{"id":9162,"date":"2015-12-29T06:10:54","date_gmt":"2015-12-29T11:10:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/?p=9162"},"modified":"2015-12-12T14:07:10","modified_gmt":"2015-12-12T19:07:10","slug":"get-high-naturally-recovery-movement-insider-creates-a-program-for-kids","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/?p=9162","title":{"rendered":"Get High Naturally: Recovery Movement Insider Creates A Program For Kids"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Dan Headrick wants your\u00a0<\/span>kids<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>to get high. Not that way. A natural high. He wants them to be so high on life itself that there will be absolutely no temptation to even try alcohol<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>or\u00a0<\/span>drugs<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>until they\u2019re 21. To that end, he created The Other Side, a DVD and presentation targeting fourth- and fifth-graders because that\u2019s the optimal age to have an impact on them and because kids are starting to experiment with drugs and alcohol at younger ages these days.<\/p>\n

\"Dr.<\/a><\/p>\n

He takes the adage \u201cJust Say No,\u201d<\/strong> espoused by Nancy Reagan in the 80s, and flips it to create a new paradigm \u2013 essentially \u201cJust Say Yes\u201d<\/strong> to your\u00a0<\/span>passion<\/a>, and let your body\u2019s own endorphins create take care of the rest. \u201cNo one\u2019s actively cultivating the realization and identification of passion (in kids),\u201d<\/strong> he said.<\/p>\n

His efforts are unfolding against a backdrop that\u2019s very different than a generation ago, when it was mostly beer, pot and cocaine that kids were dabbling in. Now marijuana is stronger; harder and more addictive drugs like heroin have proliferated; and there\u2019s an epidemic of prescription drug overdose, especially in Orange County. Drugs are also more accessible and cheaper than ever before.<\/p>\n

His program dovetails with other efforts, like Natalie Costa\u2019s Behind the Orange Curtain, which includes a documentary and website to educate parents about the national epidemic of prescription drug abuse, which can then lead to heroin addiction, as well as lawsuits last year by Orange and Santa Clara counties against five of the biggest manufacturers of prescription drugs, calling them out for creating the nation’s prescription drug epidemic by violating state laws against false advertising, unfair business practices and creating a public nuisance.<\/p>\n

Headrick became a doctor in 1980. He chose to work in the recovery movement in 1986 because that\u2019s where he identified the most pressing need. He still works in this industry at Tres Vistas Recovery and as the owner of Headrick Medical Clinic in Dana Point and San Clemente. While treatment and rehab centers are great for helping addicts, The Other Side is more aligned with Kaiser\u2019s \u201cThrive\u201d<\/strong> campaign \u2013 to incentivize kids to do the right thing, instead of treating them for addictions and\/or disease when they don\u2019t.<\/p>\n

He started The Other Side in April 2014 after treating addicts for close to 30 years. He\u2019s helped more than 17,000 addicts, he said. He spearheaded The Other Side because he saw kids dying younger, some before they even got to the point of being addicted. At the same time, parents were clamoring to learn how to use syringe packets, which would be necessary to employ if their kids overdosed. Whatever anti-drug education kids were receiving didn\u2019t seem to be working, he said.\u00a0So, Headrick stepped into the void to show kids a different perspective the other side, so to speak. He figured if he could just get kids to close to 21 years of age without trying drugs or alcohol, not only would they be less likely to experiment with these later on, but they would potentially be savvier about it. There\u2019s science behind this, he points out \u2013 the formation of the pre-frontal cortex of the brain, which acts like the CEO, takes about 22 years. This is the part that regulates common sense.<\/p>\n

People who start drinking alcohol before age 15 are five times more likely to develop alcohol abuse or dependence than those who start using alcohol at age 21 or older, according to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Inc.<\/p>\n

So, Headrick came up with the idea of having students sign a pledge \u2013 that they would not touch drugs or alcohol until they graduate from high school. Parents have to sign too. To date, hundreds of kids have signed, he said. Ideally, he wants them to keep the pledge until they\u2019re 21, but he hasn\u2019t yet designed any way to keep track of them after high school.<\/p>\n

He started by putting up fliers at\u00a0<\/span>local<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>schools to find kids who were already doing what he was espousing, but on their own \u2013 who had never tried drugs or alcohol and could therefore serve as role models for middle schoolers. His goal is to get 5,000 middle schoolers to participate in the next two years.<\/p>\n

Another technique he uses is documentaries. He first did this in 2014 with a CD entitled \u201cDo No Harm,\u201d<\/strong> aimed at doctors to curtail the over-prescribing of prescription drugs. It\u2019s been a tough sell for the medical establishment, he admitted, attributing that to the challenge of changing the mindset of doctors and the misperception that addiction is nothing more than willful misconduct.<\/p>\n

For The Other Side, he enlisted some of the role-model students who are passionate and articulate, like Payton Schrum, who is the main spokesperson. He takes the DVD and these students with him when he talks at student assemblies.\u00a0 At most assemblies he witnessed before he started his program, school administrators would trot out former drug users and addicts — those who would confess about their drug use as\u00a0<\/span>teenagers<\/a>, their dark moments of the soul and their eventual recovery. While these are emotionally compelling stories, Headrick does not believe that former drug users\/addicts should be addressing kids to talk about the perils of drugs, because he believes this implies the tacit permission of experimental drug use, he said, and can lead to peer pressure.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s part of group consciousness,\u201d<\/strong> he said. \u201cIf one person tries drugs, more will. It\u2019s promoting drug abuse.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Attorney and parent Rich Bridgford agrees. He fully supports Headrick\u2019s efforts. He has five kids, ranging in age from 13 to 24, and knows the imperative of being a good role model. He does not think it\u2019s a good idea for parents to tell their kids that they smoked pot or drank beer when they were young because that could also implicitly condone their children to do the same, with the mindset \u201cIt won\u2019t be so bad because my parents did it when they were young.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cRegardless of what parents say, kids model what we do,\u201d<\/strong> Bridgford said. \u201cWe know so much more about how the brain functions now than when we were kids. So, sharing what we may have done by way of experimentation as youth isn’t helpful. It merely sends the message that ‘we did it and we seemed to have turned out alright.\u2019 It\u2019s not to be encouraged based on what we know now. It\u2019s about progress.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kids are wired to get high naturally, Bridgford said. It\u2019s just making sure they continue in that direction. Most people turn to alcohol and drugs for the immediate payoff and if you short-circuit this, especially when you\u2019re young, it can be too late to avoid addiction as you get older, he said. Also, drinking or drug use at a young age interferes with alternative coping\u200e mechanisms to deal with emotional stress, like prayer, meditation, exercise and socializing.<\/p>\n

“You are basically tuning out, not in,\u201d<\/strong> he said. \u201cAnd that’s not ‘real.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

Headrick is especially adamant against the use of marijuana because even though some consider it more innocuous than harder drugs or alcohol, it can rob you of your passion, he said.<\/p>\n

His program helps invalidate traditional stereotypes like the jock who drinks hard or deadheads who turn to marijuana to chillax. The Other Side unites all kids who sign the pledge with a common goal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe dream of a time when kids have fun, express themselves individually and take part in an abundance of activities, doing it all sober and drug-free,\u201d<\/strong> his mission statement says.<\/p>\n

So, what about \u201cJust Say No\u201d?<\/strong> It\u2019s just not a viable paradigm, Headrick said, because it does precisely the opposite of its intention. By beating kids over the head to say \u201cNo\u201d,<\/strong> it can lead some kids to rebel and want to do whatever it is they are being told not to. That\u2019s just natural in teenagers, he said. And, it\u2019s given the abstinence movement a stigma that he\u2019s working to change.<\/p>\n

His program is one of encouragement through primary prevention \u2013 get high naturally, sign a pledge, be proactive in preventing what you don\u2019t want, instead of reacting to it once it\u2019s already happened.<\/p>\n

As far as the program goes, once students and their parents sign the pledge, the intent is to have students undergo two random drug tests a year. But the funding has not materialized to implement this yet, Headrick said.<\/p>\n

The idea is that if a student breaks the pledge, they have one chance to start over. Another future plan is to start having end-of-school-year parties to celebrate participant\u2019s commitment to their pledges. Eventually, he would like to see The Other Side adopted by schools around the country.<\/p>\n

The kids that are the most passionate about The Other Side do not fall neatly along stereotypical lines. Half have parents who were or are drug addicts. The common thread is they all have a mentor, typically someone outside the family, to guide them into making good decisions, Headrick said. They also have a deep sense of connection, whether it\u2019s to themselves, their family or spirituality, he added.<\/p>\n

The reaction from many parents, especially parent-teacher associations, has been enthusiastic, Bridgford said. But not all parents are on board, he added.<\/p>\n

“Not surprisingly, some parents may be ambivalent about The Other Side’s message,\u201d<\/strong> he said. \u201c\u200eIt puts the focus squarely on our behavior in front of our kids. And if there are issues there, parents need to deal with those, if they are going to speak with any authority to their children.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Currently, The Other Side program has been promoted in close to 100 schools in Orange County. Since Headrick doesn\u2019t have the funds to add more schools, he\u2019s instead challenging schools to make their own documentaries with their own role models. He would also like to see a \u201cHow to Get Naturally High\u201d course offered at local schools. To graduate, you would have to convince your classmates of how to do this, he said. To fully expand the program, Headrick is looking to raise $250,000 to create a 501c3 non-profit, \u201cKids from The Other Side.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Headrick blames Big Pharma, the criminal justice system and the recovery industry, (which he admits he\u2019s profited from for decades by working in this industry), for perpetuating the problem of drug addiction in the U.S. Since he had his epiphany to go into primary prevention and create The Other Side, he\u2019s tried to get the recovery industry to put 10% of its effort into primary prevention.<\/p>\n

So far, the results have been disappointing, but he\u2019s certainly not giving up.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot giving up is what passion is all about,\u201d<\/strong> he said. \u201cLike trying to do something that people think is impossible. Like imagining 99% of all kids going through their teen years without a drink or drugs. And, having a blast! That\u2019s my dream and it doesn\u2019t matter if it takes 50 years or 250 years.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Seven Traits of Kids Who Have Not Experimented with Drugs or Alcohol:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

1. I\u2019m just too busy to use drugs.<\/strong>
\n 2. I feel great as I am. Why change what\u2019s working?<\/strong>
\n 3. I made a commitment and keeping my word is important to me.<\/strong>
\n 4. I have positive friends and family who don\u2019t use. I want to be like them.<\/strong>
\n 5. I\u2019m focused on developing my own interests and the joy of that is enough.<\/strong>
\n 6. Who cares what \u2018they\u2019 say? They\u2019re losers!<\/strong>
\n 7. I\u2019m fortunate. I\u2019m blessed. I want to help others feel that way too.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Originally Published By The Examiner.com<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dr. Dan Headrick wants your\u00a0kids\u00a0to get high. Not that way. A natural high. He wants them to be so high on life itself that there will be absolutely no temptation to even try alcohol\u00a0or\u00a0drugs\u00a0until they\u2019re 21. To that end, he created The Other Side, a DVD and presentation targeting fourth- and fifth-graders because that\u2019s the optimal age to have an impact on them and because kids are starting to experiment with drugs and alcohol at younger ages these days. He takes the adage \u201cJust Say No,\u201d espoused by Nancy Reagan in the 80s, and flips it to create a new paradigm \u2013 essentially \u201cJust Say Yes\u201d to your\u00a0passion, and let your body\u2019s own endorphins create take care of the rest. \u201cNo one\u2019s actively cultivating the realization and identification of passion (in kids),\u201d he said. His efforts are unfolding against a backdrop that\u2019s very different than a generation ago, when it was mostly beer, pot and cocaine that kids were dabbling in. Now marijuana is stronger; harder and more addictive drugs like heroin have proliferated; and there\u2019s an epidemic of prescription drug overdose, especially in Orange County. Drugs are also more accessible and cheaper than ever before. His program dovetails with other efforts, like Natalie Costa\u2019s Behind the Orange Curtain, which includes a documentary and website to educate parents about the national epidemic of prescription drug abuse, which can then lead to heroin addiction, as well as lawsuits last year by Orange and Santa Clara counties against five of the biggest manufacturers of prescription drugs, calling them out for creating the nation’s prescription drug epidemic by violating state laws against false advertising, unfair business practices and creating a public nuisance. Headrick became a doctor in 1980. He chose to work in the recovery movement in 1986 because that\u2019s where he identified the most pressing need. He still works in this industry at Tres Vistas Recovery and as the owner of Headrick Medical Clinic in Dana Point and San Clemente. While treatment and rehab centers are great for helping addicts, The Other Side is more aligned with Kaiser\u2019s \u201cThrive\u201d campaign \u2013 to incentivize kids to do the right thing, instead of treating them for addictions and\/or disease when they don\u2019t. He started The Other Side in April 2014 after treating addicts for close to 30 years. He\u2019s helped more than 17,000 addicts, he said. He spearheaded The Other Side because he saw kids dying younger, some before they even got to the point of being addicted. At the same time, parents were clamoring to learn how to use syringe packets, which would be necessary to employ if their kids overdosed. Whatever anti-drug education kids were receiving didn\u2019t seem to be working, he said.\u00a0So, Headrick stepped into the void to show kids a different perspective the other side, so to speak. He figured if he could just get kids to close to 21 years of age without trying drugs or alcohol, not only would they be less likely to experiment with these later on, but they would potentially be savvier about it. There\u2019s science behind this, he points out \u2013 the formation of the pre-frontal cortex of the brain, which acts like the CEO, takes about 22 years. This is the part that regulates common sense. People who start drinking alcohol before age 15 are five times more likely to develop alcohol abuse or dependence than those who start using alcohol at age 21 or older, according to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Inc. So, Headrick came up with the idea of having students sign a pledge \u2013 that they would not touch drugs or alcohol until they graduate from high school. Parents have to sign too. To date, hundreds of kids have signed, he said. Ideally, he wants them to keep the pledge until they\u2019re 21, but he hasn\u2019t yet designed any way to keep track of them after high school. He started by putting up fliers at\u00a0local\u00a0schools to find kids who were already doing what he was espousing, but on their own \u2013 who had never tried drugs or alcohol and could therefore serve as role models for middle schoolers. His goal is to get 5,000 middle schoolers to participate in the next two years. Another technique he uses is documentaries. He first did this in 2014 with a CD entitled \u201cDo No Harm,\u201d aimed at doctors to curtail the over-prescribing of prescription drugs. It\u2019s been a tough sell for the medical establishment, he admitted, attributing that to the challenge of changing the mindset of doctors and the misperception that addiction is nothing more than willful misconduct. For The Other Side, he enlisted some of the role-model students who are passionate and articulate, like Payton Schrum, who is the main spokesperson. He takes the DVD and these students with him when he talks at student assemblies.\u00a0 At most assemblies he witnessed before he started his program, school administrators would trot out former drug users and addicts — those who would confess about their drug use as\u00a0teenagers, their dark moments of the soul and their eventual recovery. While these are emotionally compelling stories, Headrick does not believe that former drug users\/addicts should be addressing kids to talk about the perils of drugs, because he believes this implies the tacit permission of experimental drug use, he said, and can lead to peer pressure. \u201cIt\u2019s part of group consciousness,\u201d he said. \u201cIf one person tries drugs, more will. It\u2019s promoting drug abuse.\u201d Attorney and parent Rich Bridgford agrees. He fully supports Headrick\u2019s efforts. He has five kids, ranging in age from 13 to 24, and knows the imperative of being a good role model. He does not think it\u2019s a good idea for parents to tell their kids that they smoked pot or drank beer when they were young because that could also implicitly condone their children to do the same, with the mindset \u201cIt won\u2019t be so bad because my parents did it when they were young.\u201d \u201cRegardless of what parents say, kids model what we do,\u201d Bridgford said. \u201cWe know so much more about how the brain functions now than when we were kids. So, sharing what we may have done by way of experimentation as youth isn’t helpful. It merely sends the message that ‘we did it and we seemed to have turned out alright.\u2019 It\u2019s not to be encouraged based on what we know now. It\u2019s about progress.\u201d Kids are wired to get high naturally, Bridgford said. It\u2019s just making sure they continue in that direction. Most people turn to alcohol and drugs for the immediate payoff and if you short-circuit this, especially when you\u2019re young, it can be too late to avoid addiction as you get older, he said. Also, drinking or drug use at a young age interferes with alternative coping\u200e mechanisms to deal with emotional stress, like prayer, meditation, exercise and socializing. “You are basically tuning out, not in,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd that’s not ‘real.” Headrick is especially adamant against the use of marijuana because even though some consider it more innocuous than harder drugs or alcohol, it can rob you of your passion, he said. His program helps invalidate traditional stereotypes like the jock who drinks hard or deadheads who turn to marijuana to chillax. The Other Side unites all kids who sign the pledge with a common goal. \u201cWe dream of a time when kids have fun, express themselves individually and take part in an abundance of activities, doing it all sober and drug-free,\u201d his mission statement says. So, what about \u201cJust Say No\u201d? It\u2019s just not a viable paradigm, Headrick said, because it does precisely the opposite of its intention. By beating kids over the head to say \u201cNo\u201d, it can lead some kids to rebel and want to do whatever it is they are being told not to. That\u2019s just natural in teenagers, he said. And, it\u2019s given the abstinence movement a stigma that he\u2019s working to change. His program is one of encouragement through primary prevention \u2013 get high naturally, sign a pledge, be proactive in preventing what you don\u2019t want, instead of reacting to it once it\u2019s already happened. As far as the program goes, once students and their parents sign the pledge, the intent is to have students undergo two random drug tests a year. But the funding has not materialized to implement this yet, Headrick said. The idea is that if a student breaks the pledge, they have one chance to start over. Another future plan is to start having end-of-school-year parties to celebrate participant\u2019s commitment to their pledges. Eventually, he would like to see The Other Side adopted by schools around the country. The kids that are the most passionate about The Other Side do not fall neatly along stereotypical lines. Half have parents who were or are drug addicts. The common thread is they all have a mentor, typically someone outside the family, to guide them into making good decisions, Headrick said. They also have a deep sense of connection, whether it\u2019s to themselves, their family or spirituality, he added. The reaction from many parents, especially parent-teacher associations, has been enthusiastic, Bridgford said. But not all parents are on board, he added. “Not surprisingly, some parents may be ambivalent about The Other Side’s message,\u201d he said. \u201c\u200eIt puts the focus squarely on our behavior in front of our kids. And if there are issues there, parents need to deal with those, if they are going to speak with any authority to their children.\u201d Currently, The Other Side program has been promoted in close to 100 schools in Orange County. Since Headrick doesn\u2019t have the funds to add more schools, he\u2019s instead challenging schools to make their own documentaries with their own role models. He would also like to see a \u201cHow to Get Naturally High\u201d course offered at local schools. To graduate, you would have to convince your classmates of how to do this, he said. To fully expand the program, Headrick is looking to raise $250,000 to create a 501c3 non-profit, \u201cKids from The Other Side.\u201d Headrick blames Big Pharma, the criminal justice system and the recovery industry, (which he admits he\u2019s profited from for decades by working in this industry), for perpetuating the problem of drug addiction in the U.S. Since he had his epiphany to go into primary prevention and create The Other Side, he\u2019s tried to get the recovery industry to put 10% of its effort into primary prevention. So far, the results have been disappointing, but he\u2019s certainly not giving up. \u201cNot giving up is what passion is all about,\u201d he said. \u201cLike trying to do something that people think is impossible. Like imagining 99% of all kids going through their teen years without a drink or drugs. And, having a blast! That\u2019s my dream and it doesn\u2019t matter if it takes 50 years or 250 years.\u201d The Seven Traits of Kids Who Have Not Experimented with Drugs or Alcohol: 1. I\u2019m just too busy to use drugs. 2. I feel great as I am. Why change what\u2019s working? 3. I made a commitment and keeping my word is important to me. 4. I have positive friends and family who don\u2019t use. I want to be like them. 5. I\u2019m focused on developing my own interests and the joy of that is enough. 6. Who cares what \u2018they\u2019 say? They\u2019re losers! 7. I\u2019m fortunate. I\u2019m blessed. I want to help others feel that way too. Originally Published By The Examiner.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":673,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,683],"tags":[830,842,84,843],"class_list":["post-9162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-activism","category-activism-usa","tag-deidre-newman","tag-drugs","tag-feature","tag-recovery"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9162"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9162\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9171,"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9162\/revisions\/9171"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/673"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wavechronicle.com\/wave\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}