New York, NY (1888PressRelease) March 21, 2008 - Have years of relentless fear-mongering and economic uncertainty lead Americans into an epidemic of drug and alcohol abuse?
Stephen Della Valle, author of the new addiction and recovery memoir Rising Above the Influence, sees a correlation. “Turn on the news and all you see is war, terrorism, politicians talking about recession, and the personal tragedies that have become part of our everyday lives,” he says. “It’s no wonder that people are looking for an escape from reality.”
While the media’s focus on sensational and disturbing stories is nothing new, these days, it seems to be reaching the absolute limits of human tolerance. Could it be a coincidence that as our national anxiety builds, so do the statistics relating to substance abuse in America?
Illicit drug use has risen ten percent over the last twenty years. To cope with the increasingly depressing state of the world, people are turning to the following drugs in record numbers:
· Marijuana: 14 million+ users
· Prescription drugs: 6 million+ users
· Cocaine: 2 million+ users
· Hallucinogens: 1 million+ users
· Inhalants: 600,000+ users
· Heroin: 100,000+ users
“We’re vulnerable,” says Mr. Della Valle. “Especially since 9/11, Americans have felt scared and uneasy. Unfortunately, we’re succumbing to our own worst fears and going down a path that can only lead to ruin.”
Stephen Della Valle is president of the board of directors at Turning Point rehabilitation center in Verona, New Jersey. Currently celebrating twenty years of sobriety, he lives in Oak Ridge, New Jersey, with his wife, Donna. He has three children.
Rising Above the Influence is available now (ISBN: 0-9801776-0-X; softcover; Oak Ridge Press) on Amazon.com, Borders.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and at fine bookstores everywhere.
Are America’s Fears Leading To Drug Addiction? 
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