Addiction

Nurses serve as the backbone of the healthcare system, providing essential care, support and comfort to patients. However, the demanding nature of their job, coupled with easy access to medications, can sometimes lead to a serious and often overlooked issue: substance abuse. This problem is not unique to any one location or healthcare setting. It’s prevalent all over the nation, including in Augusta, Georgia. Understanding the causes, consequences and solutions to substance abuse among nurses is crucial for maintaining the integrity of the healthcare system and ensuring the well-being of those who dedicate their lives to caring for others. Causes [...]

Like many states in the U.S., Georgia has been grappling with significant drug abuse issues. The situation is particularly pronounced in Atlanta — the state's largest city — where the urban environment and diverse population combine to create a unique drug landscape. Understanding the extent of drug abuse in Georgia, particularly in Atlanta, requires a look at various factors including statistics, types of drugs commonly abused and ongoing efforts to combat this issue. Drug Abuse in Georgia Georgia has seen a rise in drug abuse cases over the years, reflecting broader national trends. The state has been heavily impacted by [...]

Living with chronic pain can be incredibly challenging and a lifestyle that causes a significant decrease in overall quality of life. For this reason, or even to help address moments of high-intensity pain – such as when recovering from surgery – opioid pain medications are often prescribed. Oxycodone and hydrocodone, two commonly prescribed opioids, have many similarities in their effectiveness on the body, but both rank high in their addiction potential. To avoid the possibility of abuse, it is crucial to take medications like these under the close supervision of a medical doctor to reduce the risk of addiction as [...]

Some experiences of pain are too acute and intense to effectively manage with over-the-counter pain medication. This is often the case for those who are recovering from surgery, who struggle with chronic severe pain and who need time to recover from an injury. This is when strong pain medications like opioids are most often prescribed. In the absence of any other solution for the pain, medical doctors frequently reach for opioids to help. However, this practice has seen a large amount of negative results, as opioids like oxycodone and OxyContin are highly addictive and can cause significant harm. What is [...]

Xylazine is a pharmaceutical compound primarily used as a veterinary sedative and analgesic. Originating from the class of drugs known as alpha-2 adrenergic agonists, xylazine is commonly employed in animal medicine to calm animals, facilitate surgical procedures and manage pain. Its effects are like those of other sedatives such as clonidine and dexmedetomidine, making it a valuable tool in veterinary practice. What is Xylazine Used For? In veterinary settings, xylazine sedates large animals like horses, cattle and other livestock. It provides muscle relaxation and pain relief, making it easier to perform medical procedures or surgeries on these animals. The drug's [...]

At Bluff Augusta, we seek to provide treatment to anyone who finds themselves struggling with mental health and/or addiction. As a Georgia-based treatment facility, we pay special attention to our residents, while extending a welcoming hand to anyone who may be seeking our services from out of state. As a result of this, we take into consideration the statistics of addiction and abuse in our state. While all states in the country have been affected by the opioid crisis and the influx of illicit substances like fentanyl, we want to focus a little more intentionally on the impact in Georgia [...]

Stigma and Addiction: Why Does it Matter? An astounding 46.3 million Americans fought addictions in 2021 alone. That is nearly 17 percent of the entire population of the United States. Surprisingly, however, despite the massive amounts of people battling addictions, countless people feel marginalized and ashamed of their struggle, making the path to recovery increasingly difficult to bear. How is it that despite the multitudes suffering together, people feel so alone? Cultural and systematic stigmas surrounding addiction and substance use disorders may have something to do with it. A stigma is a set of negative beliefs, thoughts or attitudes that [...]

Can you remember a time when you maybe sprained your wrist, tweaked your ankle or had a headache that just wouldn’t go away, so you took an extra Advil? Maybe you can also remember one or two instances where an intense emotional event — whether traumatic (like the death of a family member) or simply intense (like an argument with a partner) — led you to have more than just one drink. These are both examples of self-medicating, and they can occur in a variety of circumstances and with all sorts of substances, including those as dangerous as fentanyl. Unfortunately, [...]

One of the biggest challenges that recovery communities face are stigmas of addiction. This isn’t a new problem, but it’s one that could be efficiently eliminated if more people received a basic addiction education. “Stigma” stems from the Latin term stigmat, meaning “to mark” or “to brand,” but is ultimately rooted in the Greek word stizein, also meaning “to mark” or “to tattoo/puncture.” Nowadays, stigma has evolved to be synonymous with phrases like stereotyping, labeling and discrimination. Rates of the stigma of addiction are most notably high in the general public but exist even within all levels of healthcare, including [...]