To say there is a problem with opioid addiction and drug abuse in the city of Dunkirk and the county of Chautauqua may seem redundant and possibly even an understatement, but there is a problem and we need to address it as the epidemic it truly is.

Mike Tramuta, alcohol drug counselor for the past 25 years as well as a representative of the Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy Group for 31 years has a great deal of experience when it comes to dealing with this problem; Mike is a recovering alcoholic who has celebrated 32 years of sobriety. “Alcohol and marijuana are gateway drugs, pure and simple,” he said. “For the casual user who believes otherwise, that’s there choice, but for the individual who has a predisposition to addictive behaviors and substances, alcohol and marijuana are just the beginning.”

The National Institute of Drug Abuse has reported that (based on their research) humans have an increased vulnerability for addiction to other substances when they begin use of cannabinoids and alcohol during adolescence. Further, they found that their research revealed a consistency with other studies determining marijuana as a gateway drug. This claim goes to the hypothesis that if you want to believe something, you can usually find a way to prove you are right, even when credible research shows otherwise. Thus, the many individuals who use marijuana disagree since not everyone goes on to use “harder” substances. The same can be argued for those who use alcohol and nicotine.

So how do we combat this problem that is killing our kids?

This Thursday, Tramuta and a panel of professional counselors and social workers representing the “Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy Group” will present “Community Action Prevention for Parents and Kids against Alcohol and other Drugs Program.” This program is open to the public and will focus on young people between the ages of 10-13 along with their parents and will address issues of identification of drug abuse, intervention, recovery steps and support for the user and their family. When there is a drug addicted individual, they are not the only ones affected drug addiction takes on a life of its own, and as many as 50 family members and medical personnel are impacted by the users struggle.

Just as drug addiction is not new to our area, neither is REBT. REBT began 25 years ago with the mission of working directly with the mental health and addiction rehabilitation programs throughout the county, and has seen groups of 35-50 individuals weekly since that time. Through the cooperation of the Dunkirk school Superintendent, Gary Cerne, and the Mayor of Dunkirk, Willie Rosas, however, this is a first in what will become a once a month program. (Thursday’s program will be in the court room at Dunkirk High School’s auditorium between 7 to 8:15 p.m. State Sen. Cathy Young has endorsed the program and is expected to attend as well.)

When asked what REBT sees as the biggest problem in our area, Tramuta said, “The biggest problem in our area is in the high school with marijuana and alcohol. This leads to the harder stuff and right now we know there are approximately 50 percent of our high school kids using heroin, which they can buy for $5 to $10 a bag.” He went on to say, “Heroin is the really big problem in Dunkirk, and if it is laced with fentanyl it is lethal!”

There are not enough treatment centers in Chautauqua County, and we are desperately in need of more. Young is working on this with the recently announced state funding, but it won’t happen overnight. “I know an individual who has been saved by Narcan 12 times, and he is still using,” Tramuta said. “As for those proponents of opening up ‘shooting galleries,’ that isn’t the answer. We need to help the user overcome their addiction, not provide a place for them to continue it. Right now, an addict can go to the Police Department and tell them they need help, and they will get it in the way of treatment to include supervised medicated safe withdrawal, counseling and a recovery program,” he said. “But it needs to be addressed for what it is!”

“Parents, grandparents who have been prescribed opioids such as hydrocodone, codeine, morphine, fentanyl, hydro-morphone, vicodin, ozycontin, and many others need to be aware of the dangers these drugs can present,” he said, “and they need to keep them in a place that is not easily accessible to someone for whom they are not prescribed.”

So what does one say to the user? Tramuta was clear, “My message to the person who is using or thinking about using these drugs is to understand that people can change their thinking if they want to; it is hard, yes, but not impossible. The user needs to make up their mind that they want to be clean, they can be clean and they are clean. They have to be honest with themselves! They have to believe they can do it. Through the Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy Group, there is help, not enabling.”

If you are the parent of a young person who is struggling with the possibility of becoming a user of any of the drugs mentioned above, please attend the REBT meeting at the Dunkirk High School Auditorium Thursday, from 7 to 8:15 p.m. – don’t go it alone. This epidemic – one way or another, affects us all.

Have a great day.

Vicki Westling is a Dunkirk resident. Send comments to editorial@observertoday.com