Oklahoma Alcohol and Drug Treatment Programs

Although Oklahoma is like other American states in the sense that it is struggling with a substance abuse and addiction crisis, it seems that opioids and methamphetamine are responsible for the greatest number of overdose deaths in the state.

Today, it is estimated that between 600 and 800 people are added to the waiting lists for local addiction treatment centers. While the rest of the country continues grappling with the opioid crisis, many Oklahoma residents have been battling their dependence on drugs like synthetic opioids (such as fentanyl), prescription opioid pain relief medications, and heroin among many other drugs.

Even so, the demand for addiction treatment does not reflect the number of people enrolled into rehab centers. In fact, only about 1 out of every 10 local residents in need of ongoing rehabilitation services for an opioid use disorder get them.

Statistics on Substance Abuse in Oklahoma

Different types of substance use disorders are causing alarming concerns in this state. Like the rest of the United States, Oklahoma has been grappling with an opioid epidemic that has claimed and continues claiming many lives.

Some of the most commonly abused drugs in Oklahoma include:

• Prescription stimulant medications for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (like Ritalin and Adderall)
• Prescription opioid painkillers (such as Vicodin and OxyContin)
• Prescription benzodiazepines (including Xanax and Valium)
• Methamphetamine
• Marijuana
• Heroin
• Crack cocaine
• Cocaine
• Alcohol

In many cases, those who start abusing these drugs often end up with a substance use disorder meaning that they are addicted to them. These substances also increase the user's risks of suffering an overdose or even losing their life.

The Treatment Episode Data Set commonly abbreviated as TEDS in the field of addiction treatment and rehabilitation for 2010 reported that 16932 people checked into alcohol and drug rehabilitation and treatment centers in Oklahoma. Of this number, 38.4 percent were female while the remaining 61.6 percent were male.

The rates of alcohol abuse and dependence in Oklahoma have historically been below or at par with similar national rates. This is across every survey year and for every age group.

However, similar rates of illicit drug abuse and dependence have typically been higher than or at par with similar rates at the national level. In particular, the rates of substance abuse and dependence involving illicit drugs by people above the age of 26 have been alarming.

The N-SSATS or the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services for 2006 also reported that the state had a total of 176 alcohol and drug treatment centers. This was an increase from the 146 such centers that were in existence in Oklahoma in 2002.

According to the States in Brief, Oklahoma saw an increase in the rates of admission for people with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders from 17.8 percent in 1992 to over 32 percent by 2006. This goes to show that more people who abuse drugs and alcohol in the state are developing psychological problems and conditions.

Last but not least, close to 8 percent of local residents reported that they had engaged in illicit substance abuse in the month prior to a 2006 survey. At the time, the total national average was set at 8 percent.

Commonly Abused Substances in Oklahoma

Although drug and alcohol abuse have formed an epidemic across the entire breadth and span of the United States, some drugs seem to be causing more problems in Oklahoma than others. Consider the following:

1. Alcohol

In 2009, a total of 3390 people enrolled into addiction treatment and rehabilitation facilities citing alcohol as their primary drug of abuse. An additional 3304 individuals received similar services for an alcohol use disorder combined with a secondary substance use disorder.

2. Cocaine

The same year, 817 individuals enrolled into rehab centers in Oklahoma for smoking cocaine. An additional 309 people also checked into the same facilities for taking this drug through other routes of administration other than smoking.

3. Marijuana

Oklahoma admitted 3675 people into its addiction treatment and rehabilitation facilities due to marijuana abuse and dependence. Of this number, 22.1 percent were between the ages of 21 and 25.

4. Amphetamines

Crystal meth commonly known as Ice on the streets is the main drug threat that has been plaguing Oklahoma from Mexico. In 2009, for instance, 2965 people received ongoing treatment for being addicted to amphetamines.

5. Prescription Drugs

From 2007 to 2008, the state was ranked first in the entire country in terms of the total number of people who were abusing pain relief medications for non-medical reasons. This rates were particularly high among people above the age of 12 years.

In 2009, a total of 1533 people checked into rehab facilities in Oklahoma for opioid drugs other than heroin. Of this number, 48.2 percent were female while the remaining 51.8 percent were male.

Statistics on Drug Courts, Injuries, and Fatalities in Oklahoma

Drug use was the direct reason that Oklahoma lost 687 lives in 2007. This is in comparison to the 743 lives it lost to motor car accidents and the 482 people who died as a result of incidents involving firearms the same year.

Between 2007 and 2009, also, the total number of meth laboratories that were seized in the state increased by 283 percent from about 93 incidents to a total of 356 incidents.

At the moment, Mexican DTOs or drug trafficking organizations are the main supplies of methamphetamine, black tar heroin, commercial grade marijuana, and powder cocaine in Oklahoma. They mostly supply it in wholesale quantities and use cell heads in Oklahoma City and Dallas to manage their narcotic distributions in individual markets within the state.

As such, it is not entirely surprising that the total rates of deaths induced by these drugs among the many others that are being abused by the day continue exceeding national averages.

Drugs and Health in Oklahoma

According to the 2018 report released by the Commission on Opioid Abuse in Oklahoma, the following findings were brought to light:

• The number of deaths linked to a drug overdose rose by 91 percent in the past 15 years; they continue rising to this day
• Oklahoma loses close 1,000 lives every year to drug overdose incidents

At the moment, methamphetamine is the leading cause of death in the state while Oxycodone (or OxyContin) comes in the second place.

Meth is the number one cause of drug-related deaths in Oklahoma. Oxycodone (OxyContin) is second.

Drug abuse also leads to a wide variety of health problems in the state. According to the CDC or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the Cimarron and Jefferson counties of Oklahoma were ranked in the top 5 percentile in terms of hepatitis C and HIV outbreaks linked to substance use.

This is because of the relatively high rates of intravenous drug use in these areas which increase the risk of contracting and spreading these life threatening conditions. Even so, it is surprising that the state is yet to implement a working needle exchange program.

The Commission on Opioid Abuse in Oklahoma also cautioned that over 1300 newborns were exposed to intoxicating and mind altering substances and as a result immediately went into withdrawal mode when they came into the world. This means that new residents of the state are increasingly being born with a neonatal abstinence syndrome.

Addiction Prevention and Treatment in Oklahoma

But what is the state doing to counter the adverse effects and consequences of drug and alcohol abuse among its residents? In 2017, the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse made cutbacks in the number of outpatient substance abuse and mental health treatment programs in Oklahoma. This move effectively reduced or completely eliminated this form of addiction rehabilitation for more than 189000 local residents including those who required ongoing therapy for an opioid use disorder.

Even so, the Commission on Opioid Abuse recommended some changes to the laws of the state to better fight the opioid crisis sweeping through Oklahoma. It, for instance, suggested that Good Samaritan Laws be put in place to protect those who reported drug overdose incidents.

Other initiatives being undertaken to reduce and prevent substance abuse problems in Oklahoma include:

• Think Smart Oklahoma
• Naloxone Project

On other hand, people struggling with addiction in the state can now get help by enrolling into any of the treatment and rehabilitation centers found here. By choosing individualized addiction treatment programs, you can receive the personalized and customized therapy required to help you start rebuilding your life away from alcohol and drugs.

These programs also provide a wide variety of services on different modules of treatment, including intervention, aftercare, counseling, therapy, detoxification, and inpatient/outpatient rehabilitation and everything in between.

Overall, therefore, if you have a substance use disorder or a drug and/or alcohol problem, you should try one of the centers that have treatment programs. They can push you from your addiction to a new lifestyle of health, wellness, and productivity one that you will enjoy more than drugs and alcohol.