to the editor: Wow, front page press on addiction and mental health (“The Reiner family's tragedy sheds light on the pain of families struggling with addiction.” December 17). I'm impressed. Thank you, Los Angeles Times, for shedding light on what is a silent killer for families across America.
My grandmother lived in state psychiatric hospitals in Camarillo and Norwalk. My father is a mentally ill drug addict, my sister is a mentally ill drug addict, and the cycle continued. I have seen a decline in services over the last 40 years, starting with President Reagan in the 80's. It is what contributes to much of our homeless population. Families become exhausted and run out of options.
We suffer alone, we give our lives.
Let's stop ignoring the problem that millions of families need help with by creating quality rehabilitation programs and services and funding research for this complex disease.
Debbie Ficarra, La Crescenta
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to the editor: The Reiner family tragedy highlights the fact that too many American families are dealing with the endless scourge of addiction, whether it involves drugs or alcohol. Our so-called “war on drugs” has been an abysmal failure for various reasons.
One has to wonder what our nation would look like if we devoted anti-drug resources to unraveling the corrosive web of destruction created by alcohol and drug addiction. Imagine if we, as a society, committed to eradicating drug and alcohol abuse and addiction, as we do with cancer, infectious diseases, and tobacco? Allocate money and resources to building rehabilitation centers, increasing research on innovative therapies for drug addiction, and hiring more mental health rehabilitation professionals. That could be a much more effective approach than our current strategy.
Robin Gemmill, Burbank
