A variety of substance use and abuse issues can be found in Austin that result in part from the city’s demographics, location and culture.
Austin’s proximity to the U.S.-Mexico border and an interstate that connects multiple cities and states with large populations is one reason substance abuse is prominent in the area, said Dr. Jane Maxwell, a substance abuse research professor at The University of Texas.
“I-35 is a major trafficking route,” Maxwell said. “The bulk of the drugs come from Mexico.”
Although marijuana is still coming from Mexico, a recent drought and gang warfare in the country has decreased production and caused users in Texas to look elsewhere, she said.
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“We’ve seen an increase in homegrown marijuana here in Texas,” she said. “We’re getting to see some of the really potent cannabis from Colorado coming in, so the market is changing.”
Synthetic drugs and marijuana imitations are also becoming more prominent in the area, she said. Teens and young adults—two large age groups in Austin—are the most likely to use drugs, Maxwell said.
College towns and cities typically have a wider array of drugs being abused, said Dr. Kim Kjome, an in-patient psychiatrist at Seton’s Shoal Creek Hospital. In Austin those substances are typically marijuana, alcohol, cocaine, methamphetamines, heroin, synthetic drugs, ecstasy or Molly as well as prescription drugs abused as recreational drugs.
“There are a lot of people here in town who want to use drugs because they’re young, they’re exploring things,” Kjome said. “College campuses are typically areas where drugs are more commonly used.”
Although people who use substances are not always addicts or dependent on drugs, an environment in which alcohol and drugs are used more often could put certain people who are more likely to become addicts at risk, Kjome said.
“There are certain groups of people that have a predisposition to becoming addicted. … And when they try drugs, sometimes those people have a bigger problem stopping,” she said.
Although younger people are more likely to use recreational drugs, Maxwell said older people typically take more medications and visit doctors more regularly as they age. Having pain pills or other medications prescribed can put some older individuals at risk of accidentally overdosing.
“Drug abuse among the elderly is a serious problem,” Maxwell said. “It’s not as much a law enforcement problem as a medical problem in terms of overdoses or getting too many pain pills from too many doctors.”
Dr. Matt Masters of Austin Addiction Medicine Associates said the No. 2 cause of accidental death in people ages 15 to 45 is an overdose of opiate drugs, which are used to treat pain. However, young people are abusing pain pills less because of decreased access as well as higher costs, Maxwell said. Instead, some of those users have started turning to heroin, she said.
Although there is a variety of treatment styles and options in Austin, most experiencing an addiction do not desire help until they have hit rock bottom, Masters said.
“If drinking and drugging was still working then they wouldn’t want to fix it so … the admission ticket to recovery is pain, and that’s it—that’s the bottom line. When someone gets in enough pain they will [seek treatment],” Masters said.
Getting better is not simple, Kjome said.
“People who didn’t imagine it would happen to them, it happened to them,” Kjome said. “It doesn’t matter how rich or poor you are, where you came from, what race you are, man or woman, it can happen.”
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drug and alcohol abuse statistics[/caption]
“We’ve seen an increase in homegrown marijuana here in Texas,” she said. “We’re getting to see some of the really potent cannabis from Colorado coming in, so the market is changing.”
Synthetic drugs and marijuana imitations are also becoming more prominent in the area, she said. Teens and young adults—two large age groups in Austin—are the most likely to use drugs, Maxwell said.
College towns and cities typically have a wider array of drugs being abused, said Dr. Kim Kjome, an in-patient psychiatrist at Seton’s Shoal Creek Hospital. In Austin those substances are typically marijuana, alcohol, cocaine, methamphetamines, heroin, synthetic drugs, ecstasy or Molly as well as prescription drugs abused as recreational drugs.
“There are a lot of people here in town who want to use drugs because they’re young, they’re exploring things,” Kjome said. “College campuses are typically areas where drugs are more commonly used.”
Although people who use substances are not always addicts or dependent on drugs, an environment in which alcohol and drugs are used more often could put certain people who are more likely to become addicts at risk, Kjome said.
“There are certain groups of people that have a predisposition to becoming addicted. … And when they try drugs, sometimes those people have a bigger problem stopping,” she said.
Although younger people are more likely to use recreational drugs, Maxwell said older people typically take more medications and visit doctors more regularly as they age. Having pain pills or other medications prescribed can put some older individuals at risk of accidentally overdosing.
“Drug abuse among the elderly is a serious problem,” Maxwell said. “It’s not as much a law enforcement problem as a medical problem in terms of overdoses or getting too many pain pills from too many doctors.”
Dr. Matt Masters of Austin Addiction Medicine Associates said the No. 2 cause of accidental death in people ages 15 to 45 is an overdose of opiate drugs, which are used to treat pain. However, young people are abusing pain pills less because of decreased access as well as higher costs, Maxwell said. Instead, some of those users have started turning to heroin, she said.
Although there is a variety of treatment styles and options in Austin, most experiencing an addiction do not desire help until they have hit rock bottom, Masters said.
“If drinking and drugging was still working then they wouldn’t want to fix it so … the admission ticket to recovery is pain, and that’s it—that’s the bottom line. When someone gets in enough pain they will [seek treatment],” Masters said.
Getting better is not simple, Kjome said.
“People who didn’t imagine it would happen to them, it happened to them,” Kjome said. “It doesn’t matter how rich or poor you are, where you came from, what race you are, man or woman, it can happen.”
View a map of local health care providers
