Former pastor on drug addiction rehabilitation programme

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by Change | 13 Apr 2010

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An ex-pastor in the US is undergoing an addiction rehabilitation programme after developing a painkiller habit.

The importance of cocaine addiction treatment has been highlighted by a former pastor in the US, who last summer was facing a 20-year prison sentence for forging medication prescriptions.

Some two decades after overcoming a cocaine addiction, 43-year-old Shane West developed an addiction to painkillers Lortab and Vicodin, both of which are prescription medications, TheLeafChronice.com reports.

Despite successfully beating his addiction to cocaine, drug addiction counsellors could have helped the Kentucky resident prevent any further drug habits by initiating coping strategies.

Mr West's addiction to painkillers developed after he underwent gastric bypass surgery to help him lose weight. The procedure resulted in a number of complications and he was soon receiving liquid Lortab to combat the pain.

"Those were the darkest hours of my life," he explained to the newspaper.

"I was supposed to be strong but I wasn't strong enough to be without medication."

Mr West became addicted to painkillers after starting to rely on the medication, and he began copying valid prescriptions over a period of around three months.

He later admitted his guilt to four charges of obtaining controlled substances by fraud and is undertaking a programme of addiction rehabilitation as part of his sentence.

According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, cocaine use in America peaked in the 1980s before gradually declining in the early 90s. Since then, however, its use has been gradually on the rise.

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