Zombie Effects

About the Book

Recent years have seen a sobering increase in the number of young people suffering from the effects of addictions to heroin and opiates. While no teenager begins their drug experimentation with the intention to become an addict, opiates such as heroin are both physically and psychologically addictive; therefore, as the dependence gradually increases, opiate abuse is very difficult to overcome. Zombie Effects: How Good Kids Get Hooked on Drugs and How to Help is inspired by the many young people who died from heroin and opiate overdoses while author Dr. Zelda Okia served in her professional role as a medical examiner and pathologist. It is designed to help parents recognize the signs of drug abuse and addiction in their children so that intervention and treatment can be undertaken as early as possible. While prevention is the best way to deal with substance abuse so that a lifelong struggle with addiction can be avoided, tools and strategies for early intervention are also provided as effective treatments for overcoming or managing addiction. The goal of prevention, intervention, and other treatment strategies for dealing with addiction is to save your child’s life. And it is the hope that reading this book will help parents understand the growing threat of drug abuse in children and teenagers and enable them to take action before addiction occurs.

About the Author

Zelda Okia, MD, currently works as an associate medical examiner in Waukesha County, Wisconsin. Born in Uganda and raised in Alabama, she graduated from Oberlin College and completed medical school at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She worked for many years as a surgical pathologist before becoming a forensic pathologist.