Heroin Addiction Case Study: Juan Medina

Great Essays
Section 1: Introduction Patient Demographic Information Juan Medina is a 23 year old male presenting to treatment for heroin addiction. Currently he is living with his girlfriend and young son. He attended school until 10th grade where a combination of poor academic performance and a learning disability lead Juan to drop out of school. Limited by his lack of academic achievement Juan has had trouble holding down a job. To earn money Juan has turned to his cohorts in the local gang. He sells drugs and steals for the gang in order to support his family. (Addiction Case Studies, n.d) Juan first began using alcohol at the age of 12 and by the age of 13 he was using marijuana. He has continued to use both alcohol and marijuana into adulthood. On occasion Juan uses heroin and when he stops the use of heroin he will experience mild withdrawal symptoms. However, Juan has avoided using heroin on a regular basis. This is the first time Juan has sought treatment for his drug abuse problems. The treatment is court ordered and Juan must successfully complete treatment instead of going to jail for possession of heroin. (Addiction Case Studies, n.d)
Section 2: Applications of the Social Model The suggested treatment protocol for
…show more content…
Juan’s and his mother show codependency. Since Juan is the only child that remains nearby she puts all her attention on him. Juan’s mother also seems to be trying to make amends for working so much as Juan grew up. Whenever Juan asks for money his mother is always there to supply what she can. She has picked him up in the middle of the night from parties when he was too intoxicated to make it home. She is often at Juan’s home dropping off food, preparing meals, and taking care of Juan when he is sick from heroin withdrawal. As Juan continues in his treatment if will be importance to break this codependency cycle. (Thombs & Osborn,

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    PO Summary

    • 320 Words
    • 2 Pages

    PO is referred to ASAM Level 3.5 inpatient treatment services at ABHS with Co-Occurring disorder Program. PO is recommended to re-engage Spectrum for Intensive Outpatient treatment upon successful completion of inpatient treatment. PO will benefit from developing and building sober social support and gaining insight and knowledge to minimize relapse potential and improve chances at long term sobriety. PO will benefit from learning skills/strategies to cope with social pressure, interpersonal conflicts, anger issues, and addictive behavior. PO has a high potential for relapse due to her pattern of frequent interpersonal conflicts.…

    • 320 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Cameron Group topic: Understanding Addiction PO attended group on time and moderately participated in the group activities. PO learned the definition of addiction, the addiction process, and the different types of substance(s) withdrawal symptoms. PO shared his substance use experience with peers, and identified reasons to stay clean and sober. PO completed the weekly treatment progress, which indicated he attended 2 sober meetings last week. Verification was provided.…

    • 763 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    First of all, the biological effects of addiction are shown very clearly through the health issues both Terry and Leon face due to their addiction. Both face very severe health consequences, and a very high possibility of death. Psychological effects surrounding addiction are apparent in the change of the attitudes of both Leon and Terry. Terry’s addiction, and the surrounding variables, has led her to believe that her life has no value, and as long as her outer appearance isn’t ruined, she doesn’t care what occurs on the inside. Leon’s addiction, and his father’s potential disowning of him, leads him to feel like a lost cause with no value left.…

    • 730 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Neither John, Gwen, nor Miguel began taking drugs with the intension of harming others. Nor were they aggressive or abusive by nature. Yet their long-term substance abuse harmed others, including family members, friends, and the communities in which they lived. John’s substance abuse had negative consequences for his family and community. During his senior year of high school, however, he began smoking marijuana and drinking with his buddies.…

    • 932 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Lady Q Analysis

    • 1296 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Her household from a young age was in constant conflict with violence, and drugs through both her parents. Her father sold drugs, and her mother was always clashing with her father, and sometimes they took out their frustration on their children. Sonia Rodriguez’s’ life was missing the structural functionalism of the love of her parents, and the care that she needs to have a functional home life. In class we described how society is a human organism that needs multiple services to survive, the examples given were school government, faith, legal system, but there also needs to be some support. The family structure usually takes care of the role of support, providing protection, and teaching a child.…

    • 1296 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    As the time goes on Chiron finds himself back at Juan’s house, he opens up about the bullying that he is facing and how the boys his age constantly call him a faggot, and how he knows that Juan sells drugs to his mother, Paula. Despite that Juan and Theresa become a staple in Chiron’s life, they become a second family to him.…

    • 504 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Theodore has tried: rehab, jail, and detox and each time he wasn’t successful with his battle against his addiction. His addiction has stood in his way more than one time. Therefore, his addictive lifestyle made his life very difficult. Although Theodore hasn’t given up his fight for his sobriety, and with the help support of his family, he is steps closer to winning the fight for his life. He was later accepted into a program that helped people fight addiction, and at first, Theodore was reluctant to even try.…

    • 781 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Bobbie Research Paper

    • 1825 Words
    • 8 Pages

    With this model, it stands firm in believing that the therapeutic goal is to completely expunge addiction from one’s life and the person must never use that substance again. The harm-reduction simply does not see addiction solely as a disease. Under this model, it is assumed that addiction is rather a pattern of behaviors proposed by a combination of socio-cultural and psychological processes. It asserts that with psychological interventions the behavior of an individual can be modified and it ultimately helps them regain control over their…

    • 1825 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In fact, only his mother is aware of their father’s health. The siblings are wrapped up with their own priorities to pay attention to their father’s well being. Rodriguez’s mother recognizes her husband’s poor health as she is not blinded by the glamours of wealth, like Rodriguez's siblings. Rodriguez’s language and choice of his details showcases how the American Dream of material success has damaged his parent’s relationship with their…

    • 1352 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Ronnie Wilson Case Study

    • 1186 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Identifying as African American, “Ronnie Wilson” is a twenty-two year old male from the city of San Antonio, Tx. but as resided in the small town of San Augustine for fifteen years. Ronnie is single and has never been married but has voluntarily sought treatment from our facility due to his diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) which has ultimately led to his abuse of the drug Heroin. Although he wouldn’t go into much detail about his dealer or where he receives his supply, Ronnie states that the drug is fairly easy to come by and has never had any “run ins with the law” during the times he has abused the substance in the past. When asked how long he has been addicted to Heroin, Ronnie stated that he began using the drug at the age of 19 after being introduced to the substance by a friend at a house party.…

    • 1186 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On Macbeth Addiction

    • 1485 Words
    • 6 Pages

    It could destroy families, friendships, and maybe even careers. A person will do almost anything for it and may not even know what they are doing, it is addiction. When you get addicted to something the body craves it and once a person does what the body is craving, it releases large amounts of neurotransmitter dopamine into the brains’ reward system (“What is addiction?” Par. 6). There are two main types of addiction, substance related and behavioral related addictions.…

    • 1485 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Heroin Epidemic The current heroin epidemic is just as bad and just as scary as the cocaine epidemic. The epidemics have their similarities, however, they have many differences as well. The heroin epidemic started in America around 2013. From 2003 to 2013 the amount of heroin-related deaths had already risen an astonishing 286 percent, and those numbers have not slowed down. Heroin is currently the cheapest its been in a long time which means that it is a drug almost anyone has access to.…

    • 1201 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Incarceration, Weapon of War Kevin Pedraza California State University, Long Beach Abstract The United States war on drugs has had catastrophic effects on mothers, and ethnic minorities. These effects have resulted in the oppression of an already marginalized group, through mass incarceration. Piper Kerman witnesses the various adverse effects, these policies have inflicted on her fellow inmates.…

    • 1126 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Addiction To Heroin Essay

    • 1536 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Heroin Some people carry addictions as if it were a secret. They wouldn’t look like your typical drug addict. They were clean, took care of their kids, and lived life as if it were normal. That’s what Beth’s story was like. She was was your typical mom with beautiful children and a normal life.…

    • 1536 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Next, in the case study of Ryan, a repeated substance abuse, since the age of 12, began with marijuana and alcohol in his adolescent years, to pills and codeine medications for self-medicating. Nevertheless, Ryan abused drugs to numb his feelings because of his parents’ divorce at such an early age. In any case, Ryan's substance use transferred from his adolescence all the way up to his adulthood, which instituted a compulsive use of harder drugs for self-medicating for a greater high. All things considered, Ryan attempted sobriety on his own and participated in various levels of treatments such as residential treatment, intensive outpatient treatment, detoxification, and individual therapy all to which did not keep him from abstaining, from…

    • 133 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays