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Episode #2127
Life After Addiction
Bryant: ...the economic problems that it brings when one is addicted to drugs, the money starts coming out of the house, appliances, there is the social problem.
Lewis: How pervasive is the use of drugs and alcohol in black communities throughout the state? And where can someone addicted to drugs and alcohol find help? We’ll ask several professional counselors as well as recovering drug and alcohol users this question and more next on Black Issues Forum.
Voiceover: Quality public television is made possible through the financial contributions of viewers like you who invite you to join them in supporting UNC-TV.
Lewis: Hello, everyone, and welcome to Black Issues Forum. I’m Mitchell Lewis. Thousands of families living in North Carolina are affected by the darkness of alcohol and drug addiction. In some African American communities throughout the state we don’t have to look as far as the corner down the street to see both young and older people abusing drugs and alcohol. According to a report published in 2004 by the Alcohol Drug Council of North Carolina there were over 839,000 North Carolinians addicted to alcohol and drug substances. African Americans made up 21% of the alcohol and drug abusers.
The month of September has been designated as National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month. We’ll talk with representatives from several agencies in the state who are reaching out to drug addicts and their families. But first field producer Kara Bolton visited two addicts who shared their struggles towards recovery.
Underwood: I __ death is all I wanted was out. I wanted the pain to end. I tried repeatedly on my own to control or even to just stop but my efforts were to no avail. I just couldn’t break the chains that bound me. I continued to live or should I say survive in a hell right here on earth.
Jackson: I came into recovery because I was suffering. I found out I was two months pregnant and was still using my drug of choice which was crack. And I went to my son’s father and he asked me was I going to have it or was I going to kill it? And that was an eye-opening experience for me.
Voiceover: Stories like Sandra’s and Felecia’s color street corners, barbershops, churches and pretty much every community landscape. Unfortunately these stories are just two brushstrokes in a complex portrait of addiction and recovery in North Carolina.
Bryant: ;Scientists tell us that 50% of individuals who have substance abuse and dependence problems do have first degree or higher relatives and parents or grandparents who also have addiction problems as well.
Voiceover: Experts say that one addict affects at least five other people. Those five other people in most cases are family members.
Gilfort: As community began to break down coping mechanisms for families began to break down. I think that is a community crisis.
Bryant: ;Their family members need to be freed. They need to be liberated from the expectation and their own emotional bondage around, you know, rescuing that person and trying to act as if nothing is happening because they are raising children in that environment.
Gilfort: Most kids get diagnosed with a substance abuse disorder at the end of what everyone has tried. So they see all these other things first. They see them begin to fail in school, they see their friends begin to change, they see them coming home with all these weird behaviors and the dilated pupils and not coming home and you try a bunch of other things first and then you realize, “Oh, my goodness, I didn’t know you were smoking marijuana everyday.”
Voiceover: Gilfort, who works with adolescent substance abusers say some addicts start using as early as 12 but the average age of young substance abusers, Guilford says, is 15. Sandra said she began trying drugs at the age of 13 trying to keep up with an older sibling. But marijuana soon turned to crack.
Underwood: Naively thinking that I am not hurting nobody but me, you know, it’s just me. But when my eyes were open I saw the affects on my children, the pain it caused them, my mother, you know. When people told me they were on their knees in the rain crying, “Lord, please, don’t let my mommy die,” you know, it’s a wake up call.
Voiceover: The wake up call can have many rings. Sometimes it’s the buzz of recognition of hurting family members. Other times it’s the jarring alarm of being arrested. This is when some addicts finally get the help they need.
Bryant: ;Well, unfortunately for African Americans the most common response to substance abuse by the human services system is incarceration and adjudication and incarceration rather than treatment. If you have a history of substance abuse and you have a history of incarceration, that will make finding employment more difficult. However, there are agencies and employers, private employers, who work with in any community who do work with agencies to secure employment for individuals coming out of prison.
Voiceover: Treatment options can include long term residential programs like the one offered at the Malachi House in Greensboro. Seventy-five percent of the clients have been incarcerated. All of the men at the Malachi House have jobs to help pay for their room and board. The program has a 46% success rate among graduates.
Bryant: ;We’re not just looking at an individual becoming free from drugs or free from the substances that they used but beginning to look at the issues that caused them such as pride, lust, low self-esteem, building an individual up from inside out.
Voiceover: Often it ultimately takes an addict to save an addict. Felicia is Sandra’s friend and mentor. Felicia says she understands what Sandra is going through.
Jackson: I always thought of myself as the one who was going to, before I came into recovery, die doing the things that I was doing. I didn’t see another way. Thank God there were other people who had applied this new way into their life and, you know, that is how I learned. I learned from women who learned from other women who learned from other women. And that is how I learned to live again.
Voiceover: Sandra has been in and out of recovery seven times. Still, the lure of illegal drugs calls.
Jackson: Changes need to be made when you come in the recovery process and there are some things that she wants to hold on to that she is unable to let go of and therefore she‘s unable to do the necessary footwork and she needs—she wants that extra push but then she is not willing to accept it [LAUGHTER] once we push.
Voiceover: Sandra says that even her children ages 10, 14, and 16, are taking bets on how long this latest recovery effort will last. Still, she fights her battle against drug addiction one day at a time writing poetry to navigate through the pain and the recovery.
Underwood: Like a beautiful flower in the sun I bloom. Like the caterpillar turned into a butterfly I take to the sky. It’s a whole new world. I have joy, unspeakable joy.
Lewis: And welcome to back to Black Issues Forum. Our topic today focuses on drug and alcohol addiction in the African American community. I am joined by Dr. April J. Gilfort, the Executive Director of Dominion Ministries Incorporated and owner and clinical director of Guilford, Atkinson and Associates. Lattie Baker, Jr. Executive Director of the Alcohol and Drug Council of North Carolina and Jesse Battle, Director of Programs at TROSA Incorporated. TROSA stands for Triangle Residential Options for Substance Abusers. And to the three of you, welcome to Black Issues Forum. Dr. April, I guess I will start off with you. Could you tell us or give us an overview of the different types of substance abuse?
Gilfort: Well, as many substances as there are there can be abuse diagnosis for them. So everything from alcohol to marijuana to cocaine, the opiates, you can have an abuse diagnosis which talks more about your behavior and what you are doing in order to seek that drug. Or a dependence diagnosis which means that your body has become addicted, your body is now actually craving and has made adjustments, your brain has made adjustments in seeking the drug.
Lewis: Now, Lattie, before you became Executive Director of the Alcohol and Drug Council of North Carolina you were involved in corrections. What were some of the things that you saw especially among African Americans who were being incarcerated?
Baker: Well, first African Americans represent a disproportionate number of person in the correctional system and most people would say 90% or 80% of the persons incarcerated became incarcerated because of their drug and alcohol abuse and other problems. So it’s a major problem, a major issue that the black community has certainly done some work on but we still need to do more.
Lewis: And, Jesse, you have a very unique story because you were a—well, you are a recovering drug addict. You have completed the program at TROSA and you help, working to help others. Tell us your story. How did you get started?
Battle: Well, as you said my story is like no different in a lot of individual stories. I started using drugs when I was 11 years old. Started selling drugs when I was 16 years old, felt that this would help me, you know, my stature, self—this would help my self-esteem, this would help the community at large accept me. So in the course of selling drugs I have been incarcerated four times and in Lattie’s places there. I was there four times in my life. Been close to, I guess you could say, being at death’s door on several occasions. But in the end the worst time of all that was when I really wanted to live a new life. When I really wanted to live that life that I had always dreamed about living. You know, and at that time I guess you can say I felt I had society’s three strikes against me; no high school diploma, a felony record and no job skills. And I was just looking at a door that I just couldn’t get open for me.
Lewis: While you were dealing with the drug addiction, what was your attitude like especially in trying to fit into society?
Battle: I guess you would say that when I was out there in that lifestyle, you know, fitting into society really wasn’t a big issue for me at that time there. You know, it didn’t really become a big issue until that wasn’t the life I wanted to live anymore. You know, I guess you could say it wasn’t fun anymore. You know, I wanted to be a normal person. You know, I have often said in my life that I guess at that time in my life I didn’t want to be a Tony Montana no more. I just wanted to be a Ward Cleaver. I wanted to be a Mr. Huxtable. And I could never—I didn’t know how to make that transition.
Lewis: And, April, is there any difference in, say, percentage-wise between men or women when it comes to those folks becoming addicted to substances?
Gilfort: Well, there is no research out there that says that men would be more susceptible or women would be more susceptible. But what we find is that the men come to our attention much more often in the places of work, in the criminal justice system, in the juvenile justice system, it’s easier for us to identify the behaviors of boys and men sometimes than it is the behaviors of girls and women.
Lewis: Do you see any type of genetic predisposition for alcohol and drug abuse?
Gilfort: Well, what we find is that it does have a tendency to run in families. Scientists are working to tease out the environmental from the genetic. But what we do know is that once we begin to use our brains, do adapt to the drug that we continue to give it. And so what can happen is that when brain structure is changed, we can pass that on to the next generation.
Battle: I think that also there is a number of different barriers for the female population than it is for the male population. That is why you see such a lower number of them actually seeking treatment. Just like in our program right now we have 300-plus residents. And 80% of them are males because the female population, they have a lot of different barriers to treatment than the males do.
Lewis: And, Lattie, we’ll get you back into the conversation. Especially back during your time in corrections, what type of impact was it having, say, within the criminal justice system, within corrections of folks having these addictions?
Baker: Back in the 1980s, 1985 to be exact, the Department of Corrections started a number of treatment programs and initiatives and have continued those programs. I think one of the issues about addiction that we have to deal with is that most people who have the disease of addiction don’t admit to having it. Some 70-80% of persons who are addicted simply feel that they have no problem with addiction. So that is one of the major issues. This whole issue of absence of knowledge about addiction, denial as some people call it, and just the inability of the individual to say I have a problem with my use of alcohol, my use of drugs. So many people think that is a normal problem, they are living normal and daily lives and it’s not until they get into problems with the criminal justice system, with loved ones, start stealing, and having a number of other problems that they then realize that that issue needs some attention.
Lewis: And, Jesse, as you were going through your addiction, how did that impact your family?
Battle: I think about the impact on family in several different ways. You know, we have a mother whose son is incarcerated and you have a mother whose son is laying in a hospital bed near death. So there is a lot of different impacts that go along with that. Impacts your family in so many different ways. You know, it’s hard to even put it into terms.
Lewis: April, when you look at folks who are dealing with substance abuse where does the age factor come in? Especially when you are looking at youth that may be already hooked on drugs and alcohol.
Gilfort: Well, one of the things that we know is that substance abuse does not discriminate. Anyone who tries can have an addiction. And so the children that we work with at our agency are generally around the 15 to 17 year old range. However, when you interview them and you talk to them, many of them started using when they were much, much younger, 10, 11, 12. And so what we try to do is to get some information about the age of first use. And look at what was going on in their lives and really begin to work with them around those issues that first led them into alcohol and drug use.
Battle: I think that sometimes right now in the African American community, the young, the youth, they feel it is a rite of passage, you know, to be arrested, they feel it’s a rite of passage to serve some time. You know, to them this is a normal part of America right now for them. You know, and I think that when we start looking at solving some of the problems we have to look at these single family homes and be able to start up some sessions with those children also. Because that is what we are seeing, we are seeing the product of broken homes.
Gilfort: One of the things that is just extremely, extremely, important when you are talking about working with youth is to understand that substance abuse just does not start in a vacuum. If a child begins to use a substance it’s generally for a reason. If a child of a loving two parent family where there is no substance abuse decides that they want to come home drunk somebody is going to notice and hit the roof and there will be repercussions, there will be consequences. What can happen to some of our more vulnerable children is no one hits the roof. There are no repercussions. There are no consequences. And they continue to use some of those substances to cope and it goes into the school system and there are no repercussions and consequences and then they end up with one of us, all of a sudden there are repercussions and consequences but they are already addicted.
Baker: Mitch, there is a major national initiative, it’s called Reducing Underage Drinking that focuses on again getting the attention of young people, getting the attention of parents so that there is a proper intervention to keep young people from beginning to drink at an early age. I mentioned the story earlier of a young man who was on a basketball team and he said just before playing basketball all the guys took a drink because they thought it would help them play basketball a little better. Well, if you read the science it does just the opposite, it slows down the reflexes, it messes up eye hand coordination. The young man later said we stopped drinking and we are winning games now. So it’s a realization that alcohol has a very adverse impact on young people. And the brain.
Lewis: April, what types of treatments are available for those folks dealing with addictions?
Gilfort: Well, there are many now. There are a lot of new medicines. Psychopharmacology has come out with in the past few years a lot of very successful medications. There are also a host of evidence-based treatments for youth. Motivational enhancement therapy, some of the family systems work so that you are not just pointing your finger at the child and saying you need to stop that. But there is support across the entire family and NIDA, the National Institute of Drug Abuse, has a host of endorsed family systems and individual based treatments. Cognitive behavior therapy for adults we know there is AA, there is NA, Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous. There is TROSA in our community that is just doing a wonderful job with adults particularly adult males trying to come out of the criminal justice system.
Lewis: And, Jesse, of course you are part of TROSA. You went through the program. What was that program like?
Battle: Well, TROSA is a two year residential licensed therapeutic community. It focuses on vocational skills, education, and interpersonal skills to learn how to deal with life and life itself. One of the components of TROSA that stands out, a lot of times is that it wants to take somebody from one stage of life to another stage of life by giving him some of the traits that will not put him back into the same environment.
Lewis: And Lattie, with the council, what types of programs are available through your organization?
Baker: Well, a major emphasis of the council now is public education. Just making certain that the public understands the basis of alcoholism as a disease or drug addiction as a disease, that it’s a treatable disease, that you can get positive outcomes with good and effective treatment programs, making certain that treatment is affordable and accessible. In many cases, people who recognizes they need treatment simply can’t afford it. So making it affordable is another issue that the council works on. One of the issues of public education I think is and especially when we talk about young people, we normally think that young people that are on drugs and it is drugs that is ruining our community, when you go back and look at the statistics, it’s alcohol. Alcohol is the major drug of choice for our adolescents and young people and again, that is where we want the community to begin to focus.
Battle: I think one of the other focus is that we got to put out that recovery is possible, treatment does work. You know, I think a lot of society still feels that addiction is a moral weakness. You know, and there is no hope for the addict. And if we put out there and let them know that treatment does work, treatment can be successful, because there is millions of people out there right now who are in recovery who are afraid to let anybody know that for fear of a stigma and repercussions that come from people knowing it.
Gilfort: Along with that, it’s extremely important that when you are telling people they can recover they have something to recover for. So part of treatment has to be, “and your life will be better when this part is over.”
Lewis: Are there any specific reasons African Americans in general may not want to acknowledge that they need treatment?
Gilfort: Well, there is a huge stigma on being addicted at anything. It’s one thing to say that there is recreational use. And I am partying. This is fun. It’s another thing to say that I have totally been given over to this and I’m no longer in control. And, you know, Janet Jackson said a long time ago, I’m in control. And we really value that. We really—in our community we really value standing up and being in control of our own lives. And with drug and alcohol addiction you are not in control and so no one wants to say that. No one wants to admit that this has gotten me.
Lewis: Lattie, I’ll ask you this: how can you tell that someone has a problem with alcohol or drugs? What are the warning signs?
Baker: Well, there are a number of warning signs. They are progressive. They slowly creep up on a number of persons. But can you imagine a person who is a very successful business person in the community who one day is on top of the world and the next day he has lost everything and the guilt and the shame that occurs with that? Well, first of all, it starts with the family. Family members probably notice very early the problems of alcohol and drugs. It starts in the workplace. In addition to the workplace, in social circles. People begin to talk about the fact that John is drinking more now than he did before. And there is no intervention. What would be great is that if in the family, if in the school, if in the workplace there were interventions that would force that person into treatment, but those interventions occur far down the road after the person has created so many problems. And then there is a legal issue when the person gets into trouble that is when he or she begins to seek treatment and to work on the problem. So if we could discover the problem earlier and begin working on it earlier that would certainly help.
Lewis: We have less than a minute left in the show and I wanted to ask all three of you this question: especially when it comes to family members, what advice would you give to them as they are dealing with someone who is recovering from drug and alcohol abuse? I’ll start with you, April.
Gilfort: The first thing I would say is notice the slide. If grades start to drop, if people start missing work, if they are not the same—if they don’t have the same attitude that they used to have, notice it. Comment on it and begin looking for resources in our community to help them.
Lewis: Jesse?
Battle: I think one of the biggest things the family can do is acknowledge it, you know, and not deny it happening to themselves. They have got to acknowledge it, they have got to confront it. And once that is done then they can seek the appropriate treatment for that individual. And also feel that society as a whole needs to acknowledge a person who is in recovery because there is so much stigma going with a person who is in recovery right now.
Brown: And we’ll have to stop it here. And I thank you all for being here and continued success to all of you in all your efforts. I would like to thank Dr. April Guilford, Jesse Battle, and Lattie Baker for joining us. If you would like to get in touch with our guests or to find sources for help with drug or alcohol addictions, please visit us online at unctv.org/bif. When you visit be sure to give us your comments and program suggestions. You can also call us on the BIFline at 919-549-7167. For Black Issues Forum, I am Mitchell Lewis. Thanks for watching.
[END OF RECORDING]
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