VistaTaos

Neighbors phoned the police about a parking dispute with residents of an Albuquerque 55th Avenue home. What they found next surprised them.

Ten adults were living in the home without heat, running water, or natural gas. The squatters had hacked in to the electrical box with a hacksaw to steal electricity, but without other services available, the house quickly dropped to deplorable conditions. Everyone in the home was under the influence of one drug or another.

According to Albuquerque Police Officer Joe Martinez, “(There was) no water to even flush a toilet or wash your hands with -- and you've got 10 adult people (at the residence)."

To add insult to injury, the squatters were heavy heroin users. When police entered the house, they discovered the home was overrun with used needles and with needles still loaded with black tar heroin. The conditions were so terrible that investigators had a difficult time investigating the crime scene; the dangerous needles, many uncapped, impeded their progress.

Three squatters were arrested on outstanding warrants when the police arrived, and the owner of the home has been contacted to perform a clean-up of his property.

Unfortunately, the heroin addiction that led these ten squatters to live in such deplorable conditions is all too common. Heroin addiction can be extremely difficult to break, but it is possible. With the help of drug treatment centers like Vista Taos in New Mexico, addicts can break free of their heroin addiction. Hopefully, with the help of a treatment center, the ten individuals found squatting at this residence can receive the necessary assistance to transcend heroin addiction.

When using needles to inject drugs, the user runs so many risks, not just the possibility of overdosing on the heroin. There is a chance that injection sites can become infected; this can be so bad that it results in amputation of the limb. Dirty needles and needle sharing is also how many users end up with auto-immune diseases like HIV/AIDs and Hepatitis C.

Heroin is a deadly drug, quite possibly the most dangerous drug being used at this moment. Please seek help immediately if you or a loved one needs assistance with heroin treatment. Inpatient treatment can save your life. Contact Vista Taos to learn more about the detox and treatment options for heroin.

People these days are beginning to become addicted to hard drugs like heroin through legal substances like pain pills. With about ten percent of young adults reporting they have taken prescription medications without a prescription, DEA agents are beginning to crack down on the doctor’s offices that may prescribe medications too easily. 

In a sting operation earlier this year, DEA agents investigated many doctor’s offices that had been reported as easy prescribers. They found that some patients jump from one easy-prescribing office to another in search of narcotic drugs. The drugs were then available for young adults to purchase on the black market or pilfer from adults’ medicine cabinets.

Once these young people became addicted to legal narcotic drugs, they often found that drugs like oxycodone and Vicodin were too expensive on the black market. So many young adults sought cheaper illegal drugs that could offer the same kind of high, like heroin. In essence, legal narcotic pain pills have become the new gateway drug to heroin abuse.

Since possession of legal narcotic drugs is not illegal, it has been a little more difficult for the DEA to investigate the trend. Agents must dig deeper to determine whether a young adult in possession of a narcotic drug is a legitimate act of pain prevention or an illegal act of drug addiction.

Since drug overdose is the number one cause of accidental death in New Mexico, many rehabilitation centers like the New Mexico’s own Vista Taos Renewal Center have been focusing on helping people overcome heroin abuse and other addictions. If you or a loved one suffers from heroin abuse, you may wish to contact a rehabilitation center immediately; kicking heroin abuse can help many people live more meaningful lives. Don’t wait until it’s too late; jail is no place to detox from heroin. The detoxification process from drugs like heroin (and prescription drugs) can be very painful and even dangerous. Symptoms of withdrawal should be monitored by a medical professional during the detox phase. Steps can be taken; you can comfortably detox from heroin. Let Vista Taos help you safely get away heroin before it takes your life.

Redmond O’Neal, son of Ryan O’Neal and the late Farrah Fawcett, found himself in trouble with the law once again due to his unrelenting heroin addiction and his resistance to stay sober. This time, Redmond was stopped by police officers after running a red light. Once the cops searched the car, they found him in possession of heroin and arrested him immediately. Reports have surfaced that he has been going through severe withdrawal symptoms due to his heroin addiction.

Redmond was on probation at the time of his arrest due to a previous stint in jail where he was caught bringing drugs onto the property. Sadly, Redmond has been in and out of rehab and jail multiple times over the years due to his heroin addiction.  He ultimately needs to seek the type of intensive treatment it takes in order to kick this deadly addiction and stick to it, or he will continue to end up in jail or worse, dead. 

For Redmond’s most recent arrest, he has pleaded not guilty and his lawyers are hoping to get him into more treatment instead of facing more jail time. But if he is convicted of this offense, Redmond faces up to four years behind bars. And Redmond is not the only person in his family to struggle with drug addiction. His father and siblings have also struggled with substance abuse. Hopefully for Redmond, this will be his last run-in with the law so that he is able to save his own life and not depend on drugs to make it through the days.

For once, both Ryan O’Neal and Tatum O’Neal were present in court to support Redmond when he was put back in jail for violating his probation. Redmond will ultimately need intensive rehabilitation treatment for his heroin addiction and Vista Taos is a great example of a place that can provide solace and therapy for him in order for him to finally conquer his addiction. With his family’s support and the fear of spending his life behind bars, Redmond should clearly see which path he needs to take in order to survive.

If you or a loved one is suffering from substance abuse or heroin addiction, do not hesitate to contact Vista Taos today in order to find out how you can live a better life that is free of drugs and alcohol.

Actress Felicia Pearson of the show The Wire, plans to plead guilty for her involvement in a drug conspiracy case involving the sale of heroin. Ironically, in the HBO show, Felicia plays a character that is a Baltimore drug gang assassin. In reality, she was part of a Baltimore drug gang herself. She was one of 64 individuals who were charged back in March with being part of a conspiracy where they bought heroin from New York and marijuana from California and then sold the drugs on the streets of Baltimore.

Indictments claim that the members involved in the gang were dealt with in violent ways if they did not perform tasks they were given. For her part, Alicia only faces a misdemeanor charge, but what she needs more than anything is help with heroin rehab. Apparently, Alicia claims she grew up in an environment where she was hanging out with the wrong type of people and those people forced her to stay involved in this apparent heroin and marijuana drug ring.

For Alicia, this is not her first run-in with law enforcement. She has previously been arrested in 2008 on minor drug charges but was later found not guilty. Ultimately, Alicia decided to cooperate with police on the drug investigation was a cry for help and the best thing for her would be heroin rehab so she does not fall back into the same circle of people who influenced her in a negative way. Heroin is an ugly addiction that is very difficult to kick and not something to play around with.

Hopefully, Alicia will realize that rehabilitation can start her on the right track to a brighter future and get her away from the bad influences that have brought her down in the past. If you are suffering from an addiction to heroin or any of other type of substance, contact Vista Taos Renewal Center today and find out how you can change your life for the better. Vista Taos is located 85 miles north of Santa Fe in the small township of Taos. It stands to be a peaceful and expert source of finding sobriety.

One of the most highly addictive drugs being used in the United States at this time is Heroin. Stories told by past users usually always start out with explaining their instant addiction after only trying it one time. Heroin addiction is so extreme that a pharmaceutical medication, Suboxone, was created to help heroin addiction users wean themselves off of heroin dependence and lead a drug-free life.

But the drug created to help users kick their heroin addiction is now being used as another source of getting high. Suboxone is being sold on the streets for anywhere from $15 to $25 a pill. The scariest part is those getting caught with the drugs are only getting a slap on the wrist since it is only misdemeanor crime at this point. Heroin addicts are now able to shift from shooting up to popping a pill to get high and they are misusing a prescription meant to help them quit using heroin. However, this pill can be broken down and injected to elevate the effects.

This medication was originally intended to block the effects of opiates while reducing opiate cravings and easing withdrawal symptoms. Unfortunately, it is now being abused much like the US has seen in previous years with the drug, Methadone. The abuse of this drug is popping up all over the United States and most recently in large numbers in Houston, Texas.

If you are taking Suboxone, it is very important to follow all directions given by your doctor to help curb your addiction instead of increasing it, and to make sure you are not causing internal damage to your body through misuse. If you or someone you know is in need of a heroin addiction rehab centeror an addicted to Suboxone, contact Vista Taos Renewal Center today and get the help you need to lead a healthy drug-free life. Vista Taos is located relatively close to Texas, meaning that expert help is just a short trip away.

Canada has turned a new page in the intravenous drug addiction world by hosting a government-sanctioned facility which promotes the “safe” use of needles for those who suffer from heroin addiction. The purpose of this facility, according to government officials, is to provide a safe environment in which heroin and other intravenous drug addicts can have access to clean needles. A simultaneous, secondary purpose for the facility is to provide quicker, more effective support in the case of accidental overdose of addictive substances.

Insite, as the facility is named, provides a clean environment, as well as clean needles, to those with heroin addiction. These individuals are able to come to the facility to inject themselves with their own drugs under the advisory of a staff of nurses trained to deal with overdose situations. Since the introduction of Insite, studies show that the incidence of overdose has decreased by 35 percent in an area that houses one of Canada’s highest rates of heroin addiction.

Along with the amount of fatal overdoses that occur as a result of heroin addiction, the center also serves to decrease many of the problems that arise due to the use of contaminated needles, a common issue, especially among more impoverished drug-laden neighborhoods. Use of contaminated needles and sharing needles with others with heroin addiction can lead to a host of life-threatening problems, most notably blood-borne diseases like HIV and AIDS, as well as Hepatitis B and C. Unfortunately, most people who suffer from heroin addiction do not have the resources for proper medical care and will continue to share contaminated needles with other drug users, further spreading these diseases. This could potentially lead to an HIV or Hepatitis pandemic, threatening the lives of a large population of people, in addition to their use of heroin. Facilities such as Insite hope to decrease, or possibly eliminate, problems such as these in the neighborhoods notorious for heroin addiction and contaminated needle use.

Contact Vista Taos Addiction Center today for information on the different programs available to help you or your loved one battle heroin addiction. Vista Taos is a renewal center, located in Taos, New Mexico. Focusing on more than simple drug and alcohol addiction techniques, this beautiful rehabilitation center is just a short drive from Santa Fe, New Mexico and easily accessible from parts of western Oklahoma and Texas.

Shane Niemeyer was a 27 year old heroin addict sitting in jail awaiting drug charges. He had failed a suicide attempt and was at an all time low. He was put in a straitjacket, leaving his feet to be his hands as he turned the pages of a sports magazine. The information on triathlons intrigued him. He wondered if it could be a good drug rehab for him…to exercise himself out of addiction.

This was in 2003 in an Idaho prison. Early spring of 2004, Shane was released from a prison drug program. He has completed eight Ironman races and nearly finished the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii. In December of 2010, he was released from probation, making it the first time in 15 years (he is now 35 years old) that he is no longer in jail, in drug rehab or having to report to a probation officer for his actions. He feels like a new man.

These races gave him a reason to be focused on a positive source. Drug rehab can counsel you and help you to detox, but once you enter the real world, you have to commit to make a change to your life, or you could end up relapsing. Vista Taos Drug Rehab Clinic in Taos, New Mexico understands the importance of surrounding yourself with positive influences once you leave the rehabilitative environment. In Shane’s case, he found the perfect solution to occupy his time. Triathlons take a lot of time to train for. You are constantly working to better improve your mind and body for the big race. He’s not only helping himself stay sober, he’s helping his health improve dramatically through the strength training, adding years back onto his life that drugs took from him. Let his story be the inspiration you need to dedicate 2011 to fighting your addiction. Call New Mexico’s leading drug rehab facility Vista Taos a call to learn more!

If you haven’t heard of British celebrity Russell Brand, you’re missing out on a funny, charming and very interesting young man.  A few years ago, Russell surfaced in Hollywood and has been a much-loved character actor and stand-up comedian ever since.  He became famous for his quirky character Aldous Snow in the popular US film: “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” and brought back that same character in Get Him to the Greek.  Oddly enough, the character he plays: the drug-seeking, excessive-drinking celebrity is pretty far from the truth today, but not so much a few years back.

For about a decade now, Brand has been clean and sober.  Before that, he was an alcoholic and suffered from heroin addiction.  He now spends a lot of time on the motivational speaking circuit, talking to veterans, children and medical professionals about his alcoholism, his heroin addiction and his all-around dangerous lifestyle he has put behind him.  He says that meditation saved him and continues to be a regular practice in his life.  He is quoted below:

"What it felt like to me was the dissolution of the idea of myself. Like, I felt separateness evaporated, this tremendous sense of oneness," Brand said. "I'm quite a neurotic thinker, quite an adrenalized person. But after meditation, I felt this beautiful serenity and selfless connection. My tendency towards selfishness, I felt that exposed as a superficial and pointless perspective to have."

Vista Taos believes that heroin addiction and other addictions can be best addressed through comprehensive treatment including holistic and complimentary therapies like meditation, in fact it is a recommended practice at the facility.  Meditation has a way to ease a person’s mind and body, helping to alleviate the pain and anxiety that goes with detoxification and withdrawal from drugs and/or alcohol.  The New Mexico based clinic believes that meditation is effective, but also other therapies like equine therapy, massage, acupuncture also provide many benefits.  Brand is speaking the truth when he talks about the importance of meditation in working through heroin addiction.  It can truly make a difference.