
Opioid abuse and overdose have reached epidemic proportions throughout the United States, where opioids are among the leading causes of drug-related death. California has experienced many problems with narcotic painkillers and heroin abuse associated with prescription drugs. In Pico Rivera, California, one of the numerous cities throughout Los Angeles County, opioid abuse impacts many people.
In 2009-2010, opioids were the leading cause of drug-related death in Los Angeles County. Out of 923 accidental drug poisoning deaths, opiates were the first cause listed. Between 2009 and 2010, an estimated 3.8% of high school students tried heroin at least once. In that same period, there were 7,085 people admitted to publicly funded treatment programs in Los Angeles County specifically because of heroin abuse.1
Between 2009 and 2013, more than 14 million prescriptions for opioid narcotics were issued in Los Angeles County, and about 5.2% of the adults reported misusing or abusing prescription drugs.2 The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) reports that widespread abuse of prescription opioid painkillers has secondarily led to increased heroin abuse around the country. As many people no longer have easy access to opioid prescriptions, they may turn to heroin, which is cheaper and easier to find. Nearly 80% of people who struggle with heroin abuse today started by misusing or abusing a prescription opioid painkiller.3
Opioid addiction requires evidence-based treatment. Call our helpline today if you struggle with abuse of these drugs or have a loved one who struggles with narcotic addiction. Our recovery advisors are on hand to assist you.
[1]. County of Los Angeles Public Health. Fact Sheet: Drug Use and Misuse in Los Angeles County. 2009-2010.
[2]. County of Los Angeles Public Health. (2013). Prescription Drug Abuse in Los Angeles County: Background and Recommendations for Action.
[3]. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). Prescription Opioids and Heroin. (2018). Prescription Opioid Use Is a Factor for Heroin Use.











this place literally SAVED my life! Carla and the staff is absolutley amazing.
HIGHLY recommend BNI. Nothing else had worked for us…until BNI. Our son recently completed his treatment at BNI and is finally back with our family. Not only do we have our son back, but thanks to BNI, we have our family back. * Two years ago, our family moved. While my husband and I were busy setting up a new home and navigating the logistics of a more remote life, our beautiful, gifted son began to struggle. We assumed the changes in his mood, behavior, and appearance were due to teenage hormones and the challenge of being “the new kid” in a small town where everyone had grown up together and looked like each other and not like him. Prior to our relocation and unbeknownst to us, our son had been given prescription pills from well-meaning friends who had themselves taken or seen family members take prescriptive medications for anxiety and depression. Secretly, for months, our son self-medicated. Feelings of guilt began to mount, as did his fear of discovery. Once the pills were gone, our son spiraled deeper and began engaging in harmful behaviors—including self-harm, substance abuse, and suicide attempt. As the downward spiral of our son became ever more evident, we felt even more helpless. Like many others—perhaps you who are reading this now—we got our son a therapist. It felt unbelievable—surreal to twilight zone to nightmare. Our son who had scored in the 99th percentile of standardized tests and had his whole life been the favorite among peers, teachers, and adults was unraveling. He began failing classes; he was caught cheating; other parents and adults in our new community began accusing our son of drinking and stealing. Where there was once a happy and thriving boy of exceptional aptitude and sensitivity, there was now a sullen stranger who was so unpredictable, our entire family felt hostage in our own home. * After our son was suspended for possession, we enrolled him into a substance abuse program…and when things didn’t get better, our son was enrolled into IOP (intensive outpatient). Our son continued to struggle, so we added more therapists and more therapy. Despite all the efforts, our son continued to hurt. One day, one of his therapists called us and informed us that we needed to pick him up from therapy and take him to E.R. for SI (suicide ideation) with plan. The E.R. doctor who treated our son recommended hospitalization. Our son was gurney’d from E.R. to the mental health ward of the hospital. After two weeks, the hospital came to the conclusion that our son required a higher level of care; Deafening mic-drop. A higher level of care than the mental health ward of a hospital?! Among the flood of thoughts and emotions was the fear that if over a year of intense therapies with multiple therapists + an IOP program, and now a team of hospital doctors, therapists and nurses couldn’t help our son, what chance did anyone have? It felt like our entire family was being sucked into a vacuous, deep black hole and we were being crushed from the intense pressure. Worse, it seemed like we were reaching a point of no return. Everyone we knew was praying for our family. . . and then, we got a call pointing us to BNI. * Fast forward to today: Our family is once again in a happy place. Our meals are filled with bright conversation with our children overflowing with excited anecdotes and playful humor. It’s such a simple thing—family togetherness—but once you’ve had it and then had to live without it, having it back makes you swell up with happiness…and admittedly, tear-up from emotions. * More about our experience with BNI: BNI was and is amazing. Perhaps it is because BNI is doctor-owned and operated, but the level of care from BNI is lightyears beyond any care that our son had previously received. Not to say that the various doctors, IOP, hospitalization, therapies, and therapists before BNI were bad, they just weren’t as effective as BNI—not by a long shot. When I first reached-out to BNI, they *immediately* called me back. I’d made several inquiries to at least a dozen other RTCs (residential treatment centers) / in-patient programs with lackluster results, so I was especially impressed by BNI’s responsiveness. Still, given our history of disappointments, I was cautious not to get my hopes up. I didn’t know it then, but BNI’s stellar handling from the beginning was just the start of BNI’s superlative care. Those first days, while we were still in the hospital, BNI ‘handheld’ me through the registration process and even before our son was admitted into BNI, BNI staff began actively and proactively assisting and advocating for our son and family. We were especially shocked when a BNI psychiatrist made himself available to us BEFORE we were at BNI and WHILE he was traveling abroad! BNI is thoroughly committed to their clients. Within the first 48hrs of contact with BNI, the BNI doctors and staff already seemed to know more about our son than the staff where our son been hospitalized for two solid weeks. We are forever grateful that the BNI doctors helped us pushback when the hospital aggressively insisted that our son be given heavy sedating medications at a dosage that did not seem to make sense—especially given our son’s diagnosis and history of substance abuse. * Our son entering BNI and our son post-BNI are almost unrecognizable as the same human being. BNI opened their doors to a boy in obvious distress—sunken, scarred and shaky. Through the course of treatment, our bright, witty and sensitively thoughtful son was not just returned to life, but—and I cannot believe I am going to say this—actually improved from having gone through the entire experience. I never imagined I would ever see a silver lining to all the chaos and agony of the last two years, but looking at our son, listening to him talk, watching how he conducts himself and interacts with the world and people around him, it’s undeniable that this experience has been formative. BNI helped rebuild our son and it shows. He’s once again making long-term plans and is committed to his academic and future success. He went from having to drop classes and multiple “F”s to finishing his academic year with a B+ average! He is the picture of youthful energy and health—a glowing young man with obvious promise of being the sort of adult who is self-possessed and wise beyond his years and a valuable asset to those fortunate enough to cross his path. * We are post-BNI, but BNI will always be a part of our family. Our son’s primary doctors have been and continue to be involved and impactful. I don’t know how to thank them enough, nor endorse them adequately. If your child / loved one / family is suffering, call BNI. See what they have to say. And if they have space available, consider it a gift.
I was hesitant to go into inpatient treatment, but boy was I wrong to worry. To a person everyone working at The House is earnestly invested and involved in helping clients recover. Sure I had some staff who I had friction with, but I always felt my recovery took precedence over personality differences. Bedding and infrastructure is a bit handed down and scuffed up, but everything is clean, as are the public and shared personal spaces. I did not have one bad meal in 2 months- NOT ONE !!! Amaaazing Latin American home cooked food that was healthy and tasted really really good. Alameda county decided I didn’t need 90 days and clients told me they could hear my counselor fighting for me to get a full program. That moved me- that I wasn’t just another meatbag to them, even if I am to the government…I give El Chante TEN out of five STARS !!!
The city of Pico Rivera offers a number of valuable programs to families in need of help for substance abuse. Helpline Youth Counseling, Whole Child and the L.A. Center for Alcohol and Drug Abuse provide free or affordable recovery resources to adults and children in this area. But how can you keep your kids from experimenting with drugs or alcohol when the surrounding culture presents so many opportunities for substance abuse?
*How Do I Know if My Child Needs Rehab?
Making the decision to enter a child or teenager in a treatment center in Pico Rivera is never easy, but in some cases, it may be hard to tell whether rehabilitation is really the most effective way to address the problem. According to the Mayo Clinic, your child may have a serious problem with drugs if they:
Choosing the right treatment facility for a loved one is easier when you can rely on advice from a qualified addiction specialist. There are many different treatment options in Los Angeles County, and finding the best way to help a child recover from substance abuse takes a lot of research. Contact us for referrals to drug rehab centers for kids and adolescents in Pico Rivera.