In browsing articles on current methadone treatment, I came across a brief one in the United Kingdom's Daily Record specifically from the Scottish news section. The article contained a number of derogatory quotes (in regard to methadone) from Scotland's Maxie Richards. Ms. Richards runs a foundation for addicted people in recovery.

One quote from Ms. Richards pertaining to methadone included: "To me it represents a hopeless road, a road to nowhere." Another comment was "I think it is such a waste to let young people spend years on methadone because we don't think there's any hope for them." Ms. Richards is openly critical of the government's support of methadone treatment programs.

Her words "a hopeless road" are not a fitting description of the life enhancing benefits of methadone in treating addiction. To the contrary, methadone is often the single most beneficial intervention for someone struggling ...

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I just read a news article about a proposed methadone clinic that is being met with community resistance, this time in Dade County, Georgia. The county is located in the northwestern tip of the state, and would provide treatment to people living in north Georgia, southern Tennessee, and northeastern Alabama.

Somewhat disturbing were several comments by readers of the article in which the proposed clinic was forecasted to be harmful to the community. One person wrote that clinics "do not help people", and another writer stated that the clinic "would bring more unsavory characters into the county."

A second article on the Dade County clinic, with an accompanying news video, showed an interview with a local store manager in a neighboring county. This store manager is located across the street from an existing methadone clinic. In the interview, the man said "Keep you eyes open and your ears open and ...

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I had the pleasant good fortune of seeing a former client the other day who had entered methadone treatment for his opiate addiction about 7 years ago. I remember him struggling for the first 2 years with relapses (mostly to cocaine, not opiates) and our clinic offering a variety of different treatments to help him get on track.

Due to a string of drug tests always positive for illicit substances, we were critically close to detoxing him from our methadone program. As you might imagine, he was a daily prisoner in his addiction and the pieces of the recovery puzzle were just not connecting yet in a way that worked for him.

As a last chance run in formal treatment, he attended a Day Treatment program that we offered which provided group and individual counseling, psycho-educational classes, and activity therapy Monday through Friday from 8:00 am - 3:30 pm ...

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The amount of misinformation that is circulated in regard to methadone is pretty astounding. Methadone is truly one of the most well-researched addiction treatment medications in history, and is widely accepted as the most efficacious opioid addiction treatment ever.

Today, I reviewed a number of videos on YouTube based on the search word "methadone", and found a plethora of wild rants, exaggerations, and obvious paranoia ... often expressed by local community citizens who seemed determined to prevent a methadone clinic from operating in their locale. I wonder how many of these people would feel that way if it were their daughter that needed the clinic, or their best friend.

As an addiction treatment professional who has witnessed firsthand methadone's dramatic life changing benefits, I can only shake my head at the irrational beliefs, and mean-spirited condemnation, held by everyday people. Many of these folks seem to have good intentions, but ...

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