Our patients report our anesthesia assisted Vicodin Detox eliminates 90 to 98 percent of the painful, uncomfortable Vicodin withdrawal symptoms. 

Florida Detox™ performs safe anesthesia assisted vicodin detox, in the intensive care unit of a hospital presently rated in the top five percent in the United States and consistently rated in the top 10 percent.  Dr. Sponaugle has perfected advanced anesthesia techniques which absolutely prevent dangerous blood pressure and pulse increases, during anesthesia assisted opiate detoxification.  Since heart rate and blood pressure remain at safe normal resting levels, our  patients rest quietly, breathing unassisted, without tremors or convulsions, during anesthesia.

Fatigue and muscle soreness are reduced by our advanced anesthesia technique, since exhausting tremors and convulsions are eliminated.  

Opiate use severely decreases testosterone, while prolactin and cortisol are often increased. Thyroxine (T4) thyroid hormone often decreases, during opiate withdrawal. We have also found deficient DHEA sulfate levels in some patients we have treated for opiates.  We frequently prescribe testosterone and thyroid hormone to depleted patients.  Depression has decreased when we recommended DHEA for patients who tested with lowered levels.  Opiate patients who gained excessive weight, due to opiate induced hypothyroidism, often look ten to twenty years younger, when they return for follow-up, after adequate hormonal treatment. Since dopamine is the inhibitory hormone for prolactin release, elevated prolactin levels, frequently indicate dopamine deficiency.  Dopamine deficiency also requires correction to produce a successful recovery from opiate dependence.

Vicodin dependency

Vicodin is a combination of the opiate hydrocodone and acetaminophen.  Hydrocodone opiates causes hormonal deficiencies, prolonged constipation, impaired brain blood flow distribution and chemical dependency.  Many Vicodin dependent patients also receive dangerous, potentially fatal Acetaminophen doses. The Harvard Women’s Health Watch reports Acetaminophen overdose causes 56,000 emergency room visits and 458 deaths from acute liver failure annually, in the United States.  An overdose is considered to be over 4,000 mg daily.  Vicodin tablets contain 500, 660 or 750 milligrams of Acetaminophen per tablet. Six Vicodin ES tablets contain a total of 4,500 milligrams of Acetaminophen, which is considered an Acetaminophen overdose. Acetaminophen doses exceeding 12,000 milligrams per day, frequently increase the alanine transaminase (AST) liver enzyme.  Some Florida Detox™ Vicodin detox patients were taking over 19,000 milligrams of Acetaminophen daily. Patients using over 4,000 milligrams of Acetaminophen daily may benefit from Alpha Lipoic Acid, Vitamin C or N Acetyl Cysteine supplementation to protect their liver. 

There is controversy concerning whether hearing loss experienced by radio talk show commentator, Rush Limbaugh, was caused by Vicodin or Oxycontin abuse.

By August 2001, Limbaugh's listeners had noted changes in his voice and diction,^[31] changes that Limbaugh at first emphatically denied on the air. However, on October 8, 2001, Limbaugh acknowledged that the changes in his voice were due to complete deafness in his left ear and substantial hearing loss in his right ear. He also revealed that his radio staff was helping him receive calls on his show by setting up a system where he could appear to hear his callers. The system worked remarkably well, but did not convince all listeners, some of whom noted a long delay between a caller ending his point and Limbaugh responding and occasionally speaking over a caller. At times Limbaugh asked callers to hold on momentarily, while the caller's comments were typed and shown on Limbaugh's computer monitor.

In December 2001, Limbaugh underwent cochlear implant surgery, which restored a measure of hearing in his left ear. His voice and enunciation returned to normal after the implant. According to his doctors, the deafness was caused by an autoimmune disease.

Some medical experts pointed out that chronic use of opioids, such as OxyContin and particularly hydrocodone, both of which Limbaugh later admitted abusing,^[32] can compromise the function of the immune system^[33] and cause deafness, speculating that his use of these drugs could have caused or contributed to his problem.^[34][35] Limbaugh's doctors stated that "they were unsure of the exact cause of Limbaugh's hearing loss," but said that "overuse of medication was not a factor."^[36] 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rush_Limbaugh#Hearing_problems 

Hydrocodone-Most abused drug in America 

Hydrocodone - a mix of synthetic codeine and acetaminophen - is the most abused prescription drug in the United States, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. The painkiller tops the list of abused pharmaceuticals in El Paso, Texas; New York City; San Diego; St. Louis; Atlanta; Chicago; Dallas; and Miami. It's known as Vicodin, Percocet, Lortab or Lorcet, and the roster of celebrities who have admitted addictions includes Green Bay Packers quarterback and three-time NFL Most Valuable Player Brett Favre, actor Matthew Perry and model Niki Taylor. Nevada doctors in 2000 wrote prescriptions for more than 42 million doses of hydrocodone - or about 17 pills for every adult in the state. In most cases, patients receive a single prescription for eight to 12 pills after dental surgery or because of an injury, according to the task force. The so-called doctor shoppers are less common, but are believed to be a significant portion of the hydrocodone prescriptions. For people with chronic, debilitating pain, hydrocodone can mean the difference between being able to function and being bedridden, doctors say. "There's no question hydrocodone is effective, when properly prescribed, and can provide immediate relief," said Dr. Godwin Maduka, a pain-management specialist and anesthesiologist at University Medical Center.

"But we also know there's a tremendous level of abuse occurring." There's a difference between developing a tolerance for a drug and physical addiction, Maduka said. Tolerance occurs when a medication is no longer effective at reducing pain, even when a patient increases the dosage. Physical addiction occurs when a patient has been on a certain medication for such a lengthy period that they go through symptoms of withdrawal if they stop taking it. Maduka, also a pharmacist, said by the time most patients arrive at his Las Vegas Pain Institute, they've visited a long list of primary-care doctors. Most pain patients are not abusers, but have simply developed a tolerance for medications and need additional help, he said.

It's the doctor shoppers who are at the greatest risk, Maduka said. "We have no real way of knowing how many doctors a patient has seen before us, how many other prescriptions they have in their pocket," Maduka said. One solution would be a centralized database in which doctors and pharmacists could look up a patient's history before writing or filling new prescriptions, Maduka said. The state task force's reports are helpful, but are only triggered after a patient has visited numerous physicians, Maduka said. Helene was introduced to prescription painkillers through legitimate means. After dental surgery in the mid-1980s, her dentist prescribed a painkiller. She discovered the pills numbed her physical pain and gave her a sense of well-being. For the next 15 years, she struggled to get out of the drug's grasp. When her husband said he worried about how many pain pills she was taking, Helene cut back. She even tried quitting, but the night sweats, nausea and chills - symptoms of her withdrawal - always won out. "You think of drug addicts as being out on street corners," Helene said. "I'm a housewife."

Tylenol is the nation's most popular over-the-counter painkiller - 8 billion to 9 billion tablets are sold each year - and the most common form of acetaminophen used in hydrocodone manufacturing. "Hydrocodone is a very good medicine if you're having pain, but no one realized it would have such a high potential for abuse," said Dr. Caroline Riely, associate medical director of the American Liver Foundation. "It's the codeine portion of the drug that's addictive, but it's the acetaminophen that's destroying peoples' livers." Experts say adults should not take more than four grams of acetaminophen each day; just 10 grams can cause lifelong liver problems or even death. Most hydrocodone pills come in either 2.5, 5 or 7.5 milligrams of synthetic codeine, each mixed with 500 milligrams of acetaminophen.

At the height of her addiction, Helene took up to 30 hydrocodone pills each day - nearly four times the recommended limit for acetaminophen. "I know how lucky I am to still have a liver that works," Helene said. "Given everything I've done to myself, I shouldn't still be here at all." The state prescription-drug task force wants the pharmaceutical companies to reduce the amount of acetaminophen in each hydrocodone pill, a request echoed by medical professionals across the nation. In response, at least one pharmaceutical company is now making a hydrocodone pill with 250 milligrams of acetaminophen. McNeil Consumer Products Co., a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, the company that manufactures Tylenol, has added new warning labels about acetaminophen's potential for damaging the liver, especially when the drug is mixed with alcohol. EMPHASIS ADDED

The DEA's prescription-drug classification system is based on the potential for abuse. Schedule I drugs include heroin and Ecstasy, which are both illegal in the United States. Schedule II drugs include powerful painkillers, such as codeine, morphine and Demerol. Cocaine is a Schedule II drug because it has some legitimate medical applications in hospital settings. Schedule III drugs include hydrocodone and anabolic steroids. Schedule III drugs are easier to prescribe and ultimately easier to get. A doctor is permitted to phone in a Schedule III prescription refill to a pharmacy. Schedule II refills may only be written after the doctor re-examines the patient. The DEA also requires more stringent record-keeping of Schedule II prescriptions, and it tracks how many each doctor writes. 

Florida, another state battling the hydrocodone epidemic, tried last year to reclassify the drug as a Schedule II. But the new rules were quickly derailed by protests from pharmacists, physicians and patients who said it would make it unreasonably difficult for people to manage day-to-day pain. Florida's attorney general took the unusual step of passing an emergency ordinance, restoring hydrocodone's status as a Schedule III drug. Nine years ago the Nevada Board of Pharmacy considered moving hydrocodone to Schedule II, but ended up voting against the plan, according to its attorney, Louis Ling. The argument that "carried the day" for the board was doctors' testimony that moving hydrocodone to Schedule II would make it unreasonably difficult for patients in rural areas to get refills, Ling said.

They call it the Las Vegas Cocktail, but you won't find it served at hotel bars or table-side in the casinos. A potent mix of hydrocodone and the muscle relaxer Soma gives the user a heroin-like euphoria without needle marks. It's also one of the most popular recreational drug combinations in the United States. The street value of the cocktail's ingredients is high. One former Las Vegas physician-turned-dealer made as much as $1 million selling the drugs on the black market, according to federal prosecutors. Luisito Evangelista, banned from practicing medicine in Nevada, used his Illinois DEA registration to buy more than 500,000 hydrocodone pills. Evangelista, who pleaded guilty to drug trafficking in 1999, died in a federal prison last year.

(click image to enlarge)

www.nida.nih.gov/Testimony/3-9-05Testimony.html

About 5% of 12th graders reported using Oxycontin for non-medical purposes, and about 9.3 % of 12th graders, or nearly one in 10, reported similar use of Vicodin in the past year, making Vicodin one of the most commonly abused drugs in this population.

Dependence on painkillers brings him to a new low in his career with Packers

With permission from the author: Gary D Amoto, gdamato@journalsentinel.com

Posted: Oct. 22, 2005, JS Online, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Favre was wearing a sports coat instead of the T-shirt and sweaty baseball cap that had long defined him sartorially. Furthermore, he was flanked by his future wife, Deanna Tynes, and a very sober-looking Mike Holmgren, head coach of the Green Bay Packers. Favre was so nervous; he would write later in his autobiography, that he was "shaking more than Elvis in 'Jailhouse Rock.' "Then the words came out, haltingly and in a trembling tone.

Favre, 26, who just months earlier had led the Packers to within one game of the Super Bowl, had voluntarily entered the league's substance-abuse program and would seek help at an inpatient treatment facility. He said he had "possibly become dependent upon medication." 

He did not know it then, but he had reached a critical juncture in his life. Favre sat in his cubicle in the Packers' locker room last week and shook his head at the memory of that may day. "I look back at that time, almost 10 years ago, and think, 'Did that really happen?'" he said, rubbing his closely cropped hair. "It almost seems like it wasn't part of my life, or it was a different part of my life."  

Or maybe it's just that his life is so different.  

No longer the self-described wild thing who "drank up Atlanta" as a rookie with the Falcons in 1991 and brought the party with him to Green Bay in '92, Favre is, by all accounts, a devoted husband to Deanna and doting father to daughters Brittany and Breleigh.  

Once an indefatigable man about town, Favre now lives a near-reclusive lifestyle, according to his friends, and shuns an adoring but intrusive public whenever possible. The future Hall of Fame quarterback prefers to lay low during the off-season at his palatial house on the outskirts of Hattiesburg, Miss., where he almost obsessively tends to his emerald lawn.  

Scott Favre said his younger brother quit drinking alcohol "six or seven years ago." It's been eight years since Scott himself had a drink, but he remembers the good ol' days, which, in hindsight, weren't all that good.

"When we drank, it was all or nothing," Scott said. "If we drank, let's go get a case and go till we can't go no more. We were out of control. Couldn't see it at the time. Now we look back at it - and Brett and I talk about it all the time - quitting is the best thing we ever did."  

The Favre’s didn't touch alcohol while growing up in tiny Kiln, Miss. They didn't dare, because their father, Irvin, also was their high school football coach and would have cracked his boys' skulls had he smelled beer on their breath. After Brett Favre went away to the University of Southern Mississippi on a football scholarship, however, things changed quickly. As a 17-year-old freshman nursing a massive hangover, he came off the bench to lead the Golden Eagles to a come-from-behind victory over Tulane and became the starter. Favre drank beer throughout his college years, frequently to excess. "I hate to say (coach Curley Hallman) turned a blind eye to it," said Chris Ryals, Favre's roommate, "but maybe the rules were stretched just a little bit for Brett on occasion where they wouldn't be for somebody else. "We were playing down at (Louisiana) Lafayette and we had a few beers in our motel room the night before the game. Curley asked me after the season, 'Was Brett's daddy in the room down there with y'all?' I said, 'No, sir, why?' He said, 'When we checked out we saw they charged y'all's room six beers.'   

"I just smiled. So Curley Hallman kind of knew."  

Favre enhanced his reputation as the life of the party in Atlanta, where Falcons coach Jerry Glanville quickly tired of his undisciplined quarterback's antics and was not disappointed when the team traded him to the Packers.

Though Favre started taking football seriously in Green Bay, he continued to play as hard off the field as he did on it. 

The beginning of his transformation can be traced to Nov. 15, 1992, when he suffered a separated left shoulder while being sacked by, of all people, Reggie White, who played for the Philadelphia Eagles then but would eventually help Favre lead the Packers to victory in Super Bowl XXXI.  

Favre had replaced an injured Don Majkowski just eight weeks earlier and didn't want Holmgren to know how badly he was hurt. After the game, which Green Bay won, 27-24, Favre asked the team doctor for a painkiller. 

That night, he took his first Vicodin. The powerful narcotic analgesic was distributed cautiously by the team physicians, one or at most two at a time, because of the potential for addiction. The players called the huge pills "vikes.” "Some players take it and get sick to their stomach, so they don't do it again," Favre wrote in his 1997 autobiography "Favre: For the Record." "Other players think it feels pretty good but they'd never take it enough to get addicted. Then there are players like me, who take it and get hooked. "Favre soothed various aches and pains with Vicodin throughout the 1992 and '93 seasons. By the end of the '94 season, however, he was popping six pills a day, which soon became eight, then 10, then 15.  EMPHASIS ADDED

He got the pills, he wrote, from unwitting teammates who offered up their own modest supplies when the likable quarterback confided that his shoulder hurt or his ankle was sore or his ribs were killing him. No one guessed Favre was fast developing a dangerous dependency.  

He was plagued by many of the drug's side effects. He was constantly dehydrated, acutely constipated - he often went a week or longer between bowel movements - and endured bouts of nausea and vomiting. He choked down the pills at precisely 9 each night and when they kicked in, he was so wired up he paced the house or played video games until the early morning hours, while an increasingly suspicious Deanna slept fitfully upstairs.  EMPHASIS ADDED 

Sometimes, he would vomit up the pills, then carefully wash them off and force them down again. 

Favre's agent, James "Bus" Cook, began to suspect his star client had a problem. Favre wrote that one of his best friends, Clark Henegan, told him bluntly, "Man, you've got to stop with the pills. It's gone too far."  

A few weeks after Favre led the Packers to the 1995 NFC Championship Game - and threw three touchdown passes in a 38-27 loss to the Dallas Cowboys - he decided to quit Vicodin cold turkey. He polished off his stash of 15 pills and flushed the bottle down the toilet.  

But his nightmare was just beginning. In February 1996, Favre flew to Green Bay to have bone chips removed from his left ankle. After surgery, he was sitting up in his hospital bed, talking to Deanna, when he suffered a seizure. His eyes rolled back in his head, his arms and legs thrashed and his body stiffened. Brittany, who was in the room, asked Deanna, "Is he going to die, Mommy?"

The cause of the seizure was debatable, but the fact is seizures are one possible side effect of Vicodin. It was a wake-up call for Favre, who agreed to meet with NFL-appointed doctors at the urging of the Packers' medical personnel.  EMPHASIS ADDED  

According to Favre's autobiography, the meeting took place in Chicago in March 1996. The league doctors asked him a lot of questions about his alcohol use. Finally, one of them said, "We know you're addicted to painkillers and we think you have a drinking problem, too. "They suggested Favre seek treatment at the Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kan. He got up and walked out of the room. The NFL doctors kept calling. Favre kept ignoring them. Finally, a league doctor called and said Favre had been classified as behavioral-referred instead of self-referred because the Packers' team doctors had contacted the NFL about his addiction to painkillers. Now, Favre had no choice. He had to report to the Menninger Clinic or he would be fined four weeks' pay, or about $900,000. It was time for Favre to let Holmgren and Packers general manager Ron Wolf in on his secret. They were stunned by their quarterback's admission that he had a problem with painkillers. Holmgren suggested Favre address the media, and on May 14 the team issued an 11-paragraph news release and Favre found himself standing before reporters who had mostly chronicled his meteoric rise. "The hardest thing I've ever done was stand up there," Favre said last week. "It wasn't just the media I was telling. It was basically the whole world. I had done a lot of press conferences, good and bad, after wins and losses, but I had never done a press conference like that....”

He also denied rumors he was an alcoholic, though he would have to abstain from alcohol for two years in order to comply with the league's substance-abuse program and eventually would quit drinking altogether. Ignoring Holmgren's jabs under the table, Favre set his jaw and vowed to take the Packers to the Super Bowl, challenging his detractors to "bet against me."  

Six months later, Green Bay beat New England, 35-21, in Super Bowl XXXI at the Superdome in New Orleans, just 45 miles from Favre's hometown.  

Over the ensuing years, while he established himself as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, Favre suffered several significant injuries and each time treated his pain with over-the-counter pain relievers, such as Tylenol. Vicodin remains in his past, a distant memory from "another life." 

There are no more nights out with the boys, at least none that involve drinking copious amounts of alcohol. Favre is a mature family man who has buried his father, stood by Deanna through her bout with breast cancer and pitched in to help victims of Hurricane Katrina. 

Dear Dr. Sponaugle,

There is so much I would like to say that it is difficult to know where to start. At the beginning, I guess. I am a 75 year old woman who heard about your services on TV. I was mesmerized by what I heard. The very next morning I called your clinic. The response I received was incredible. Not only was Jane compassionate and caring when I explained my problem but she was extremely helpful in setting up a time for me to arrive at your location to receive the help I so desperately needed. I had been addicted to two prescription medications (vicodin for 11 years and ambien for 8 years). No matter how hard I tried I could not rid myself of the terrible addiction I suffered. On November 13, 2005 I took a plane from St. Louis, MO to Tampa, FL. I was scared, as I had no idea what to expect and my husband would not be able to join me for several days. On November 14th I reported for my appointment. Your entire staff was wonderful. Several of your senior staff members spoke with me including Paula, Greg, and Brenda. It amazed me that they were so interested in me and my problem and told me not to worry as you would take care of everything.Then we talked, Dr. Sponaugle. What a wonderful Christian man you are. Your dedication to serving the patients who come to you for help they cannot receive anywhere else is nothing short of phenomenal. The next day when I arrived all was in readiness. You were there to see that each stage of my procedure went smoothly. I was treated with respect in all areas. I did not know what to expect or what the outcome would be, but you assured me that it was all taken care of and I would awaken to a new day. How true that was. When I awoke the following morning my addictions were gone forever. How can I thank you. There are no words in any dictionary that can express my feelings over the entire course of treatment. I remained in the hospital for two days so that I could be monitored. Whey my husband arrived, you and Brenda spent several hours with both of us counseling us on the medications I would be taking for several weeks and what to expect as my recovery continued. You were available by phone to answer all my questions and not once did you treat me as if I no longer needed reassurance. I would shout your services from the house tops if possible. I know that I was the oldest patient that has received treatment at your facility. That alone was a challenge for you and you rose to the occasion magnificently. How I wish that others in my position could know of your services. I requested and was sent a packet that told of your treatment center in detail, including the cost. It may be expensive, but it is worth every penny and more. I gave the packet to my local physician so that he could refer his other patients who were in the same category I was before I came to Tampa. In closing let me state that my family is overjoyed at my recovery even thought they may not understand what took place. My husband, children, and grandchildren say I am a different person now that my body is rid of all signs of addiction. God is good. Once again let me thank you from the bottom of my heart for giving me back my life.I no longer have the insomnia that I suffered from for so many years. Keep up the wonderful work you are doing. Someday it will be available to all of those individuals who are in trouble with addictions whatever the addiction might be.

Sincerely,

Dorothy, Illinois

---------------------------------------------------------

My name is Cara Barber and I am a mother, wife and recovering addict that was just recently helped by Florida Detox and the Dr. Phil Show. I was addicted to vicodin and lots of it. I found that addiction is about just wanting more and more and not being able to stop, no matter how bad the consequences were. I was a stay at home mother that had a full time job the job of an addict and I was pretty darn good at it. My addiction began in 2003 when my husband went to fight in the war in Iraq. I had been dealing with some abdominal pain caused by a botched appendectomy for a couple of years by that point. But, when my husband left to go to war and I had a son to care for and a full time job as a Business and Life Coach . . . I found that I could not manage the pain any longer. The pain became unbearable and when I was prescribed vicodin, I was cured. Or, looking back, I was screwed!

It started off innocently enough, just taking what my doctor had prescribed and I was able to do my job with vigor and I was able to love my son unselfishly and I did not have to worry about the war. I just turned the TV off and took my vicodin and we were GREAT! I felt the immortality of a 15 year old and the energy of my 2 year old. I could do it all and have it all! Well, after my refills of vicodin ran out an immense feeling of fear, blackness, sin and deceit took over and my morality was no longer impenetrable . . . I wanted to get the vicodin no matter what it took. I had heard that one could buy it online, so I started my search and within a week or two I had my first shipment of the genuine thing the drug of choice vicodin. That's when I thought I would start trying larger doses to see if I could attain that first feeling of euphoria. Every once in awhile I would and that was enough to keep me going. I excelled at my job, at mothering and at becoming an addict.

Before too long, the addiction took a strong hold and I didn't want to work anymore. I basically wanted to stay home and get high. There was quite a bit of turmoil going on with my job as I had suggested a new business plan to the company's CEO and COO and they were quite impressed. Once they adopted my suggestions, my co-workers were not happy with me and I was not satisfied with the level of recognition I had received from the company. So, I had a legitimate reason to want to quit and my husband had just returned home from the war , so we decided that would be the best thing. I could stay home with our son and, hopefully, have our second child.

Also, during this time, the culminating stress of my mother's move to San Diego fueled my need for more and more vicodin. My mother who is a recovering alcoholic had been sober for 2 years. I was proud of her accomplishment and wanted to help her. She had been earning an income by cleaning houses in North Carolina. But, she was getting old, had Hepatitis C and didn’t have enough energy to earn enough money to survive. So, I offered to help her build her business here in San Diego, CA. I wanted her to have a legitimate business with health insurance, employees to do the labor and start saving for a retirement so she wouldn’t have to work the rest of her life. So, we started the business for her and I basically ran it from home while taking care of our 3 year old son. This caused a lot of family tension and stress which, of course, fueled my addiction.

Eventually, I gave up on that too. I just quit and handed the business and all 12 employees over to my mother without a second thought. By this time, I knew the addiction was bad and I was scared. I needed to reduce my stress and stop this stuff before I became pregnant. Soon thereafter, I fell and broke my tailbone! Boy did I enjoy the percocets! But, eventually it was back to vicodin because I didn't know how to get percocets online. Within a couple of months my husband intervened and told me I had to stop this madness. I went to the doctor and partially confessed my sins. She gave me enough vicodin to taper off and started me on Ultram. This was successful, but the cravings were enormous. After a month I ordered online again and within a couple of weeks, I found out I was pregnant!

When I told me doctor I was pregnant she told me to immediately stop taking the ultram. When I told my obstetrician about my chronic pain in my abdomen, he advised that the only thing I could take was vicodin. Oh darn. So, I was prescribed vicodin during my entire pregnancy. Fortunately, I had the moral fortitude to not ever take more than prescribed during the pregnancy. The pregnancy went well and a healthy, happy, baby girl arrived safe and sound. We were so blessed!

Following the c-section, my doctor did not prescribe anything stronger than vicodin. I was livid! I had a huge tolerance to vicodin and my abdomen had just been cut wide open. Even my husband felt sorry for me. So, I told him I was going to order some meds online and that I would stop when our new baby girl, Abby, was in a routine and I was more healed. Well, one order became two, then two orders became three and before I knew it, I needed a prescription of 120 vicodin just to get through the week! I tried to stop on my own using ultram that I also ordered online this time. I just couldn't do it! I was scared out of my mind and all I could think about was how many I had and when I was getting some more.

Then, I saw a Dr. Phil Show about another mother that was doing the EXACT same thing! Dr. Phil told her off, it put the fear of God in me. I heard Dr. Phil tell her that he was going to send her to Florida Detox , a place where they could clean the drugs out of her system under general anesthesia in only a couple of days and then she could return to her family. That was it . . . that was the answer I had been praying for.

I emailed the Dr. Phil Show and a producer contacted me about doing a show. I was reluctant, but continued the dialogue. I started investigating Florida Detox and found that they were using cutting edge technology to diagnose patients' underlying reasons for their addiction. I'm a Psychology Major with a Masters in Education, so I LOVE learning how the brain works so I knew this was the place for me. When I found out how much it cost . . . I was at a loss. We could not afford that, but somehow I was affording a $500 a month habit , crazy, uh? That was the disease doing its magic. My brain was fighting hard to maintain the levels of dopamine that I had been giving it, so rational thought was scarce.

But, somewhere in me, I knew I HAD to do this for my kids and my husband. I was the victim of parents with addictions and divorce. I didn't want that for my kids, so I agreed to do whatever it took to get well. The next thing I knew, the Dr. Phil Show camera crew was at my house filming me and my addiction and how I interacted with my family. They filmed EVERYTHING! I did daily video diaries that documented the pain and torture. The video footage of my destruction is immense. Soon, thereafter I was packing my bags to go to Florida Detox where I would learn about my brain chemistry, be detoxified from the drugs under general anesthesia and my husband would be educated about the disease called addiction.

I soon learned that due to some genetic predispositions and environmental factors, my prefrontal cortex was no longer producing enough dopamine. I learned that I had almost all the factors that could set someone up for addiction. I'm a daughter of an alcoholic from a divorced family. I was raped and molested during my childhood by family friends. I had flirted with disaster in college by binge drinking, but was exercising enough to help with dopamine production. But, when my husband went to war, the stress heightened my perception of the pain and once my brain experienced the opiate for the first time .. I had finally found a way to self medicate so that I could feel like everyone else around me. It all just clicked. Dr. Sponaugle and Florida Detox changed my perceptions of addiction and, more importantly, the perceptions of my husband.

I learned that most addicts are quite intelligent and some have dealt with undiagnosed ADD or ADHD their entire lives. I learned that people with Type A personalities are, more likely than not, have an insufficient amount of dopamine production and are feeding their need for dopamine by taking risks. These risk takers can become amazingly successful in life and, can just as easily, become an addict. It explained why there are a percentage of people that can become addicted after their first use of a drug and how others, with sufficient dopamine and serotonin, can just walk away. I was one of those people. the highly intelligent, Type A go getters that just ran out of go getting and the vicodin simply helped me feel normal. Suddenly, an addict wasn't the stereotypical dirty, homeless, criminal on the street. Instead, it was me and there were millions more like me.

During a lecture that Dr. Sponaugle gave, I sat right across from a man that had recently sold the company he started for $800 Million Dollars. He had just detoxed and wanted to hear the lecture again. We struck up a conversation because he was interested in why all these camera men were following me around. I learned that he had provided his brain enough dopamine by taking risks while growing his million dollar enterprise, but after he sold it and retired . . . he got bored. He also got a $2,000 to $3,000 dollar a week addiction to oxycotin that he was buying off the street. He had spent a quarter of a million dollars in the last year or two on his drug of choice. From CEO to full time addict in only a couple of months.

Stories of addiction are profound and powerful, a true power struggle between good and evil. Fortunately, Dr. Sponaugle and this cutting edge technology saved my life and the lives of my children and their children and so on. I am now treating my chronic pain condition by stimulating dopamine production in my brain via appropriate medications, exercise, a healthy protein diet, hobbies and good deeds. Its only been six months, but I know I never want to go back to where I was and now that I have an intellectual understanding of the process, I am better prepared to fight the demons.


The Dr. Phil Show that Dr. Sponaugle and I were on aired on Friday, October 28th. Because of the opportunity that was given to me by Dr. Phil and Dr. Sponaugle, it is now my life mission to help others suffering through the vicious cycle of addiction. I'm working closely with Dr. Sponaugle and his team at Florida Detox to develop an outreach program that could help to educate addicts and their loved ones about this disease and how it can be treated without suffering the pain of withdrawals. I certainly don't pretend to be an expert or professional . I just want to help.

Cara Barber

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I am writing this not to promote Florida Detox but hoping it will help others with opiate addiction. I highly recommend this program if you have a problem with opiates, including street drugs or prescribed medication. It did for me what other treatment programs didn't. I have been using drugs and alcohol most of my life and overdosed when I was 13. I lived overseas where alcohol and drugs were easy to obtain. Then I enrolled in college; alcohol and drugs ruined my goal of becoming an engineer. I lost a girlfriend of 8 years due to drugs. (Lucky we are still best of friends!) Three years ago I went into a 28 day treatment twice (------------------- Hospital, Tampa FL) and it failed, but I learned the tools to quit with the help of motivation, AA and the treatment program. I was clean and sober for almost 3 years, which were the most productive and happy years of my life. Then things changed and my life was going downhill effecting everyone, especially my best friend (girlfriend) and my family. I went to the dentist who over prescribed Vicodin ? (just for a laugh it was 30ES Vicodin with 10 refills! Which by Florida law only allows 5 refills) I was having invasive surgery and lots of painful procedures done in which I did need something for pain. It wasn't to long before I was down to one class from four. I do not drink anymore but had a problem with opiates. School started August 2000 and I was in treatment at ---------------- Hospital four times without success. They use a new drug called Bupornex, which was not available three years ago. My new girlfriend remembered a newspaper article about a state of art treatment called Florida Detox. It was shown live on TV on the Ricky Lake Show. With some research there are four locations in North America that uses this procedure, which is the most advanced detox procedure in North America. One is not too far from where I live. Without getting into details (which you can see on their website) I have been off opiates for almost two months now. Unlike ----------------- Hospital, every employee was friendly and courteous. I was treated with dignity. Dr. Rick Sponaugle and his assistant "Rose" have gone out of their way to listen to me and help me. I was prescribed medication to help with any discomfort after the procedure, which was basically painless. I very much recommend him and if you have any questions, need help or would just like to talk e-mail me at Robert@aworldaway.com. I would be happy to talk. Life is too short and valuable to waste with drugs.