Author: Leonard Buschel

The Truth Hurts…BIG Pharma – July 19, 2022 – “There is no such thing as a scientifically established correct ‘balance’ of serotonin,” Lacasse and Leo cautioned more than a decade ago, joining numerous other experts then and now. Additionally, both aspirational claims rest on a hypothesis that follow-up studies would end up contradicting repeatedly. In short, both the hypothesis and the expensive marketing that pushed it into American living rooms rested on a hedge: “Scientists believe that it could be linked with an imbalance of a chemical in the brain called serotonin.” The hedge proved highly effective, even though,…

SHE’S WORTH THE WEIGHT – July 29, 2022 – I felt like I was constantly being body-shamed by people in the fashion industry. I remember getting measured for a job and being told that even my fingers were too “fat,” and that I needed to lose weight around my hips. It took the spark and enthusiasm out of me, and it was really bad for my mental health. I started to realize how stupid it all was and eventually flew home because I had just had enough of it. When I got home and saw my doctor, I realized…

VIDEO – COMMUNITY HEARTACHE SHARED – July 30 2022 – Video Only – Boonville residents raise money for addiction billboard. more@WAGMTV

VIDEO – REALITY? – July 27, 2022 – Taking to Twitter today (Jul 27), Jamie tweeted: “12 and a half years ago I was in active addiction. Hurting myself and those around me who I loved the most. It got so bad that eventually I ended up in a hospital for mental health. I am now 7 1/2 years clean and sober.” He continued: “I have made many mistakes in my life But each day is a chance to start again. Atone for mistakes and grow. For anyone who wakes up thinking ‘oh god not again’ I promise you there’s…

HIGHER and HIGHER – July 26, 2022 – The researchers found that people who use high-potency marijuana are more likely to experience addiction than those using low-potency products. The study also suggests that people using high-potency cannabis are more likely to experience a psychotic disorder, such as schizophrenia. “These results are important in the context of harm reduction, which aims to minimize the negative consequences associated with drug use,” said study author Kat Petrilli, from the university’s department of psychology. “While the safest level of use for cannabis is of course ‘no use,’ it is important to acknowledge that a…

TOO MANY TWINKIES? – July 17, 2022 – “People who have a family history of addiction may be at greater risk for developing a problematic relationship with highly processed foods, which is really challenging in a food environment where these foods are cheap, accessible, and heavily marketed,” says Lindzey Hoover, a psychology graduate student at the University of Michigan, and lead author of the study in Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. But addictive responses didn’t end with food, as people with food addiction were also more likely to exhibit personal problems with alcohol, cannabis, tobacco, and vaping, the research shows. Diets…

To The MOON and Back – July 27, 2022 – Having been continually asked throughout the years if he was bothered about being the “second” not first man to step foot on the moon, Aldrin carries with him a sense of frustration. During one interview back in 2009 he called the label “degrading” before going on to explain just how bad things got for him in the early 70s when he returned from the lunar mission. Having rejoined the US Air Force as a commander of a test pilot school, he quit the armed services at the age of 42.…

$50,000 GLASS OF BUBBLY? – July 28, 2022 – Ivana Trump went to rehab in Malibu, where she met another Ivana—Guinness heiress Ivana Lowell—who shared her experience with Airmail. When Lowell found herself in rehab, she had no idea she’d also find herself sharing space with Ivana Trump.A few select people were chosen to go along with Lowell, Trump, and Roberto to the restaurant. A rehab chaperone tagged along, but Trump “made him disappear.” After some food, Ivana raised a glass of champagne to the group, and asked the waiter to fill everyone’s glasses. Before anybody could break their sobriety,…

VIDEO – NO ONE IS IMMUNE – July 27, 2022 – A graduate of a Brooklyn yeshiva, David, a pseudonym, had enrolled in New York’s prestigious Cornell University with the goal of getting into medical school. His family, immigrants from Russia, wanted him to become a doctor and put a lot of pressure on him. Opioids were never his drug of choice, but they flooded the drug market and he started taking some of the painkillers, mainly OxyContin and other forms of Oxycodone, since the pills were so easily available. He got his degree in biological sciences and worked…

LIVE AND LET DIE? – July 30, 2022 – Before their son Paul fatally overdosed on fentanyl-laced cocaine, Robert and Donna Mina of Staten Island recall few, if any services to help him — and allegedly little effort from the NYPD to track down who sold the drugs which killed him. “As far as the city, there was really nothing available. He worked with the Parks Department, but no, what the city had open for him was an open market for selling drugs,” the father said. The couple claims hospitals wouldn’t take in Paul, 32, for detox unless he…

COULD LOCK THEM UP WORK? – July 25, 2022 – He said this may sound harsh but “it is such a volatile and lethal drug, those who inject or inhale fentanyl run the risk of immediate death.” “It’s very lethal, this is not about drug addiction, this is about killing somebody, no different than pulling out a gun and shooting somebody,” he said. Susan Gibson, the special agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Agency in New Jersey, has warned Garden State residents that as little as 2 milligrams of fentanyl mixed into a drug can literally kill you in…

VIDEO – HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH? – July 29, 2022- Ryan Drzewiecki, PsyD, LP, the new chief clinical officer at the Arizona-based treatment center Sierra Tucson, specializes in the mental health implications of obsessive use of online technology, including gaming, social media and internet addiction. In the following interview available on YouTube Dr. Ryan Drzewiecki discusses the difference between the subsets of tech addiction and who is most affected. more@AddictionRecoveryeBulletin

“Friendship is a full-time job.” – BILL RUSSELL (1934-2022)

IS THAT A LOT OF MONEY? – July 26, 2022 – The deal — worth up to $4.25 billion — came after a series of blistering trials and previous settlements in individual cases across the country over the past year. Though much lesser-known, Teva, an Israeli company, and its affiliates produced far more prescription opioids during the peak years of the crisis than marquee-name opioid manufacturers such as Johnson & Johnson did. Its production of both generic and branded painkillers dwarfed the output of Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, the medication most immediately associated with setting off an avalanche…

VIDEO – HOLDING BACK THE TEARS – July 24, 2022 – Joni Mitchell, who hadn’t performed live since 2013 until earlier this year, made a surprise appearance for a full set today (July 24) at the 2022 Newport Folk Festival. She joined Brandi Carlile, who herself has covered Mitchell’s Blue in full and has regularly spoken of her love for Mitchell. The duo sang Mitchell’s classics including “A Case of You” and “Both Sides Now.” Mitchell also played the guitar solo from “Just Like This Train.” Watch footage from the event below. Mitchell last appeared at the festival in…

LIKE FATHER, LIKE DAUGHTER? –  July 16, 2022 – Speaking to The Times Magazine, she talked about Geordie Shore and how her fellow “cast members” had gained a reputation for “glamourising” binge drinking. Pattison said she feels “sick to her stomach” watching back clips from the Newcastle-based reality show, and that she “didn’t like who it made me become”. “I believed I was my father’s daughter, so it was going to happen sooner or later and didn’t really matter when,” she told the Times. “Loads of people on the show had a really nice time and became funny and silly…

VIDEO – MURDER IN MIAMI – July 18, 2022 – Mass-overdose events typically occur when criminals market drugs like cocaine, meth, or heroin when the drug is actually a synthetic opioid like fentanyl or when drug dealers sell fake prescription pills that look legitimate but actually are laced with fentanyl, the DEA said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the signs to look for with a fentanyl overdose include: small, constricted ‘pinpoint pupils’falling asleep or losing consciousnessslow, weak, or no breathingchoking or gurgling soundslimp bodycold and/or clammy skindiscolored skin (especially in lips and nails) If you think someone…

VIDEO – IN HEARTBREAK HOTEL FOREVER – July 22, 2022 – In his first in-depth TV interview since his daughter’s fatal overdose, music mogul and entrepreneur Master P opens up to “CBS Mornings.” He shares how her death set him on a mission to spread awareness about mental health and substance abuse. more@YouTube

NOT IN AA? – July 18, 2020 – Laughing is only part of Mr. Pollan’s three-and-a-half hours of morning routines: He starts the day by reading the newspapers in bed for 45 minutes before getting dressed, then fixes a cup of green tea, eats breakfast and reads more of the paper. His wife, artist Judith Belzer, joins him for 45 minutes of floor exercises: weights and stretches and abdominals. They then start with CNN before switching to Mr. Colbert. The couple then meditates for a half-hour, goes on a walk in the Berkeley Hills and grabs coffee. Mr. Pollan,…

THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME – July 21, 2022 – Several sessions of at-home ketamine therapy supported by telehealth are a safe and effective way to treat moderate to severe anxiety and depression, a new study found. The results, recently published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, suggest that an at-home approach using ketamine tablets that dissolve under the tongue rather than intravenous (IV) infusion or intramuscular injection could make ketamine therapy more accessible. But experts caution that more rigorous studies are still needed to determine how well ketamine therapy compares to traditional treatments for anxiety and depression. Ketamine, once…

A SCHOOL IN YOUR COMPUTER – July 19, 2022 – Patrick Ryan, clinical program supervisor of Recovery Center Missoula at the Western Montana Mental Health Center, serves on the advisory board for the program and calls it “essential” to the treatment of substance abuse in the community. “Demand for services always outweighs supply,” said Ryan, a recovering alcoholic himself. “I have patients waiting three to five weeks to get one of our beds. While they’re waiting, they will continue to use. Not all of them will make it to their admission.” Sober since April 23, 2012, Ryan said he tried…

CELEBRATION DAY – July 19, 2022 – Tom Robbins was born July 22, 1932 in Blowing Rock, North Carolina. A quick scan of his Wikipedia page underscores the enormous contributions he has made to American literature. He has penned more than eight novels, as well as multiple short stories and essays. Titles include “Even Cowgirls Get the Blues” (1976), “Another Roadside Attraction” (1971), “Still Life with Woodpecker” (1980), “Jitterbug Perfume” (1984), Skinny Legs and All” (1990), “Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas” (1994), “Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates” (2000), “Villa Incognito” (2003), “Wild Ducks Flying Backward” (2005), “B Is for…

GOING TO ANY LENGTH – July 19, 2022 – On June 22, at 8:30 p.m., deputies said a security officer noticed the door to one of the resort’s closed restaurants, Krakatoe Katy’s, was broken. After reviewing security footage from within the restaurant, a man, later identified as Thomas Burage, 32, of Illinois, was seen on video entering the restaurant through an unlocked door and grabbing a cup behind the counter to pour him a drink estimated to be $50. After pouring himself the drink, he tried to leave through the restaurant’s exit doors, but since they were locked, he slammed…

COUNT ME IN – July 21, 2022 – As a researcher with lived experience of psychosis, I wanted to understand how the meaning-making process impacts the potential for positive transformation and growth, post-psychotic break. In other words, how do the narratives available to us, the way our distress is framed, whether we are allowed to find meaning in intense experiences dismissed as a misfiring brain, impact the outcomes of psychotic crisis? Psychosis can be a terrifying and disabling condition, and by no means do I wish to romanticize this state. Yet, for some, myself included, the “psychosis” (or what some…

DON’T DIE LIKE BILL W. DID – July 21, 2022 – Nicotine replacement therapy, also known as NRT, helps you quit smoking by gradually providing the body with smaller doses of nicotine over time, without exposing you to the toxic chemicals found in cigarette smoke. In conjunction with a behavioral program, NRTs have been found to increase the success of smoking cessation and are available over-the-counter and by prescription. Over-the-counter NRTs are approved for sale to people age 18 and older. They include: Skin patches (also called “transdermal nicotine patches”). These patches are placed on the skin, similar to…

VIDEO – WHO WRITES THE SONGS? – July 22, 2022 – He admitted that with his new single, “Ya’ll Life,” he and Lela may not be dropping a dance to go along with it, but they’ll “always have ‘Fancy Like.’” “That’s our legacy,” he gushed. Walker added that “Fancy Like” going viral on TikTok did really “help with ‘AA’” and “translate to radio play.” The country star also reacted to the AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) community’s response to his upbeat single, which details his urge to drink as he tries to be the best dad he can be and keep his…

DAUGHTER KNOWS BEST – July 21, 2022 – T he former Geordie Shore star, 34, has been working with Channel 4 on a documentary about her father, who is an alcoholic and her own relationship with alcohol. Vicky – who admitted to having an “addictive personality” – said she was afraid of history repeating itself. During an interview with Sky’s Beth Rigby, Vicky said: “He’s [Dad] doing well, that’s all we can hope for, everyday is a challenge, he’s winning his battle at the moment.” Beth replied: “That’s really good to know as the documentary is all about his…

VIDEO – THE AMERICAN DREAM IS OPIATED – July 8, 2022 – The book is an indictment of the astonishing corporate greed and government complicity; of mercenary lobbyists and lawyers sustained by bought-off politicians – with names that may surprise you. During the interview, Scott describes how employees of drug distributor AmerisourceBergen Corp. wrote an email making fun of the theme song for the “Beverly Hillbillies.” This parody describes how “pillbillies” drove south to obtain drugs at Florida pill mills. “Come and listen to a story about a man named Jed / A poor mountaineer, barely kept his habit fed,”…

VIDEO – SAVE A SOUL, SAVE THE WORLD – July 24, 2022 – The 988 system will build on an existing network of over 200 crisis centers nationwide staffed by counselors who answer millions of calls each year – about 2.4 million in 2020. Calls to the old lifeline will still go through even with 988 in place. If you feel suicidal or you’re worried about someone you know, you can call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988. You can also text the Crisis Text Line by messaging TALK to 741741. more@ABC7Chicago

IT’S COMPLICATED – July 21, 2022 – Despite his parent’s separation, Jake maintained a close relationship with his biological father, so John knew that he would never be seen as a father to Jake. Nevertheless, as far as he was concerned, it wasn’t so bad because they kept things polite between them. However, in the months that followed his marriage to Jake’s mother, John noticed that the boy would sometimes do things just to spite him. Sometimes he would ruin John’s items and make him pay for them; other times, he would get in trouble and have John sort it…