The state of Arkansas is experiencing drug problems the likes of which it has never dealt with before. Arkansas is right in the center of a drug smuggling route that leads out of Mexico, so don’t think that drug abuse in Arkansas is strictly an inner-city problem. According to the DEA, gang involvement in drug sales and distribution has made drugs like meth and cocaine more widely available. Of all illicit drugs in Arkansas, methamphetamine is the biggest problem, followed by cocaine and prescription drugs like Oxycontin and Valium. The chart below provides a breakdown of admissions to Arkansas’ drug and alcohol treatment centers.

Office of National Drug Control Policy, Drug Policy Information Clearinghouse

State of Arkansas Profile of Drug Indicators

December 2007

The huge rise in the use and availability of methamphetamine is a concern because meth is one of the most addictive and destructive of all illicit drugs. A family in Arkansas seeking treatment for meth addiction has some options to consider. As of 2006, the last year that data is available from, there were fifty treatment centers in Arkansas, a mixture of public and privately-run facilities. Of these, only two offer treatment for opioid addiction, and only eighteen doctors were licensed to dispense buprenorphine, a drug that treats addiction to painkillers such as Vicodin. Although this limits options a bit, people shouldn’t be afraid to seek treatment at an appropriate center because they live too far away. Over seventy percent of Arkansas’ drug and alcohol treatment centers are at least partly funded by the public, so services should be available no matter where in the state a person lives. If you are in need of drug or alcohol treatment in Arkansas, don’t let distance be the deciding factor.

Although there are quite a few outpatient drug treatment programs in Arkansas, these may not be enough for every addict. There are twenty (as of 2006) residential treatment facilities in Arkansas, for people with very severe addictions. These offer a more tailor-made treatment program, and can make it easier for the addict to recover because they are removed from the stress and the environment that led to their drug use.

A survey done in 2008 that involved almost a hundred thousand of Arkansas’ children, almost eighty percent of high school seniors said that they’d used alcohol, and almost half admitted to using marijuana. Most kids use marijuana at younger ages than they do alcohol. Many lifelong substance abuse problems have their roots in adolescence, and a child exposed to drugs or alcohol before they turn 14 stands a much greater chance of developing an addiction. However, the average age of someone admitted to a drug treatment center in Arkansas is 39- that’s a long time to waste on drug and alcohol addiction. Drug and alcohol dependency don’t have to be a life sentence. With prompt attention, proper care and treatment, and ongoing support, most drug addictions can be controlled, if not cured.

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