Ask children about the first thing that comes to their mind when they hear the words ‘drug addict’ and ‘rehab.’ They will likely tell you that drug addicts are bad people—deranged criminals with no hope of salvation. Their parents would have told them to avoid people who came out from rehab. So, children will have negative thoughts about those people as well. The dehumanization of drug addicts is so pervasive that it permeates the home. The way how media and popular culture depict drug addiction contributes to dehumanization.
Media oversimplifies the drug problem and instills specific stereotypes of drug addicts, according to Liverpool John Moores University researcher Stuart Taylor. It does not help that the government’s drug policy treats addiction as a criminal instead of a medical problem. Both media and government preclude a more holistic public discussion of drug addiction. In effect, these institutions relegate drug addicts to the sidelines.
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The killings of thousands of drug addicts in the Philippines are one way to demonstrate what would happen if US educators would allow children to swallow drug stereotypes hook, line, and sinker. As educators, we have to enlighten our children on how to properly view drug rehabilitation and drug addiction.
Inpatient vs. Outpatient Rehab
The public doesn’t understand the importance of drug rehab in the first place. This is why people who underwent drug rehabilitation face so much stigma. Teachers should show that drug rehab is similar to going to the hospital when we are sick. Thus, there is nothing wrong with going to rehab, especially when it is necessary. When patients commit themselves to a drug rehabilitation center, they undergo what is called ‘inpatient drug rehab.’
While inpatient drug rehab is what comes to mind when the word rehab is mentioned, children should know that there is also ‘outpatient drug rehabilitation.’ Just like how people don’t need to stay in the hospital for all kinds of illnesses, not all forms of drug rehab require going to an inpatient rehabilitation facility. There is also what is called ‘wilderness rehab,’ a variety of inpatient addiction treatment where nature itself is the setting instead of a typical hospital environment.
All of these methods offer short-term drug rehab and long-term drug rehab. The length of rehab depends on the needs and characteristics of the patient. All aim to end a patient’s addiction and reduce the chances of relapse.
Why do some patients need to undergo inpatient drug rehab?
Inpatient drug rehab takes a patient away from their home and their work without feeling like a prisoner. In the process, inpatient rehab centers provide a safe and comfortable environment to reduce a patient’s stress. A person becomes a drug addict not because it ‘simply happens.’ Stress triggers people to use drugs as a form of escape from their problems. Outpatient rehab might not work if there are stressors in the patient’s home or place of work that can cause them to use drugs again.
The best inpatient rehab centers apply a holistic approach to treating a patient’s drug addiction. A holistic approach seeks to detoxify the patient, improve their behavior, and develop their skills. The rehab program should also help them discover their talents and interests. Through inpatient treatment, drug patients can gradually integrate themselves with society instead of isolating themselves.
How young people should view addiction and rehabilitation
Educators need to separate drug addiction from the person who suffers from it. Children should know that drug addicts are still human beings who have rights as everyone else. We should make our students understand why drug addicts need rehabilitation to recover from their suffering. Hence, we should work to remove the stigma associated with drug rehab. When drug rehab patients feel that society still accepts them despite their past, they can move on and pursue their dreams.
Children should also learn to think critically. As educators, we should teach them how to study drug issues more in-depth. They should not content themselves with what they already know or what the media or government tells them. They must realize that they have to take an active part in shaping discourse and policy that is more just and humane towards drug addicts.
Not just one single war, individual, leader, or group can beat drugs. Hence, we should also underscore the importance of tackling drug addiction at its root causes. In the process, children will understand the need for collective action and social change to solve drug addiction.
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