VIDEO – WE ALL SHOULD – April 11, 2024 – “My father was an alcoholic and I get to play softball half the movie,” Knoxville told UPI in a recent Zoom interview. “Baseball was the only thing I was ever good at.” Writer-director Lije Sarki, 46, has been sober for 10 years. In addition to his family, Knoxville’s partner in the Jackass franchise, Steve-O, is also an advocate for sobriety. Knoxville said he witnessed Steve-O’s struggle firsthand. “I lived a lot of that with him,” Knoxville said. “He did all the work, understandably, but I got everything in my…
Author: Leonard Buschel
“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.” – Eleanor Roosevelt, b:1884, NY, NY – d:1962 NY, NY
VIDEO – 40 IS THE NEW 70 – April 9, 2024 – “The realization that cancer, and now aging, are becoming significant issues for younger demographics over the past decades was unexpected.” The researchers analyzed data from 148,724 people using the Biobank database. They estimated each person’s biological age using nine biomarkers in the blood — then compared that to their chronological age. Those with a higher biological age had a 42% increased risk of early-onset lung cancer, were 22% more prone to early-onset gastrointestinal cancer, and had a 36% higher risk for early-onset uterine cancer. The researchers also determined…
REDEMPTION SONG – April 2, 2024 – While it is unknown which opiate caused the overdoses, Pastor Mick Fleming, founder of Church on the Street, fears that deaths will be “off-the-scale” due to synthetic substances called nitazenes cut into street drugs like heroin and anxiety medication. Our church normally sees three opiate deaths a year. But we’ve had eight since January. “It’s a crisis. We’re seeing the tip of the iceberg. It will only get worse. This is going to be massive. It’s going to change the way the Government has to tackle addiction. We’re seeing a complete transformation of…
VIDEO – PLEASE KEEP SCROLLING – April 7, 2024 – “I started as a voice in the wilderness about eight, nine years ago, saying that digital media can be addicting. But that was just the price of admission. Digital media we know now, by design, has been habit-forming and addicting!” He added, “But part two of that equation is, what’s the cost of that addiction? What are the mental health byproducts? What’s the depression effect? The suicide effect, the anxiety? What is that addiction leading to? And so now we’re seeing that now we have about ten years’ worth…
CHILDHOOD CANCELED – April 3, 2024 – Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt’s “The Anxious Generation,” published last week, argues that the smartphone-driven “great rewiring of childhood” is causing an “epidemic of mental illness.” He suggests four ways to combat this: no smartphones before high school, no social media before age 16, no phones in schools; and prioritizing real-world play and independence. “I call smartphones ‘experience blockers,’ because once you give the phone to a child, it’s going to take up every moment that is not nailed down to something else,” Haidt told TODAY.com, adding, “It’s basically the loss of childhood…
BOOKS SAVE LIVES – April 2, 2024 – All 86 county libraries are stocked with Narcan, and staff has been trained on how to administer the medicine. According to the L.A. County Department of Health, accidental fentanyl deaths increased 1,652% between 2016 and 2022. Now, the library has expanded its Narcan clinics, offering weekly sessions at 10 library branches within the County. The clinics offer training on how to use the medicine, and participants get to take home two doses. CONTINUE@CBSNews
STEP RIGHT UP – April 1, 2024 – “This kind of initiative is about using harm reduction, bringing services to where people are; it’s about using an evidence-based strategy,” Dr. Cunningham. “We know methadone improves people’s lives. It’s about equity and serving those people who wouldn’t ordinarily, necessarily receive this service.” Dr. Cunningham said the agency has allocated over $5 million to get MMU up and running. In June 2023, she said that up to 35 vans would be funded and deployed throughout the state, but that number dropped to 11. Two were operational by January, New York Focus…
SENTENCED – April 5, 2024 – Former Shelby County court judge Melissa Boyd pleaded guilty Friday morning. “First your honor, I want to apologize for my relapse with the positive drug test and to the state also,’ Boyd stated. A remorseful Melissa Boyd pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of harassment in a plea deal with the state. “Well, I’ve been in therapy myself from all of this. She called from jail multiple times, she even asked me yesterday if I would marry her and I told her no,” said Boyd’s former campaign manager Lashanta Rudd. Rudd reported Boyd’s…
MAKE IT SAFER – April 7, 2024 – Exasperated by years of fruitless discussions while drug deaths mount, Martin Blakeborough told The Independent that he plans to pilot several “micro” drug consumption spaces. It’s an active debate we’re now having which I’ve basically forced onto the agenda, by saying, ‘We’re going to start this service with or without you.” The boss of a major charity on the frontline of Britain’s drug deaths crisis has challenged authorities by announcing that he plans to open potentially life-saving overdose prevention facilities in a matter of months – with or without their help.…
ONE NOTE AT A TIME – April 6, 2024 – Call it a premonition or pure naïveté, but Sum 41’s Deryck Whibley knew for a fact when he was 16 that he was going to be famous someday. “I mean, I was just so obsessed with music, and this was, at that time, pre-internet, so I didn’t know a lot of information about rock stars except for the chaos and craziness.” “People ask me a lot of times over the years, ‘Do you regret things or do you wish that didn’t happen?’ Or, ‘I’m so sorry you went through that,’”…
IT DOESN’T JUDGE – April 10, 2024 – 4 EASY WAYS TO CONNECT WITH THE OUTDOORS – Being outdoors has been linked to reduced stress, more energy, better physical health, and much more. Nature is often looked at as the “ultimate healer.” If you’re recovering from Alcohol Use Disorder and you’ve been looking for something extra to help you maintain sobriety, spending time in nature could very well be the solution. There are endless opportunities to get outside and do something that’s not only enjoyable but healing. Some may worry about being ‘off the grid’ and how it will impact…
NEVER BE ALONE AGAIN – April 5, 2024 – The study was prompted by concerns over digital addiction, a problem recognized by the American Psychiatric Association and the World Health Organization as a public health issue. With the Internet becoming an integral part of adolescents’ lives, the potential for addiction has soared, raising alarms about its impact on young people’s development. Addictive smartphone use refers to a pattern of smartphone behavior that is compulsive, excessive, and difficult to control, despite negative consequences to the user’s daily life, health, and well-being. This phenomenon, while not officially recognized as a disorder…
TABLE FOR ONE! – April; 9, 2024 – Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), UCLA Health researchers observed that when shown images of food, especially sweet treats, the brains of lonely individuals showed heightened activity in regions associated with processing internal states. This imbalance in brain function may help explain why people who feel socially isolated are more likely to engage in unhealthy eating behaviors, such as having intense food cravings, using food as a reward, and even displaying signs of food addiction. The study found that these altered brain responses were associated with a higher body fat percentage…
MORNING SICKNESS – AUG. 2022 – Making a hot breakfast at home isn’t always practical. Luckily, there are loads of restaurants and fast-food chains serving up all sorts of breakfast offerings that can be yours for a reasonable price, whether you’re on the go or dining in. So what’s the problem? The short answer: in America, we’re often known as the land of the overfed, indulging in oversized, over-fried, and just plain unhealthy food. Nowhere is this more true than breakfast. It’s no question that breakfast is a good thing. Studies have shown that people who make time for a morning meal…
VIDEO – WE WARNED YOU – April 9, 2024 – This month is dedicated to raising awareness and understanding of alcohol use and misuse. It also offers communities a chance to gain more understanding of how individuals struggle with alcohol use, as well as offering resources and support. “I’m a recovering physician. I’ve been through alcohol and addiction in the past as a younger man. I’ve been sober now for over 20 years. And so, I know how greatly impacting addiction can be, not only in the individual, but also in their family and their community, in many cases,…
PILLFREE – April 8, 2024 – The Florida rapper said he’s the happiest he’s ever been since he began to work on his addiction to Percocets. “Bro, my average was 40 Percocets. I’m telling y’all this man. I ain’t know, to the point where I look at this sh*t and be like, what the f*ck was wrong with me, bruh? I listen to my music and be like, bro, what the f*ck, fam?” Along with his music, Kodak has earned a reputation for having run-ins with the law, with some of those offenses being tied to drug use and…
WE ALL GET THERE – April 10, 2024 – In my teens, already drinking and drugging, I didn’t expect to see 21, Then at 32, I got clean and sober, the miracle of my life from which all other blessings flow. My son was born three years later. The apple fell close to the tree: My son went off the rails, too. I know now that everyone is screwed up to some degree, and that everyone screws up. Phew. I thought for decades it was just me, that all of you had been issued owner’s manuals in second grade,…
VIDEO – MUSICAL INTERLUDE INCLUDES MAY JANE – April 2023 – “I’m a songwriter for a living, okay. I usually have all the words but I’m genuinely speechless.” RAYE told the audience at her Tiny Desk. “All I’ve wanted is to be seen and respected as a musician.” The South London-bred singer-songwriter had finally made her way to NPR headquarters, her signature cherry-hued pin curls full of bounce and a radiant smile spread across her face. It was a long time coming, and in a re-arranged set of songs from her stunning debut album tailored to the Tiny Desk,…
SOBERMANIA! – April 5, 2024 – Former WWE superstar Natalie Eva Marie dreamed of becoming a professional soccer player, but poor decisions led her down a dark path of addiction and alcohol abuse. “I feel like I was just born straight out of the womb an alcoholic and an addict, like, full-on,” the former professional wrestler said. Marie played soccer growing up in California, and she explained that in her senior year she had received scholarships from some small schools but ultimately decided to “hang up my cleats” after being injured. She briefly picked up the sport again before stepping…
THE ORACLE SPEAKS – April 8, 2024 – The singer, 37, has always been candid about her drink and drug abuse, saying quitting alcohol and drugs was the best decision she had ever made. She has now been sober for almost five years, previously revealing that the last time she consumed alcohol was July 28, 2019. Speaking to her pal Miquita Oliver on their podcast, Miss Me?, Lily explained she’s motivated to stay sober because of all the good things she has her life. She admitted she thinks she would ‘lose everything’ if she went back to drinking, including…
BEST D.A. IN AMERICA – PHILADELPHIA (April 1, 2024) — District Attorney Larry Krasner awarded microgrants totaling over $357,000 to 13 addiction recovery groups as part of the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office Violence Prevention Grant Program on Monday. DA Krasner and members of his executive team made the announcement at Imhotep Institute Charter High School shortly after convening a listening session with Imhotep students about ways to help prevent gun violence in the community. The awardees are as follows: CONTINUE@PhillyDA
MAKE SUBOXONE FREE – April 4, 2024 – It is very easy to find fentanyl in New York. Torren showed me how to connect to fentanyl dealers even on social media sites as apparently innocent as Instagram. He showed me how, if you know the variations of words to put in, it is easy to connect to dealers. Instagram’s bosses try to chase this down, he explained, but the dealers always find a way around them. In Torren’s view, most of the fentanyl now arriving on America’s streets doesn’t just come through Mexico but is also made there. Of…
TRY IT, YOU’LL LIKE IT – April 3, 2024 – I sat in front of my “real father” as he stared right through me like he always does. “I don’t see you,” he said in a stern voice. “You never have,” I whispered quietly back. “No one is going to hurt you,” my protector, a seven-foot burly Alaskan man, asserted in a deep, booming voice while sitting between us. I felt his bravado coarse through my body, and the tears started flowing as I expressed all the words I was never allowed to my father—my life’s greatest antagonist. The saddest…
IT’S ABOUT TIME – April 10, 2024 – Ronstroem hopes to help answer one critical question: how does drug abuse influence reward pathways in the brain? Specifically, his research focuses on uncovering how some drugs, especially opiates and psychostimulants, affect certain brain circuits. Ronstroem has been a prolific researcher and engaged student. He has written twelve grant proposals, and has been involved in six manuscripts, two of which he was the first author. Yorgason muses, “You can always count on [him] to ask excellent questions. He’s great at sharing advice and alternative perspectives on research and life.” One of…
GOING TO ANY LENGTHS – April 6, 2024 – Our country is currently faced with an existential threat due to the ravaging impact of drugs and substance abuse, particularly the devastating synthetic drug kush,” Bio said. One of the main ingredients in kush is ground-up human bone which enhances the drug’s effect. The drug, which is fairly cheap to procure, provides a lengthy, hypnotic high that takes users out of reality for several hours and first surfaced in the country about six years ago. Hundreds of young men have recently died of organ failure linked to the dangerous narcotic, one…
NPR AUDIO – NO ONE FORCED THEM TO START – April 6, 2024 – More people suffering from drug addiction are being forced into drug treatment and threatened with prison if they don’t comply. Some say it’s “tough love.” Critics say it’s unethical and ineffective. People with addiction are being forced into drug treatment programs more frequently across the country. Those who refuse are threatened with prison, the loss of welfare benefits or other penalties. Supporters say this tough-love approach may be necessary, but many doctors and addiction experts disagree and say it might lead to more fatal overdoses. NPR…
HIPPA THIS – April 11, 2024 – Academics at the University of Pennsylvania analyzed a nationally representative sample of 100 non-federal acute care hospitals – essentially traditional hospitals with emergency departments – and their findings were that 96 percent of their websites transmitted user data to third parties. Additionally, not all of these websites even had a privacy policy. And of the 71 percent that did, 56 percent disclosed specific third-party companies that could receive user information. “It’s shocking, and really kind of incomprehensible,” said Dr Ari Friedman, an assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Pennsylvania,…
SOBER ROLE MODEL – April 6, 2024 -I t will spoil nothing to tell you that Lamott closes “Somehow” with a quote from her favorite William Blake poem: “And we are put on earth a little space, that we may learn to bear the beams of love.” Like the book’s title, its conclusion is apt. Anne speaks to the human in all of us, challenging us to bear her beam of love, and our own. The title of Anne Lamott’s 20th book is also an apt descriptor of the author’s extraordinary four-decade career. “Somehow,” after publishing four quiet, quirky…
THE CAT’S MEOW – April 6, 2024 – “A lot of my fans in recovery say that, ‘You’re super inspiring.’ They feel like they can really connect with me on a deeper level since we’re both in recovery and kind of get it,” Ji said. “I have my regular normal fans and then my recovery fan base, but my recovery fan base — I feel a genuine connection with them. Jilan Ji had no idea when she dropped a TikTok video in 2021 of a song she wrote about working in healthcare in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic that…