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Tubes were attached to him. He looked
vacant;' Buckner said. "I took one look at his
eyes, and I knew he was brain dead:'
Josh never regained consciousness and
died the following day. Buckner was hor-
rified to learn the details leading up to his
death: After being found on the sidewalk by
passersby, who called an ambulance, he was
admitted to the hospital as a "John Doe:' His
wallet had been stolen and his cell phone
was missing. The next day, when Andrew
realized his brother had not come home the
night before, he began an anxious search
that ended at Josifs bedside. He identified his
brother to the hospital personnel and called
their mother.
"On July 19, my life was fine; on July 20,
it was starting to splinter; and on July 21,
it was torn apart," said Buckner, who had
lived in West Bloomfield before moving to
Cincinnati. "This was a kid that was so loved,
who touched more lives than anyone can
possibly imagine:'

Deadly Combination
Adderall, sometimes referred to as the "study
drug; is being used with alarming frequency
by teens and young adults to counter the
effects of alcohol and minimize the symp-
toms of being drunk.
When the drug is taken by those who do
not have ADHD, even without the addition
of alcohol, the results can be dangerous.
Because Adderall is a stimulant and alco-
hol is a depressant, taking them together
poses serious perils that include risky
behavior, alcohol poisoning and other life-
threatening symptoms, such as increased
body temperature, heart rate and blood
pressure, and other serious cardiac prob-
lems.
Buckner was shocked to learn from her

8 January 15 • 2015

Young people are increasingly at risk
from recreational drugs and alcohol.

Ronelle Grier I Contributing Writer

son Andrew that snorting Adderall while
drinking was commonplace among young
adults.
"I had no idea; it knocked me for a major
loop," she said. "The kids know, but the
adults are clueless. Because some of the kids
take [Adderall] for ADHD, they're not afraid
of it:'
Dr. Michael Feld, a doctor in the emergen-
cy department of Henry Ford Hospital
in West Bloomfield, said
he commonly sees
patients who are having
serious reactions from
it illegal drugs, often in con-
junction with alcohol.
"I've seen all sorts of
\
combinations:'
Feld said.
, 4
"People
are
coming
into
Dr. Michael
the
ER
who
don't
under-
Feld
stand the ramifications:'

Susan's story
For Susan (not her real name), addiction
and, ultimately, recovery was a family affair.
Susan recently celebrated 23 years in recov-
ery from alcoholism, which ran in her Irish-
Catholic family. Her former husband, Steven
(not his real name), who grew up in what she
describes as "a typical nice Jewish family:' is
in recovery from addiction to alcohol and
various narcotic drugs.
Their three sons, now in their mid- to late-
20s, all have struggled with drug and/or alco-
hol abuse beginning in their pre-teen years.
"When they were 11 and 12, I found a can

of lilac-scented spray in their rooms:' Susan
said. "They smoked pot in middle school,
drank alcohol and smoked cigarettes at bar
and bat mitzvahs:'
Eventually the boys began abusing oxyco-
done, a potent and highly addictive prescrip-
tion pain killer. When they moved in with
their father after Susan and Steven divorced,
their drug use escalated.
"There was less supervision and account-
ability:' Susan said. "Their grades went
down; it was heartbreaking and devastating
to watch:'
What followed was a long and rocky jour-
ney that included stints in various rehabilita-
tion centers, several outpatient programs, 12
Step meetings and an ample dose of tough
love, which Susan found difficult but neces-
sary. Finally the healing process began.
Today, her oldest son is completing his
fourth year of dental school, and the two
younger boys are receiving Methadone
through supervised medical programs.
"It was the only viable option," said Susan,
who initially had reservations about the use
of maintenance drugs such as Methadone. "I
had to get over my fears and prejudice about
Methadone because it saved their lives:'
Since Steven began his own recovery
program, his relationship with his sons has
improved dramatically.
"It's a beautiful thine said Susan, who
spreads her message of hope and recovery
to those still struggling by giving talks at
local 12 Step meetings. "Addiction is a family
disease, but together we can change it into a

family recovery:'

Heroin: Startling Statistics
The use of heroin, especially among teens
and young adults, has risen alarmingly over
the past several years. The number of people
who received medical treatment for heroin
abuse or dependence doubled from 214,000
in 2002 to 467,000 in 2012, according to sta-
tistics from the National Institutes of Health
(NIH).
"The age for drinking and drugging is
dropping; said Rabbi Yarden Blumstein
of Friendship House in
West Bloomfield, a pro-
gram of Friendship Circle
of Michigan that provides
support for Jewish indi-
viduals and families
struggling with drug and
alcohol abuse and other
life crises. "A lot of high
Yarden
school freshman are doing
Blumstein
what used to be done by
seniors:'
The same NIH report showed the number
of admissions to publicly funded treatment
facilities for heroin was higher than the
admissions for all other drugs combined.
It was also noted that the actual number
of heroin abusers may be even higher than
indicated because many of the new users are
young suburbanites covered by private health
insurance and, therefore, not included in the
study.
Increased use of this dangerous drug
means a corresponding rise in the num-
ber of overdoses, many of which are fatal.
According to Feld, the majority of overdoses
are accidental, and many of them occur
when someone relapses after not having used
for several months.
"The drug is stronger than they thought,
especially after a period of abstinence he

Tragic Reality on page 10