Pubdate: Sat, 09 Dec 2006
Source: Minneapolis Star-Tribune (MN)
Copyright: 2006 Star Tribune
Contact:  http://www.startribune.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/266
Author: Warren Wolfe, Star Tribune

FOR AGING DRUG USERS, IT'S HARD TO KICK THE HABITS

As Baby Boomers Get Older, More of Them Are Seeking Help For 
Addiction to Illegal Drugs.

It's the generation that came of age in the  permissive 1960s and 
'70s, part of the counterculture  revolution that embraced the mantra 
"turn on, tune in,  drop out."

Now they are graying -- but some are still having a  hard time 
breaking away from or resisting marijuana,  cocaine and other illegal drugs.

A national drug survey by the federal government, for  example, has 
found that between 2002 and 2005, use of  illegal drugs fell 15 
percent among teenagers, but  increased 63 percent among people in their 50s.

"The good news is that they may seek us out -- heck,  they're already 
beginning to," said Dr. Marvin Seppala,  medical director at 
Minnesota's premier treatment  center, the Hazelden Foundation near 
Center City. "The  bad news is I'm not sure we're ready for them."

For older Minnesotans, the roads to drug abuse vary:  It's a longtime 
habit they can't shake. Or a step they  take to ease the loneliness, 
boredom or physical pain  old age that can bring

In Minnesota, treatment for illegal drug use among baby  boomers -- 
born between 1946 and 1964 -- rose 5  percent. For those older than 
that, it rose 17 percent.

Among those who started using illegal drugs years ago,  "some did 
well in life, some not so well," said  Minneapolis drug counselor 
Judie Heckenliable. "But now  they're aging."

'A Buffet of Drugs'

As a college student in Iowa in the early 1970s, Ava  majored in 
"sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll -- especially  drugs."Pot has been my 
friend, my good buddy since I  was 16," she said. "When I'm using, I 
like the way it  makes me feel, relaxed, content, happy. Maybe 
too  relaxed. When I'm not using, I realize that's one  reason I'm 
essentially poor."

Like other illegal-drug users interviewed for this  article, Ava 
doesn't want her neighbors to know of her  drug use, and realizes she 
could be arrested. She  agreed to describe her life only if she were 
not fully  identified.

"I used to think this was a victimless crime, but it's  not. I'm a 
victim," she said. "They say you don't  really get hooked on pot, not 
like on meth or heroin.  But I know I'm addicted."

Marijuana has been her mainstay through the years, but  she tried "a 
buffet of drugs" while in college. She  quickly learned to avoid 
mescaline, LSD, even alcohol  because they made her feel out of 
control or depressed.

Divorced, she moved from the Twin Cities several years  ago to escape 
easy access to marijuana and to build a  new life.

It's A Work in Progress

"I'm poor and I hate it. Some days I feel suicidal,  like I'll never 
get out of this," Ava said. "I don't  like being this stereotype of a 
pot-smoking grandma.  But smoking helps me forget for a while."

On many days she'd like to quit. "Right now I've been  out of pot for 
a couple days and I'm OK," she said.  "But before Christmas, I'm 
driving in to see my dealer  in the Cities. He gives me credit."

Loneliness and Pain

Like most people in treatment, older drug abusers  rarely seek help 
on their own.

Counselors say they often are being led into treatment  by their 
adult children, who sometimes demand they get  clean before they can 
see grandchildren.

"Some are aging hippies who never stopped using  alcohol, marijuana 
and other drugs. Some got into  recreational use of cocaine or crack 
or meth later in  life," said Heckenliable, lead counselor at 
Fairview-University Medical Center's chemical  dependency program. 
"And some started using as a way of  self-medicating, to erase 
emotional or physical pain."

Retired people living alone are especially vulnerable  because 
they've lost their normal behavior regulators,  she said. "They no 
longer have the job, they may have  lost a spouse and friends, and 
they can become lonely  and depressed."

Fairview offers six residential groups for alcoholics  and other drug 
users. Counselor Lou Bardal leads one  group for about a dozen people 
age 55 and older -- the  only such residential group in the state. 
It's not  cheap, about $9,400 for the 20-day program, usually  paid 
by insurance or Medicaid.

"Alcohol is the primary drug of choice, but we see  everything," said 
Bardal, who has led the seniors  program for eight years.

Bardal and Heckenliable have counseled scores of older  addicts, some 
several times.

Specialized Treatment

Programs such as Fairview's are rare, said Seppala,  Hazelden's 
medical director. "The treatment can be very  effective, but the sad 
thing is, there are very few  treatment programs geared to work with 
older people."

Counselors deal with older addicts differently than  younger ones, he 
said. The recovery goes at a slower  pace for older people, and often 
includes psychological  and medical help. Hazelden may start 
specialized  residential treatment in Florida for older people, a 
service it offered through the Hanley Center in Florida  until they 
severed their relationship a few years ago.

"For older people, treatment works best when it's in a  medical 
setting -- like Fairview offers -- because  older people often have 
complicating medical and mental  health issues," Seppala said.

"The thing is, we've got a big chunk of baby boomers  coming down the 
age pipeline, and we need to start  paying more attention," he said. 
"Even if the rates of  addiction weren't rising in that group, the 
sheer  numbers tell us that a bunch of them will be asking for  help."

But not 54-year-old Charlie, a southern Minnesota  factory worker who 
said he smokes a few joints nearly  every night, with the "very rare 
recreational hit" of  meth, PCP or some other illegal drug.

"I've smoked pot since I was 14, and I lead a good  life," he said. 
"But I'm careful. I don't work or drive  when I smoke. I want to keep 
my job and my license.

"I used to party a lot, drugs and alcohol. I don't do  that anymore. 
Now me and the wife just smoke a little  weed," he said. "Getting 
older, I've gotten a little  wiser about drugs."
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MAP posted-by: Elaine