Las Cruces, New Mexico has a population of  74,267 with an average household size of 2.46¹ and is located in Doña Ana County. Las Cruces is the center of an agricultural region irrigated by the Rio Grande River which flows just west of the city. It's nestled in the fertile Mesilla Valley between the Organ Mountains and the Rio Grande. The City has 350 days of sunshine per year.

Las Cruces is home to the New Mexico State University which was founded in 1888. The White Sands Missile Range has made the defense industry a key part of the economy.

Money Magazine called Las Cruces one of the "Best College Towns to Retire" and AARP calls it one of their "Dream Towns" to retire. Las Cruces also has an ongoing drug problem.

Las Cruces New Mexico's Drug Source
The DEA (The US Drug Enforcement Administration)² reports that  Marijuana is the most frequently controlled substance that is seized in the New Mexico area and are generally destined for distribution in eastern markets. Marijuana loads seized from private vehicles and semi-tractor-trailers range from 500 to 8,000 pounds.

Cocaine is readily available for distribution throughout New Mexico in gram to ounce quantities for local consumption. Local law enforcement authorities consistently rank cocaine and crack cocaine distribution and use as one of the most prominent drug problems.

There is ample availability of crack cocaine throughout New Mexico. In smaller municipalities, such as Hobbs and Silver City, crack cocaine use and distribution is at a level that is considered dangerous to the quality of life. The majority of the crack available comes from cocaine HCl supplied by MDTOs (Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations) to local crack distributors who then convert the powder cocaine into crack. Ethnic gangs are the primary distributors of crack cocaine in urban areas posing a threat to school children. Street level distributors can be found in all social and economic layers of the community. Of special concern is the high level of violence associated with crack cocaine traffickers.

Heroin is most commonly smuggled in secret compartments in private vehicles and concealed on persons. In Albuquerque, Mexican black tar heroin is the most readily available and widely abused. The heroin is usually carried across the border by couriers. Northern New Mexico has a high availability of Mexican black tar heroin and is a major problem for local law enforcement agencies. Heroin availability has shown a steady increase over the past five years as evidenced by the increase in kilogram seizures and a steady decrease in price. An area north of Santa Fe known as the Espanola Valley is consistently rated by the U.S. Department of Health and other statistical reporting agencies as having the highest per capita heroin overdose death rate in United States.

Methamphetamine poses a multi-pronged threat in this region. It is available in multi-kilogram quantities. While clandestine lab seizures in New Mexico have dropped precipitously over the last year (- 200% according to statistics obtained from the Clandestine Laboratory Seizure System), referral seizures involving Mexican produced methamphetamine have risen dramatically at Border Patrol Checkpoints and highway interdiction stops. The majority of methamphetamine seized originates in Mexico, but arrives in New Mexico from distributors in Los Angeles, CA and Phoenix, AZ operating as part of larger Mexican poly-drug trafficking organizations. Methamphetamine investigations are especially prevalent in the area known as the Four Corners region where the states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah meet to form a common border and along the eastern New Mexico/Texas border. Popular in the area are small, clandestine laboratories set up in remote, rural locations.

MDMA (ecstasy), Ketamine, LSD, and GHB are available in New Mexico, primarily in Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Rave parties are held routinely in the area, often in remote locations on U.S. Forest Service lands. Attempts to infiltrate these parties have been moderately successful, resulting in several arrests of low level dealers. Interdiction seizures account for the bulk of club drugs and hallucinogens seized. The majority of these seizures originate in the Los Angeles and Phoenix areas.

The diversion of prescription drugs continues to be a significant enforcement issue. Illegal or improper prescription practices are the primary source for illegally obtained prescription drugs, primarily in the oxycodone/hydrocodone families. Interdiction efforts also indicate that prescription drug smuggling from Mexico, where these drugs can be sold over the counter, contributes to the illegal distribution of prescription medications. Compounding this issue is the state's severe shortage of qualified medical personnel forcing state authorities to grant prescriptive authority to practitioners not licensed in other states. New Mexico has recently become one of the few states to grant prescribing authority to psychologists who have no medical or pharmaceutical training.

The Dwindling Spiral Will Continue
One thing is for certain, for a drug addict, the dwindling spiral will continue on its downward path unless action is taken. NOW is the time to do something before the addicted person winds up in jail or dead of an overdose or accident. Unfortunately past failed attempts to overcome addiction only further depress the individual so it comes as no surprise that fear and hesitation. 
In the city of Las Cruces, there is an increased need for effective drug and alcohol rehab and addiction treatment centers as drug and alcohol use continues to escalate. Drug use erodes the quality of life not only for the user, but for their families and communities. Marriages and families are torn apart by mistrust, betrayal, fear and anger. Careers are ruined; companies lose millions of dollars in lost production time; cities and suburbs become degraded by the increased crime and violence that goes with drug trafficking and drug addiction. To do nothing for the addict, should not be an option. Something can be done; help is available.

The Damage to Society
In the State of New Mexico, and specifically in the city of Las Cruces, the effects of drug and alcohol abuse goes way past the the damage done to the addicts themselves. In terms of time lost on the job, to the health system inundated by illness and overdoses to communities harmed by the crime rate caused by addicts looking to steal anything in order to get their next fix, to families living a nightmare as they watch helplessly as their loved one goes further down the chutes. The rollercoaster of emotions, concern and anger seems like a never ending  ride the abuser puts his friends and family through. Failures in the past with drug rehab centers further numb the addict to any hope of a future without drugs. It truly can appear hopeless.

Las Cruces and Area Drug-Related News Stories
»Grand jury indicts three on drug charges
»Police seize 36 pounds of pot

Treatment Center Changes Needed
Just in the state of New Mexico, there are many different types of drug rehab and treatment facilities. In the United States, there are thousands of drug rehab and treatment centers. Of course the common goal of all addiction treatment programs is to help end addiction for the individual. In New Mexico and across the United States, a variety of techniques and methods are being used. Some of the well known treatment methods in New Mexico include the twelve step method, relapse prevention, one-on-one counseling, drug rehabilitation, behavioral modification, cognitive therapy, support groups, sober living, therapeutic communities, AA , NA, inpatient, and outpatient drug rehab programs. There are many types of treatment centers available in New Mexico, so making a decision can be difficult. Unfortunately, many uninformed people in New Mexico go from rehab to rehab looking for the one that is right for them.
In New Mexico, there are many attempts being made to meet the needs of drug addicts, but statistics show success rates to be dismally low. What is needed and wanted is a drug treatment which not only handles physical addiction, but finds the underlying reasons why a person turns to drugs in order to free the person forever. What New Mexico addicts, alcoholics and their family, friends and loved ones need is a real and effective drug rehab treatment center. One where they are not on a time schedule or use other drugs to get the addict off the original drugs. The addict needs a reliable proven program where when they are done, their drug addiction is a thing of the past and they are now able to live full productive lives free of the stronghold of drugs or alcohol.

Choosing a Drug Rehab and Addiction Treatment Program
What should the goal be of a drug rehab center? Clean and sober for 30 days? While that might be a good short term goal, many treatment centers and 12 step programs still leave the drug addict fighting a continuing battle with addiction. Once an addict always an addict; or it's a mental disorder they can do nothing about. When choosing a drug rehab center for yourself or a loved one from Las Cruces, New Mexico, it is important to become educated on the different types of drug rehab and what the end results are. 

Should the Drug Rehab Location Matter When it Comes to Finding a Solution to Addiction?
Drug and alcohol addiction typically involves habitual routines in the environmental scope of the individual, i.e. the locations of their drug or alcohol use, the people they associated with in the activities of drug or alcohol use, etc. Drug or alcohol addiction is not just drug and alcohol use, it revolves around people and things in their immediate environment which help to trigger the addictive behavior. The abusers location & routines of drug and alcohol use further trigger drug and alcohol use. It is the constant and seemingly unstoppable drug or alcohol use and the hopelessness of day to day existence which perpetuates the problem and inhibits the native desire to stop ruining their life through the use of drugs and alcohol.

The above factor should not be over looked when considering a treatment center location. The first 2 weeks of treatment are always the most difficult & There many factors at work to make this so. In addition to what has been covered above, a more basic factor is this; people are creatures of habit.

Drug or alcohol addiction is not just drug and alcohol use, it revolves around people and things in their immediate environment which help to trigger the addictive behavior.

Even overwhelmingly positive & beneficial changes in life, such as the birth of a child or a new job does not guarantee the individual will have no thoughts of missing past negative activities such as, drug or alcohol use, drug or drinking acquaintances and other associated activities. Factually this is the normal reactive auto response of most human beings; to do what they are familiar with; good or bad. It is not really that they yearn for these things, it is just all that they have known for some time. If the abuser is close to home when overwhelming feelings manifest themselves, there is a good chance he or she will leave and get back to what they know, drug addiction, as it is not very far away . Due to these factors, attending a drug rehab close to home is seldom the correct treatment option for chronic drug or alcohol abusers. It is extremely therapeutic to be distanced from their former association with drug dealers, bars, the cabinet where the alcohol was kept, the cigar box where the cocaine was stored, etc. All these triggers make the task of sobriety seem insurmountable to the chronic drug or alcohol abuser as these triggers continuously stimulate a reminder of their past addictive behaviors.

For individuals with a severe drug or alcohol addiction problem, choosing a long term inpatient treatment program is another key to a successful outcome.

By providing a new, safe trigger free environment, distanced from past negative associations and surroundings for an extended period of time, the chance for success increases dramatically.

Our program provides people with positive circumstances to increase their chances for a successful recovery. The vast majority of students entering our program, around (80%), are from out of state or from other countries.

• Who has completed the Narconon drug rehab program;
• Who knows he is, in fact, capable of living a drug-free life thereafter;
• Who has improved his or her ability to learn and thus can accept new ideas on how to change life for the better;
• Who has personally absorbed the fundamentals of ethics and morality well enough that he or she can be productive and contributive to society and will have no further troubles with the justice system;
• Who knows how to solve the problems of life in a rational manner to the best of his ability, without the use of mind-altering drugs.