Chase Morgan knew he had a substance abuse problem the morning he woke up choking on his own vomit, his mother crying as she tried to turn him over so he wouldn't drown in his own fluids.
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"That's when I knew, 16-year-olds don't do this,” said Morgan, now 19. "I felt like a ghost. I knew I had a problem, but I wasn't sure what I was going to do about it.”
Luckily for Morgan, who grew up in Oklahoma City and now lives in Mustang, his mother had a plan.
She and a counselor staged an intervention and sent Morgan to Hazel Street Recovery Center, an in-patient treatment center for teenagers in Texarkana, Texas. The program is one piece of a treatment puzzle that Mike Boss hopes is making a difference.
Boss is the co-founder of Oklahoma Outreach, an outpatient treatment program for drug and alcohol-addicted youths.
Boss decided he wanted to be an addiction counselor after recovering from his own addictions in 1983.
"I was the same maniac these kids were when I was young,” Boss said.
Through his work with Oklahoma Outreach, Boss discovered the need for a comprehensive inpatient treatment in Oklahoma.
"I was sending kids to 30-day treatment programs, most of which were out of state,” Boss said. "I realized that just wasn't a long enough stay for a young person to get their needs met in treatment.”
His answer was Hazel Street, for boys, and Four Winds Ranch, for girls, in Guthrie. The minimum stay at the centers is three months, with many attending six to eight months.
Morgan said his mom tried getting him outpatient counseling, but he found loopholes.
"I managed to get around the drug testing doing whatever I could do,” Morgan said.
At Hazel Street, there was no way around confronting his problem. Morgan said he had a "moment of clarity” where he realized he belonged in the program and was meant to turn his life around.
After a five-month stay at Hazel Street, he did just that.
Boss said there is a stunning lack of inpatient treatment for teens, and in particular for those who come from poor families.
"Even though we are one of the more affordable treatment centers in the country, it's still expensive,” Boss said.
Inpatient treatment at Hazel Street or Four Winds Ranch runs $200 to $275 a day. With a minimum stay of three months, the cost can run $18,000 to nearly $25,000.
Boss said many inpatient programs across the country run $500 a day. Many health care plans cover drug treatment, but those without insurance or the means to get a student loan for their children have few options.
An offshoot of Oklahoma Outreach, the nonprofit Oklahoma Outreach Foundation, is trying to help.
Boss' goal is to help every child who needs it.
Looking back at the last night he took a drink, Chase said he'd likely be dead if he hadn't gotten that help.
"Every time I think about that night, it just leaves me thinking how grateful I am to be alive now and be sober,” Morgan said.
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Substance abuse isn't a disease! It's a behavior. It's something you do, not something you catch. I am not going to be any more likely to catch substance abuse from someone then to catch darker skin from an African American.
Thank you to the Oklahoman for shedding light on this subject. We need more treatment options like Hazelstreet and Four Winds for young teens. As the mother of one of the kids you featured, I know first hand the sheer terror a parent feels when they realize their child is in the grip of a disease that can take them at a minute's notice. My son understands what he needs to do today to live a life of recovery. I am so proud of him. He struggled for four years on his own as his disease progressively got worse. Eventually I recognized he wasn't going to be able to beat it on his own. It's a family disease and he and I both needed more help. If I had not put him in treatment, he would be dead today. I don't regret for a minute making the decision to place him in treatment. It was money well spent and I would do it again. It gave him the opportunity to get the help he needed. Today, he is sober and alive because of his own faith and determination, the grace of God and the help of remarkable people like Mike Boss at Oklahoma Outreach. Again, thank you to the Daily Oklahoman for providing this incredible opportunity for more dialog on a very misunderstood subject.
Again, these kids need to realize they have to get past their addictions on their own. If they rely on others, they will relapse. Besides, $18,000 to $25,000 for treatment? All they are paying for is an environment with no alcohol or drugs, and someone that talks to them. They can do that for free by themselves.
Chase Morgan, right, and Mike Boss talk about various treatment programs available for teenagers with substance abuse problems. Morgan said an in-patient program founded by Boss saved his life. THE OKLAHOMAN
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Thank you for joining our conversations on NewsOK.com. We encourage your discussions but ask that you stay within the bounds of our terms and conditions. Please help us by reporting comments that violate these guidelines. To review our rules of engagement, go to Commenting and posting policy.
Leave a comment. Log in below or sign up (it's free).Editor's note: It is not our intent to offer comments on crime or fatality stories.
Linda Morgan