As a former federal law enforcement officer, I repeatedly watched people who struggled with addictions get caught up in committing crimes leading to their incarceration.
I’m not talking about the violent drug cartel members who have killed tens of thousands of people. I’m not talking about the legal pharmaceutical companies who have betrayed our trust by pushing medications they know are addictive and harmful. Both groups need to be pursued legally where appropriate.
I’m talking about the people who, as my friend Shane Garrard regularly said, are seeking a physical response to an emotional pain. And let’s be clear, a lot of people have a lot of emotional pain.
Before we get too judgmental about people who use illegal drugs, let’s remember two things: 1) we legalized alcohol for the purpose of soothing our emotional pain, and 2) there was a time when illegal drugs were …. legal.
Look, it’s a complicated issue with emotionally charged issues on all sides. We have lost countless people to addiction and we have lost hundreds of law enforcement officers trying to enforce the drug laws.
My work for the past few years has been to find ways to reduce the trauma that often manifests itself throughout our lives. Generational trauma related to or manifested by addiction is definitely on the list.
When people feel burned out, stressed out, and left out they are much more likely to seek comfort from artificial, illicit, and pharmaceutical substances.
I’ve seen trauma result in too many kids encountering the juvenile justice system; too many women (usually) who are subjected to domestic violence; and too many police officers who see no other option except for suicide.
At the heart of most, if not all, of these challenges is trauma that is connected to or exacerbated by narcotics. Why would we continue the cycle of making criminals out of people who are seeking what should be medically supervised solutions?
Are there consequences to one’s actions? Absolutely. However, the consequences are much less and the options for successful outcomes much higher when we are willing to see the world for how it is, not how we pretend it to be.
It’s a paradigm shift. It can be painful, but that doesn’t mean it’s not also profitable and potentially the prevailing means for improving our world.
If we are intellectually honest with ourselves, we should be willing to listen to ideas, have hard conversations, and engage with ideas. This is an idea worth exploring.
To continue reading, please click here: Would Ending the War on Drugs End Childhood Trauma?
I speak and train on the topic of discovering how the framework of trauma, trust, and hope is the key to impactful leadership. If you would like to know more, please visit my website mrchrisfreeze.com.
Photo of Skull and Crossbones by Colin Davis on Unsplash.
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