Dark Web Drug Sales On The Rise

a man at a computer disguised as an anonymous wearing a mask working on dark web drug sales

Earlier this week, we discussed the important topic of synthetic drug use, a trend that is both dangerous and indicative of the ever-changing landscape of drug addiction in America. The people making these dangerous drugs are usually one step ahead of government organizations responsible for mitigating the impact of drug use across the country, such as the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).

Part of the problem, or the difficulty, in policing synthetic drugs is that the chemicals that are sprayed on benign plant matter to make synthetic cannabis and salts to make “bath salts” are synthesized in China. An enormous country that lacks the kind of oversight that we find in our own country, at least when it comes to laboratories. While China has made efforts to curb the problem and commitments to the United States to do a better job at policing the manufacturing and distribution of such chemicals, the deadly chemicals are still being made and escaping the country’s borders.

In many cases, acquiring the chemical needed is as easy as opening a laptop and venturing into what is known as the “dark web.” Perhaps you have heard of the former online marketplace known as the Silk Road. If not, it was a website that operated in the darkest regions of the internet, a place where one can by heroin, passports and various chemicals to make drugs like synthetic marijuana.

The Dark Web

Once inside the Internet’s shadowy underworld, the possibilities are endless. What’s worse, people journeying into the dark web can do so anonymously, paying for goods and services with a virtually untraceable currency known as Bitcoins. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has been working tirelessly to shut down black markets residing in the dark web.

In 2015 Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the Silk Road was sentenced to life without parole after being arrested by the FBI. But as was mentioned earlier, the ever-changing landscape of drug use in America, such as buying drugs online, allows for others to do the same. Just as when a cartel head is arrested, another moves into a position of power. The Hydra Effect. Cut off one head, only to face another.

The sentence Ulbricht received was arguably harsh. While he got rich off illegal drug sales, et al., he wasn’t in fact the one selling the drugs. He just received a percentage of all sales. The stiff sentence was intended to deter others from creating similar dark marketplaces.

However, a new study published in the British Journal of Criminology, shows that in the two years since the Silk Road saw its end, Boston College sociologist Isak Ladegaard found that sales on the dark web actually increased, Wired reports. And the reasons for the rise in overall sales in the marketplaces that replaced Ulbricht’s site might be linked to a greater awareness in the public about online illegal drug sales due to the media coverage of the Silk Road.

“The timing suggests that people weren’t discouraged from buying and selling drugs,” says Ladegaard. “The data suggests that trade increased. And one likely explanation is that all the media coverage only made people more aware of the existence of the Silk Road and similar markets.”

A Dangerous Way to Buy Drugs

Setting aside the potential for arrest, buying drugs online could lead to the purchase of substance that might contain deadly ingredients. As was mentioned in other posts, fentanyl is often mixed with heroin to increase potency. The chemicals used to make synthetic drugs have unpredictable side effects, some of which can be deadly.

If you are addicted to drugs, seeking help is a lifesaving decision. Please contact 10 Acre Ranch today to end the cycle of addiction.

Synthetic Marijuana: Deadly Side Effects

Synthetic Marijuana

The news of late has been dominated by talk of opioid narcotics, prescription drugs like oxycodone and illicit ones like heroin. Recently there has been a lot of talk about powerful synthetic opioids like fentanyl and carfentanil, around 100 times and 10,000 times more potent than morphine respectively. In many ways, taking synthetic opioids can be a death sentence. Fentanyl was never meant to be used illicitly, and carfentanil was meant for elephants not humans.

Synthetic opioids are a major concern, to be sure, but there are other synthetic drugs that have been plaguing American streets for some time now. And there is a good chance that you have heard or read about many of them. Spice, K2, Flakka and bath salts may come to mind. In many parts of the world the chemicals used to make synthetic marijuana and bath salts are not outlawed. When governments to ban the ingredients used to make them, chemists are quick to alter the formula in order to circumvent the blacklist.

If you are working a program of addiction recovery, or have a vested interest in understanding these chemicals, you may be wondering what the attraction is to a family of drugs that has been linked to hundreds of terrifying news stories? The easiest way to answer that question is that they are easy to acquire, relatively inexpensive and often go undetected on standard drug screens. But despite the perceived benefits of synthetic drugs, the potential side effects are not worth the risk.

Unpredictable Synthetic Drugs

For the time being, let’s just spotlight synthetic cannabinoids; which, despite the moniker have little in common with traditional marijuana. To be sure, marijuana despite its benign reputation is not without risk. Yet, when you compare marijuana to synthetic cannabis—apples and oranges is what you find.

The chemical makeup of what is sprayed on herbal matter to be smoked by users is constantly being changed. A user hasn’t any way of knowing what to expect, and what they experience can be deadly. Common side effects of synthetic marijuana, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), include extreme anxiety, confusion, paranoia and hallucinations. And even more concerning:

  • Rapid Heart Rate
  • Vomiting
  • Violent Behavior
  • Suicidal Thoughts

In order to combat the synthetic drug crisis in America, lawmakers and government agencies have banned certain chemicals and begun targeting people distributing the dangerous drugs. Just this week, 42-year-old Ramsey Jeries Farraj from Bakersfield, pleaded guilty to a charge related to more than $4 million in synthetic drug-sale proceeds, Bakersfield Now reports. For his crimes related to selling spice and K-2 online, Farraj is looking at five years in prison and a fine.

Synthetic Marijuana is Dangerous

Young people are often drawn to synthetic drugs for the reasons mentioned earlier. They frequently do not know about the synthetic drugs deadly nature and that they can be addictive. If you are young adult male who is using synthetic drugs of any kind on a regular basis, there is a good chance that you have become dependent. With each week that passes, there is no way of knowing what changes chemists will make to the drugs you are consuming, the next batch may be your last. Please contact 10 Acre Ranch to break the cycle of addiction and begin the journey of recovery.

Treating Soldiers With PTSD and Addiction

photo of psychologist and a soldier with PTSD

It is a well known fact that experiencing trauma can have a serious impact on the course of one’s life. A severe accident, or the loss of a loved one can scar people in seemingly ineluctable ways. If you have ever experienced such trauma, then you know firsthand the scars the event can leave with you, possibly even post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). An insidious mental illness that if left untreated can lead people to engage in self-destructive behavior. The paradox is such behaviors often take the form of self-medicating with drugs and alcohol, which initially can alleviate some of the symptoms of the disorder, but actually make the symptoms worse in the long run. What’s more, self-medicating can also lead to addiction, and what one finds themselves with is a co-occurring disorder—otherwise known as a dual diagnosis.

Symptoms of PTSD can include:

  • Reliving the event (also called re-experiencing symptoms).
  • Avoiding situations that remind you of the event.
  • Having more negative beliefs and feelings.
  • Feeling keyed up (also called hyperarousal).

PTSD In The Military

While the condition can develop in anyone who experiences trauma, most people you probably associate post-traumatic stress with is the military. Young men and women who go off to fight in armed conflict witness and experience first-hand the horrors of war. In the field of battle even the survivors are victims. After nearly two decades of continuous involvement in the Middle East there are thousands of military personnel who have come home from Afghanistan and Iraq changed.

Ideally, such people would have access to the best treatment money could buy. That is, effective methods of therapy and medication that can counter the symptoms and even repair some of the damage. Unfortunately, the Veterans Administration (VA) isn’t always on top of treating affected personnel, which means many service men and women take to calming their symptoms with substances. In many cases, it is a choice that leads to a dishonorable discharge, which can actually cut individuals off from receiving VA benefits. Therefore, upsetting one’s prospects for obtaining a good job after the military

A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that during a four-year period, almost two-thirds of the 91,764 U.S. troops kicked out of the military for misconduct had received a diagnosis for post-traumatic stress, The Washington Post reports. The GAO is urging the Defense Department to do a better job at ensuring commanders consider medical conditions like PTSD when determining how to handle misconduct cases.

Treating Mental Illness – PTSD and Addiction

It is quite common for people with any form of mental illness to suffer from addiction as well. Which condition comes first is not as important as treating both disorders at the same time. Failure to do so usually results in an inability to recovery. At 10 Acre Ranch, we understand that drugs and alcohol can prolong a cycle of avoidance and delay treatment. For more than 25 years, we have treated many clients who courageously served overseas, who self-medicated their PTSD with drugs and alcohol. By addressing both the addiction and the co-occurring disorder they could get back on their feet and lead a fulfilling life.

If you or a loved one is struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder, and self-medicates, please contact us today. Recovery is possible.

Social Model of Addiction Recovery

addiction-treatment-LA-CA-drug-alcohol-abuse

If you are in recovery from addiction or if you are still actively using drugs or alcohol, you are acutely aware of the fact that the disease is typified by solitude. While active users may be accompanied by others spiraling towards a similar bottom, the reality is that you are in fact alone. Nobody is going to support you in any fashion, short of maybe some friends and family members who could be enabling your destructive behavior. Perhaps you are still using and happen to be in a romantic relationship, if so there is good chance that it is unhealthy due to its codependent nature.

The point is that meaningful relationships in active addiction are virtually nonexistent. Even when you are around others, you are in every way alone. Conversely, in active recovery meaningful relationships are in abundance. The social model of addiction recovery centers around relying upon one another for support. It is such relationships that in many ways give you reasons to stay the course, you are there for others and they are there for you.

The road to addiction and beyond is a lonely road, the path to recovery involves walking side by side with others, as equals. It is often said recovery cannot be achieved on one’s own, only with the help of others. And there is plenty of evidence to support such claims.

The Social Model of Addiction Recovery

Isolation for addicts and alcoholics is a destructive behavior. In recovery, much emphasis is placed on getting out of one’s comfort zone and working hard to embrace the power of the group and its lifesaving qualities. At 10 Acre Ranch, we instill in our clients the power of the group. We know if you are feeling down others can assist you in getting back up, and vice versa.

In treatment, you and the other clients take part in groups that become the model for how you will sustain recovery upon discharge via 12 Step recovery. On multiple nights a week, clients are taken to various meetings to see and participate in a program of recovery that has helped countless individuals find a new way of living since the 1930’s.

One learns that a sponsor is not a boss or a parent, but rather a friend who can guide you through the Steps and can give you suggestions for overcoming situations that, left to one’s own devices, could lead to relapse. It isn’t a secret that people with substance use disorders don’t respond well to orders and commands, which is why the social model is so effective. In recovery we are all equals, there is no hierarchy. Through such a format, people can learn what a healthy relationship looks like, they can learn the value of open and honest lines of interpersonal communication.

Recovering Without Distraction

At our Southern California treatment facility, we understand that in early recovery distractions can be counterproductive. The greatest distraction for men is without a doubt the fairer sex. Once the drugs and alcohol are out of your system, people often remember what a sex drive is. How appealing being in the company of women is after years, decades even, of being in a fog. One of the most common routes to relapse in early recovery is without a doubt romantic attachments.

Being in a home surrounded by other males, gives you time to form lasting bonds with other men. It is not uncommon for men who go through treatment together to be friends for the rest of their lives, even if they reside in opposite ends of the country.

If you are still in the grips of addiction, we hope that you will contact us as soon as possible. We can help you break the cycle of addiction and give you the tools necessary for living a life in recovery. Please take a moment to watch a short video below:

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