News Archive
REPORTER: Chris Woodard
Twitter: @cwoodardnews
It's dangerous and out of control. The heroin epidemic is exploding in southern Wisconsin and more and more innocent people are being put at risk.
Many people are finding themselves in harms way and those putting them there, those who find themselves sucked into the addictive downward spiral, are far from your stereotypical dirt bag druggie.
23-year-old recovering addict John Howard says, "It just keeps getting younger and younger."
Reese says she got into legal issues because of her heroin usage, saying, "It's outta control. There's no way to control it. Once you do it, there's no going back." She adds, "At first, I was forced into sobriety, but then I got a taste of what it should be, how good it can be."
She's been working with Connections Counseling, a center that specializes in treating young adults with addictions.
They've expanded into a new building, mainly because of the growing number of opiate users. Counselors say they've seen at least 100 more patients coming in a year with opiate addiction.
Counselor Skye Tikkanen says, "Prevention is a really key piece in this, also more treatment. It's hard for people to access treatment right now, especially with the numbers of people who are addicted."
MADISON (WKOW) - By Greg Neumann
Based on the school's own statistics, drinking is a way of life at UW-Madison.
When Wisconsin women lead the nation in chronic drinking, why don’t we hear more about it? A look at the silence surrounding substance abuse, and the three local women working for change
By Meagan Parrish
Connections Counseling: A chief executive heals herself
Shelly Dutch has come a long way in life, but she’d be the first to tell you she didn’t do it alone.
A recovering cocaine addict, Dutch knows better than most the importance of a support system, and so when she started Connections Counseling, an outpatient substance abuse and mental health clinic, in 2003, it was clear that it would be a commitment, not just a business.
The Dane County Small Business Awards (DCSBA) is now in its 29th year. The DCSBA celebrate small businesses and the contributions they make to our communities and economy. The 2011 awards breakfast was held June 10, 2011 at the Sheraton Madison Hotel.
Connections Counseling was one of 10 Companies Recognized in 2011
It's a drug fueling crime and killing kids, the addiction so powerful people will do anything to feed their habit.
"It's a long, dark, dark road."
At only 17 years old Amy is a recovering Heroin addict.
She says, "Eventually I was just like the gross junkies that I thought I would never be."
At 13-years-old the drinking and drugs started. The first time she did Oxycontin was at 16 on a school lunch break.
FELONY DRUG CHARGES
Dane County prosecutors are increasingly filing felony drug charges against people who have had drug overdoses.
2005: 9
2006: 4
2007: 1
2008: 3
2009: 11
2010: 24
The Office of the Dean of Students awarded Connections Counseling two awards for excellence of services provided to UW-Madison students. The two awards awarded:
Partnership Award: Connections Counseling
It's an all too familiar story -- young people hooked on substances that destroy their lives and tear apart families. But there is hope.
