To say that drugs have become the major affliction of society is not stating the situation too strongly. No sector of life is untouched by this epidemic. Crime and violence are the most obvious byproducts, but amorality, aborted educations and, indeed, ruined lives are no less serious and just as widespread.

And the problem is not limited to street drugs; the effects of medical and psychiatric drugs, whether painkillers, tranquilizers or “antidepressants,” are as disastrous.

L. Ron Hubbard addressed this problem, not with the objective of resolving the physical ills of individuals but as a continuation of his quest to free man as a spirit and handle, along this route, any barrier that needed to be resolved. Drugs were such a barrier.

Until Mr. Hubbard developed a workable drug rehabilitation program, there was no solution. Psychiatric-inspired programs had many more failures than successes and some only created worse addictions. Other people, more well-intentioned, found that good intentions weren’t enough. They lacked a technology that worked.

Mr. Hubbard’s program provides that technology. From helping the person discover why he took drugs in the first place, to eliminating the mental and spiritual damage done by drugs, to detoxifying the body of long-term drug residues, to providing the person with tools that will enable him to stay off drugs for good, it is without doubt the most thorough and effective program in the world. Today, for the first time, as hundreds of thousands will attest, those addicted to drugs and alcohol can free themselves of this tyranny and face life with renewed vigor and hope. This section contains some of the elementary principles of this program and provides the first real understanding of substance abuse problems.