell me I had a disease, or that I couldn't be helped. The program brought me back into present time. I learned that I can be comfortable anywhere, and if I'm not, I can change that. I can actually look people in the eye when I talk to them. It also showed me how to get my ethics back in, and how to make up for all the damage that I had created. Most of all, Narconon brought me back into control of my life. I am ready to face whatever life throws my way. Narconon also gave my parents their son back. Thanks Narconon.
Kent Mercadante
Ending Drug Addiction The Narconon Way
The Narconon drug rehabilitation program, first established in 1966, is unique. It is a proven "get off and stay off drugs" program. The Narconon program has been used successfully by thousands of people around the world to rid themselves of the need for drugs and regain control of their lives.
The Narconon program, unlike more traditional treatment, deals with both the physical and mental problems brought about by drug use. Our goal is to assist the addict, both mentally and physically, to become a whole and sane person capable of dealing with life's many and varied challenges. The end result is a success rate that is 3 to 4 times that of other programs. None of these solutions involves the use of any drug.
William Benitez, founder of the Narconon program, recognized that drug addiction was a type of disability. The Narconon program is comprehensively designed to overcome the disability of addiction by working to restore and develop the natural abilities of the addicted person.
A combination of physical detoxification, unique forms of cognitive and objective therapies, and life skills training, the Narconon program is delivered in phases where our “students” complete a series of distinct courses designed to complement and expand on each other.
When a person uses drugs over a period of time, the body becomes unable to completely eliminate them all. Drugs are broken down in the liver. These metabolites (the substances the body converts the drugs into), although removed rapidly from the blood stream, become trapped in the fatty tissues. There are various types of tissues that are high in fat content, the one thing in common – and the problem that needs to be addressed – is that these drug residues remain for years. Tissues in our bodies that are high in fats are turned over very slowly. When they are turned over, the stored drug metabolites are released into the blood stream and reactivate the same brain centers as if the person actually took the drug. The former addict now experiences a drug restimulation (or “flashback”) and drug craving. This is common in the months after an addict quits and can continue to occur for years, even decades.
When the addict initially tries to quit, cells in the brain that have become used to large amounts of these metabolites are now forced to deal with much decreased amounts. Even as the withdrawal symptoms subside, the brain “demands” that the addict give it more of the drug. This is called drug craving. Craving is an extremely powerful urge and can cause a person to create all kinds of “reasons” they should begin using drugs or drinking again. He is now trapped in an endless cycle of trying to quit, craving, relapse and fear of withdrawal.
Eventually, the brain cells will again become used to having lowered drug metabolites.
But, because deposits of drug metabolites release back into the bloodstream
from fatty tissues for years, craving and relapse remain a cause for concern.
Left unhandled, the presence of metabolites even in microscopic amounts cause
the brain to react as if the addict had again actually taken the drug and can
set up craving and relapse even after years of sobriety
The Narconon Program Resolves Drug Cravings
While drugs and their metabolites quickly become undetectable in blood and urine, some as rapidly as 3 days after last usage, drug metabolites remain stored in fatty tissues for years. That these accumulated drug residues continue to cause adverse symptoms led to the development of a program aimed at reducing levels of toxins in the body to assist in recovery.
The graph depicts cocaine metabolites being excreted in the sweat and urine of clients participating in the Narconon® New Life Detoxification Program. Levels of drug metabolites are not detectable in clients prior to the start of this program, then increase dramatically and slowly taper off as the program is continued. This supports the argument that drug residues remain in the fatty tissues and that the correct treatment can mobilize and remove them through the body’s excretory systems.
The New Life Detoxification Program utilizes a combination of exercise, induced sweating in a sauna, and nutritional supplements to produce the following results:
- Reduction or elimination of drug and alcohol cravings.
- Reduction or elimination of many symptoms associated with drug addiction and alcoholism. These can include depression, irritability, and fatigue.
- Ability to think more clearly.
- Improved memory and attention span.
- Increased energy.
- Increased sense of well being.
- Enthusiasm toward life.
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