Big Pharma linked to senator benefits from opioid addiction and treatment VIDEO
Mar. 21, 2017 – But where did this nightmare begin? “The way we got here frankly is prescription drugs and people getting addicted to opioids,” said Ohio Senator Rob Portman. According to the Associated Press, Portman was a top recipient collecting over $200,000 in six years. One of those companies Pfizer Inc. Also contributed to his most recent campaign. “I don’t even know what drugs Pfizer makes I assume they make a lot of drugs including drugs that are very helpful for disease in Ohio.” That is true because besides the opioid painkillers Pfizer is most notable for, it has also recently begun producing Naloxone by acquiring the leading seller of the reversal drug.
‘Dime A Dozen,’ Overdoses Crisis In South Florida AUDIO
The man had just risen from the dead. He’s in his mid-20’s. Sitting on a couch in a house in Delray Beach. Pale as a ghost, sweaty, wide-eyed, disoriented. Like he just woke up from a nightmare … The residents of the house are prepared for episodes like this. It’s a sober home. The man is a recovering heroin user from Ohio. And like thousands of others, he came to South Florida to get well … Three things came together to create this South Florida overdose crisis. Listen to the first:
Door-Busting Drug Raids Leave a Trail of Blood VIDEO
March 18, 2017 – Inocents have died in attacks on wrong addresses, including a 7-year-old girl in Detroit, and collaterally as the police pursued other residents, among them a 68-year-old grandfather in Framingham, Mass. Stray bullets have whizzed through neighboring homes, and in dozens of instances the victims of police gunfire have included the family dog … After being awakened by the shattering of doors and the detonation of stun grenades, bleary suspects reach for nearby weapons – at times realizing it is the police, at others mistaking them for intruders – and the shooting begins. In some cases, victims like Todd Blair, a Utah man who grabbed a golf club on the way out of his bedroom, have been slain by police officers who perceived a greater threat than existed.
Bill would provide investigator for complaints about sober-living facilities
March 21, 2017 – A state investigator would be responsible for responding to complaints against licensed addiction treatment and recovery facilities in Orange County … Critics say they can disrupt neighborhoods and contribute to parking and traffic problems, crime, noise and other negative effects … Some have decried the number of sober-living facilities in Costa Mesa, where, as of October, there were 83 state-licensed drug and alcohol facilities and 95 others considered sober-living homes, according to the city…
Thief used Girl Scouts’ cookie money to buy heroin on Craigslist VIDEO
MARCH 15, 2017 – A 28-year-old man who allegedly snatched a cash box from a Girl Scout selling cookies in front of a Clairemont, CA, grocery store pleaded not guilty to a variety of charges Wednesday … The victims told reporters there had been more than $400 in the box that was taken. “In the investigation, we learned that they used the money to buy heroin on Craigslist,” Denton said.
What It’s Really Like To Be An Alcoholic In Your 20s VIDEO
But alcohol, though it’s legal, is a really dangerous drug. And like any drug, you can become addicted. First, it’s important to understand that binge drinking and alcoholism are not the same. A lot of alcoholics say the difference between someone who has alcoholism and someone who doesn’t is that most people have this thing inside them that tells them they should stop drinking. The thought process probably goes, “I’ve had two glasses of wine for dinner. It’s a Monday night, I have work in the morning, I’ve already spent $20 on drinks and I should probably stop.” But, alcoholics don’t have that ability, at least not naturally.
Recovered from addiction, advocates help Atlantic City’s homeless and addicted
Mar. 21, 2017 – “These people are human beings just like everyone else,” she said. “They need to know people care about them, and the resource list in the bag is for them to find help treatment if they decide to do that. And if they do, we’re there for them.” The two friends distribute bags several times a week with other volunteers of Angels in Motion, a Philadelphia-based nonprofit started by Carol Rostucher in 2015 as she searched the city for her son, who struggled with a heroin addiction.
READ MORE @ PressofAtlanticCity.com
MURDER
Law Enforcement Struggles With New Opioid Craze: Elephant Tranquilizers
03.22.17 – The carfentanil deaths started last summer in Northeast Ohio. Though the opioid epidemic has torn through the United States for years, with heroin and prescription painkiller-linked deaths steadily climbing, it took dystopian twist in Akron in July. That’s where people first started overdosing on carfentanil, according to Russ Baer, a DEA special agent who follows the issue. Zoos use the drug to tranquilize elephants and rhinos, and Chinese labs manufacture it and ship it to the U.S. and Mexico, he said. Some American users have it delivered directly in the mail…
Washington representatives weigh ‘Sobriety for Sale’ bill VIDEO
March 22, 2017 – Is the Washington agency that is the watchdog of more than 500 drug and alcohol treatment centers tough enough on problem clinics? That’s the question that the Washington House Committee on Health Care and Wellness took up Tuesday … In its Sobriety for Sale series, KING 5 has reported how DBHR has dropped serious charges against treatment clinics and counselors and allowed them to continue operating after clinic owners threatened legal action.
WATCH MORE @ King5.com
Addicted to Capitalism
The disease that’s killing white Americans goes way deeper than opioids
March 24 – The problem of dying whites can’t only be blamed on rising rates of drug overdoses, suicides and chronic alcoholism, they say. More and more, middle-aged white Americans are dying for all kinds of reasons – and the underlying issue may have less to do with opioids and more to do with how society has left behind the working class. “Ultimately, we see our story as about the collapse of the white, high school educated, working class after its heyday in the 1970s, and the pathologies that accompany that decline,” they write.
Alcoholic vicar stole more than £100,000 in funeral fees to spend on booze
March 24, 2917 – He admitted eight counts of theft but was spared jail after a judge said his positive contributions to society outweighed the bad … Ms Snowdon said, after Fry’s parents died in 2002 and 2007, he suffered from depression and turned to alcohol. She said he had now got his life back together and started helping the homeless voluntarily … Judge Elizabeth Nicholls said: “It is a great tragedy to see a man of so obvious ability, ending his chosen vocation in this manner in the dock of a criminal court.” However, she said he had taken responsibility, overcome his problems and endured a long wait to learn his fate.
Prescription weight-loss drug may help with opioid addiction
March 24, 2017 – Researchers at the University of Texas in Galveston have discovered a prescription weight-loss medication has the potential to aid in recovery from opioid addiction. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified opioid abuse and addiction as a major health problem in the United States, with the number of opiate overdose deaths quadrupling since 1999. A new study from the University of Texas Medical Branch found that the weight-loss drug lorcaserin reduced the use and craving for the opioid oxycodone in preclinical studies.
Largely white opioid epidemic highlights black frustration with drug war VIDEO
March 26, 2017 – Among African-Americans critical of the modern drug war launched four decades ago by President Richard Nixon, the fact that the opioid epidemic is primarily striking the majority race helps explain why it is largely being called an epidemic and treated as a public health crisis, rather than a war. “Look at the inner city, it’s always been what we consider an epidemic,” said the Rev. Ralph White, pastor of Bloomfield Full Gospel Baptist Church in Memphis. “If this had been the case in other areas, the community would have been crying out long ago,” White said. “But now that it’s taking the lives of European Americans, we find that it’s at a time of crisis.”
6 Heartbreaking Consequences of Loving Someone Who is Battling an Addiction VIDEO
I am the daughter of a drug addict. My mom suffers from drug addiction, a battle she has sadly never been able to overcome. Throughout my entire life, she never truly acted “like a mother” to me. The sad reality is, drugs always came first. For those of us who love, or have ever loved, someone battling addiction…
Physicians call for drug abuse to be treated as ‘chronic disease’
Mar 27, 2017, Today, the American College of Physicians (ACP) published a position paper arguing that action needs to be taken by the medical community and others to stem the crisis, especially in light of the massive growth of the opioid epidemic. “Twenty-two million people need treatment and a large percentage of people aren’t getting treatment,” Dr. Nitin S. Damle, president of the American College of Physicians, told ABC News, citing national statistics compiled by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC). “We want to focus the spotlight on that.”
is a social, educational, networking and recovery forum showcasing first-time filmmakers and experienced professionals who make films about addiction and recovery. Our audience is treatment professionals, people in recovery, members of the entertainment industry, media representatives, educated moviegoers & the general public.
Chris Brown Responds: “I Am Not Hurting Out Here” VIDEO
MARCH, 2017 – “Following the release of an investigative piece by Billboard on Thursday detailing Chris Brown’s battle with a heavy drug addiction, the famed singer has chimed in on the report. Former staff members from the “Loyal” artist’s team stressed that the Virginia native has an addiction to substances like Xanax, lean, Molly and cocaine, which leads to unpredictable behavior. One former associate told Billboard magazine that Brown’s alleged use of a myriad of drugs serves as a healer for his previous mistakes. “He doesn’t know how to deal with the sins of the past,” said the source.
Doctors Consider Ethics of Costly Heart Surgery for People Addicted to Opioids NPR AUDIO
March 21, 2017 – Milford is part of a group of opioid addicts whom doctors describe as the sickest of the sick: intravenous drug users, mostly people who use heroin, who get endocarditis. Some aspects of their treatment present an ethical dilemma for doctors. Cardiologists, surgeons and infectious disease doctors can fix the infection, but not the underlying problem of addiction. When patients who are still addicted to opioids leave the hospital, many keep injecting drugs, often causing repeat infections that are more costly and challenging to cure…
Mom & dad may be to blame for horrific hangover memories
Mar. 21, 2017 – Hangovers are horrible, but the lingering memories of the pain and embarrassment associated with the night before can be even worse. A new study suggests that the ability to vividly remember a hangover, sometimes even months after you’ve made a full recovery, isn’t linked to how much you drink, but rather who is in your family … A family history of alcoholism may influence more than your ability to remember a hangover; it could also influence your likeliness to develop the condition as well. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, people with a family history of alcohol abuse are about four times as likely to develop a problem with alcohol themselves, but this can’t simply be summed up to an “alcoholism gene.”
Can Old Prescription Drugs Provide New Treatments for Alcoholism?
March 22, 2017 – Alcohol addiction is as destructive today as it was in van Gogh’s time, but Harris believes there now might be an ideal way to overcome it-one that we’ve created without even realizing it. New prescription drugs that could help addicts wean themselves off alcohol might already exist, he says; it’s just that they’re used to treat other conditions. Because the brain cells of an alcoholic have different genes turned on than the brain cells in a non-alcoholic, Harris wants to find prescriptions drugs that can be repurposed to turn off the problem genes in an alcoholic’s brain, effectively wiping it of withdrawal symptoms. He wants a pill to stop alcohol cravings, and one that’s already available at Walgreen’s.
Why Drug Testing Medicaid Recipients Will Worsen Drug Addiction In The US
March 21, 2017 – The logic is pretty simple: If a person on Medicaid tests positive for drugs, guess what they lose? Their Medicaid – which means they no longer have health insurance, making access to addiction treatment and recovery services that much harder to obtain. This is one of the fundamental flaws behind drug testing Medicaid recipients … But let’s just call it what it really is: A Republican-led effort to further punish the poorest Americans who need the most help with healthcare, especially when it comes to drug addiction..
American Addiction Treatment Association (AATA) Announces Collaboration & Affiliate Membership with California Consortium of Addiction Programs and Professionals (CCAPP)
MARCH 21, 2017 – “I look forward to expanding my relationship with AATA’s membership while focusing on CCAPP’s work in the addiction treatment industry. CCAPP is the largest association representing alcohol and drug counselors and programs in the state of California. Our combined efforts with AATA in this collaboration will allow us to expand and offer wider access to educational topics for the entire joint membership,” said Pete Nielsen, CEO of CCAPP.”
Mar. 21, 2017 – His son managed to get into Drug Court. His parents hoped that would “fix it all.” It didn’t. Every Friday they would go to court from 3-5 p.m. His son would disrespect the judge – “Everything is stupid” – and fail the urine drug test. “It was hell. My own blood. These kids don’t think anything will happen to them.” His son was sent to treatment. He was clean for 28 days. But that just started a revolving door of treatments. If his son came home Sutherland would just call police to take him to Denney Juvenile Justice Center in Everett because he had so many warrants out for his arrest.
BREAKING: Former state House candidate arrested for patient brokering
March 21, 2017 – A former candidate for the state House has been arrested on multiple counts of patient brokering. Robert Jean Simeone, 46, was taken into custody by West Palm Beach police Tuesday morning, jail records show. He was arrested on 15 counts of violating the patient brokering law … Simeone left the sheriff’s office in 2015 after 10 years. While he was a deputy he was twice accused of harassing waitresses, with one describing him as a stalker. He was suspended for two weeks for a late-night encounter with a third.
Award-Winning Author to Speak on Addiction & Recovery VIDEO
March 24, 2017 – Addiction to drugs and alcohol is an issuing affecting families around the country. Many Minnesotans have had friends and family members suffer from some type of addiction. One Minnesotan who has faced these challenges is award-winning author and public speaker Daniel D. Maurer. Maurer’s non-fiction brand deals with personal transformation and how a person’s story affects resilience to stress and trauma, and the ability to re-envision their life story. Maurer has written several books on the struggles of addiction and sobriety and is sharing his knowledge with Northlanders this weekend.
WATCH MORE @ Fox21Online.com
La Quinta Resort Welcomes:
West Coast Symposium for Addictive Disorders
The West Coast Symposium on Addictive Disorders is one of C4 Recovery Solutions’ premier addiction conferences. WCSAD is dedicated to continuing education and networking in the field of addictions. WCSAD hosts more than 1,000 addiction professionals from across the country.
READ MORE @ WCSAD.com
Drug Company Victory
DEA OKs “fake” marijuana for pharma company that spent $500,000 to keep pot illegal
Insys Therapeutics, a pharmaceutical company that was one of the chief financial backers of the opposition to marijuana legalization in Arizona last year, received preliminary approval from the Drug Enforcement Administration this week for Syndros, a synthetic marijuana drug. Insys gave $500,000 last summer to Arizonans for Responsible Drug Policy, the group opposing marijuana legalization in Arizona. The donation amounted to roughly about 10 percent of all money raised by the group in an ultimately successful campaign against the legalization of marijuana. Insys was the only pharmaceutical company known to be giving money to oppose legalization last year.
Women in Recovery, One Photo at a Time PHOTO ESSAY
March 23, 2017 by Evelyn Nieves. New York Times. During our photo session my main focus is for my subject to fully comprehend my intentions, which are to celebrate her and bring social awareness to the fact that genuine recovery is achievable and exists. But the project is a collaboration of sorts. Once they agree to share their story, I ask them to select a location for the shoot. Some choose a space that brings them peace and comfort. One subject wanted to be photographed in the last place she woke up from in a drunken stupor…
Helping Addicts, Ultra Runner Runs Boston Marathon VIDEO
March 26, 2017 – Having hit rock bottom, Ward entered a treatment center in Arizona and that opened the door to a second chance at life. Ward is 9 years sober, happily married with a son and is now training to run 104 miles along the Boston Marathon route. “I am going to start at the finish line. Run to the start in Hopkinton. Then go back to the finish line. Turn around go to the start, then go back to the finish line for the last time,” Ward explained… “I honestly believe that if I can change my life, anybody can,” Ward said.
To our Readers and Advertisers: An Open Letter from Leonard Buschel Publisher/Editor of the Addiction/Recovery eBulletin
Gratitude is always in season, and as we begin 2017, I want to thank our readers and astute progressive advertisers for your loyalty and confidence. The Addiction/ Recovery eBulletin is approaching four and a half years of continued growth and influence. This would not have been possible without the support of “The Good Guys” – our sponsors who continually stand on the side of truth, integrity and Best Practices. It is an honor to serve our readers and a responsibility I do not take lightly.
IN HER NEW BOOK: Sagal said she had been hooked on diet pills, prescribed by a doctor, since her teenage years. Coupled with booze, marijuana, a little cocaine and acid, she said it all became a problem…”I met a person on a job who was sober. And she talked to me about it,” she said. “Suddenly out of nowhere popped up a lot of people who were living clean and sober. And I didn’t know about that.” Sagal said she has been clean now for 30 years, but she still says she takes it “one day at a time.” … “I had a drug and alcohol problem that lasted through my 20s,” she said. “I had a tendency to sort of run with a crowd that had the same kind of problems that I did, or bigger ones.” Katey Sagal was the heartbeat of the popular ’80s sitcom “Married… With Children” for 11 years. Playing the big-haired, smart-mouth matriarch Peg Bundy, it was her first lead TV role. “I read the script, I thought, ‘Oh this is perfect for me because this is so outside the box,'” Sagal said. “We hadn’t seen anything so outrageous on television before… and I really thought, ‘Oh this won’t last very long.'” But the show became a cult hit that lasted 11 seasons. Sagal said Peg was originally written to be “very slovenly,” but she added her own flair. “My take on her and that relationship between her and [husband character] Al Bundy was that there had to be something hot between the two of them to sustain this marriage for so many years,” Sagal said. “So I just went into my audition all dolled up.”
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