Alcohol Abuse Kills Others – Feb. 10, 2019 – Three other vehicles on the street sustained minor to moderate damage as well. Hundreds of people were on the street, sidewalk, in parking lots and in front of nearby restaurants and bars that were about to close, police said. … Ten people ranging in age from 18 to 49 were transported to local trauma centers with injuries ranging from moderate to critical and life-threatening, according to authorities. Full Story @ ABCNews.com
Author: Leonard Buschel
What Price Innocence? – Feb 6, 2019 – Like dozens of others charged with patient brokering since prosecutors began their crackdown on Palm Beach County’s illicit drug treatment industry, James Kigar blames his legal woes on bad advice he received from an attorney … Like dozens of others charged with patient brokering since prosecutors began their crackdown on Palm Beach County’s illicit drug treatment industry, James Kigar blames his legal woes on bad advice he received from an attorney. Full Story @ PalmBeachPost.com
Just Say NO to Denny’s? – February 4, 2019 – Overall, the risk of colorectal, endometrial, pancreatic and gallbladder cancers in millennials was about double the rate baby boomers had at the same age, the study found. In contrast, rates in successive younger age brackets declined or stabilized in all but two of 18 non-obesity related cancers, including smoking-related and infection-related cancers. The two cancers not associated with obesity that rose in the younger age groups were gastrointestinal cancer and leukemia, a blood cancer. “This study shows the incidence of cancer associated with obesity has been rising dramatically in groups…
Drugs found in schools … of fish – Feb. 7, 2019 – Some of the drugs and contaminates found include Flonase, Aleve, Tylenol, Paxil, Valium, Zoloft, Tagamet, OxyContin, Darvon, Nicotine, caffeine, Fungicides, antiseptics, anticoagulants, as well as plenty of antibiotics. Intriguingly, the researchers are not concerned about the effect the cocktail of drugs will have on the humans who eat the fish, but they are concerned about how the chemicals are affecting wildlife. Reportedly, Meador’s other recent work has shown that juvenile chinook salmon migrate through contaminated estuaries in Puget Sound and die at twice the rate of fish elsewhere.…
Do You Believe in Magic? – February 7, 2019 – researchers from Johns Hopkins said the active ingredient in hallucinogenic mushrooms – psilocybin – has low abuse potential, and could reduce psychological distress and opioid abuse potential they would recommend reclassifying psilocybin from a schedule I drug – one that has no known medical potential – to a schedule IV drug – one that has low potential for abuse and dependence. Full Story @ Fox61.com
Pushers on Trial – Feb. 9, 2019 – The Casper Star-Tribune reported Thursday the city joins a growing list of governments nationwide filing similar suits. In Wyoming, the state, the Northern Arapahoe Tribe and Carbon County have sued. Casper’s lawsuit seeks millions of dollars for the cost of care for Casper residents and the city’s cost for related to opioid addiction. Full Story @ USNews.com
Opening up to the world – Feb. 8, 2018 – The Friends star had tweeted on Wednesday: “I got kicked out of therapy today.” He then went quiet on his 1.27million followers, who flooded the actor with concerned messages about his health. But Matthew has since returned to update worried fans, reassuring them that he’s safe and well … “Easy guys, it was just one session. I’m back in therapy where I belong:),” he wrote. The 49-year-old, who played Chandler Bing in the long-running American sitcom, has previously battled addiction issues after getting hooked on prescription painkillers. He was involved…
She’s Baaaack – Feb. 8, 2019 – “Extra’s” Tanika Ray caught up with Chaka Khan at her new Los Angeles home, where she opened up about her past addiction to prescription drugs. Khan admitted, “It got pretty bad.” After the passing of her friend Prince in 2016, she decided to go to rehab. The 65-year-old is now happy and healthy, releasing a new album “Hello Happiness,” her first in 10 years. Full Story @ ExtraTV.com
A Little Marijuana Mistake? – Feb. 6, 2019 – More than one study (including one last December) has suggested that cannabis could lower men’s sperm counts or otherwise negatively affect their reproductive health. But many of these studies have only involved animals or focused on a small group of people (including the one last December). There’s also been conflicting evidence showing that pot use among men and women has no effect on a couple’s chances of conceiving. In the latest study, published Tuesday in Human Reproduction, researchers at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and elsewhere looked at…
Ad-Justin to Married Life – February 7, 2019 – Justin’s story is hardly new — a young talented musician becomes a pop star, is catapulted to incomparable fame, loses their identity, and all control over their life … What is unique is the fact that Justin, stopped buying into his own hype and saw what was really happening. Bieber explained that in order for him to work toward healing, he needed to remove all forms of escape from his life and instead focus on why he was engaging in certain behaviors. “Sometimes people have sex because they don’t feel good…
“Are you talking to me?” – February 18, 2019 – Instead, they found that people who simply had access to a gun were 18 times more likely to have threatened someone with a firearm compared to people who had no such access. Researchers say the few studies that have been done have been misleading and that they found that the link between mental illness and gun violence is simply not there and that the key to reducing gun violence is to limit access to guns and not to focus solely on addressing mental health in this country. Full Story @…
Taking it to the Arts – Feb. 9, 2019 – Designed to look like prescription slips for OxyContin, the powerful opioid painkiller, they were part of the latest protest targeting cultural institutions that accept donations from members of the Sackler family who own Purdue Pharma, the maker of the drug. Education facilities at the Guggenheim, including a theater and an exhibition gallery, are housed inside the 8,200-square-foot Sackler Center for Arts Education, identified by the museum as “a gift of the Mortimer D. Sackler Family.” The cloud of white slips, created by a group founded by the photographer Nan Goldin,…
Do NO Harm Reduction – February 6, 2019 – Research from numerous countries shows SCS help prevent overdose and blood-borne disease … Since 2017, when the City of Philadelphia shut down “El Campamento,” an unsanctioned, popup drug use site in West Kensington, HIV rates among the city’s injection drug users have begun to inch up, having previously remained steady for years. It adds local urgency to utilizing the demonstrated ability of SCS to reduce syringe sharing and transmissions of diseases like HIV and Hepatitis C. Full Story @ FilterMag.org
BLOCKBUSTER IN THE MAKING – February 6, 2019 – Gary Oldman, Armie Hammer and Evangeline Lilly have been set to star in thriller Dreamland, billed as the first theatrical feature to tackle the international opioid crisis. Arbitrage‘s Nicholas Jarecki will direct from his original script. Lisa Wilson is handling foreign sales through her Solution Entertainment Group; William Morris Endeavor is repping U.S. rights with LGNA Legal. The project will be introduced to buyers during this week’s EFM in Berlin. German actress Veronica Ferres also stars. Full Story @ Deadline.com
It Can Happen to Anyone – Feb. 1, 2018 – “The beautiful thing about being at the bottom is there is nowhere to go but up,” she said. “I had to be vulnerable and give up some control. I had to put my shame and my pride aside.” Wood said she was struggling from mental illness and PTSD after “multiple rapes and a severely abusive relationship that went on for years.” … “I was afraid to be alone, but I also couldn’t be around people. I could barely leave my own house. I was too afraid to go outside. I…
The End of the World – Jan. 27, 2019 – For families like this one, the scars of the crisis will endure far longer. In an instant, the years-long cycle of treatment centers, detoxes and jail cells, the late-night phone calls, the holes punched in walls, the nights spent pleading with God, the emptied 401(k)s — it was all over. And a father, mother and sister were left to torment over what they should have done, or shouldn’t have done, or done differently, or better, or sooner. There are hundreds of thousands of families like them, and dozens more made…
Of course they do… – January 28, 2019 – “At least if they go into the safe injection site, their drugs are tested,” Cindy said. “You have counseling provided so you can hopefully get them into detox. This way they would be able to at least have a fighting chance.” Emmett was a sophomore at Worcester State University, where he was on a full academic scholarship and on the dean’s list up until he died. Corey was a jokester with a big heart. Cathleen had a bubbly personality and a beautiful smile. “You ask a mom,” Cheryl said, “if she…
Chill Pill Popularity – January 25, 2019 – Long-term use of the drugs can cause physical dependence, addiction and death from overdose. “I don’t think people realize that benzodiazepines share many of the same characteristics of opioids,” says Dr. Sumit Agarwal, an internist, primary care physician and researcher at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, and one of the authors of the new study. Full Story @ NPR.org
No Guru, No Bill, No God – Feb. 3, 2019 – They sit side by side on cushions on the floor of a tiny, rectangular yoga studio, making small talk until the Refuge Recovery meeting begins. Taking turns, each reads laminated copies of the group’s guiding principles, the four noble truths (two are: addiction creates suffering and the cause of addiction is repetitive suffering), and the eightfold path, before settling in for a 20-minute guided meditation by facilitator Benjamin Schmitz. Full Story @ Gazette.com
Sharing her Struggles – January 31, 2019 – Sitting in a classroom at just 15 years old, Emma Stone didn’t let her anxiety stop her from making a decision that would change her life — convincing her parents to let her move to Los Angeles to pursue her passion for acting. Acting, along with therapy, became the primary way that Stone was able to cope and conquer her anxiety. Now, the Academy Award-winning actress, 30, plans to continue helping other kids struggling with mental health and learning disorders by joining the Board of Directors at the Child Mind Institute —…
Bowl of Nuts – January 31, 2019 – The actor, 53, makes a surprise appearance in this year’s Planters Peanut Super Bowl ad, where he delivers a line he wrote himself. In the commercial the Planters NUTmobile goes on a wild ride before passing Sheen, who is sitting on a bench. The former Two and a Half Men star looks up and declares, “and people say I’m nuts”. Clearly, Sheen isn’t afraid to make a joke at his own expense. Full Story @ People.com
Not Just Skin Deep – February 2, 2019 – Further, there’s increasing—but imperfect—evidence that acne itself can cause depression, a connection that some dermatologists and psychiatrists alike are paying increased attention to. These questions have coalesced into a burgeoning field known as psychodermatology, which investigates how the mind affects the skin, and how the skin affects the mind. Some skin conditions can affect patients’ mental health so profoundly that their lives may be at risk. Adewole Adamson, a dermatologist at the University of Texas at Austin observed, “folks with these conditions, particularly ones that are visible and potentially that are…
Legal Entry – February 1, 2019 – Vanda Felbab-Brown, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said most drugs are smuggled into the United States through legal ports of entry. Although smugglers have at times used sophisticated tunnel networks to carry drugs into the United States, the majority entered through legal ports of entry, and a wall would not necessarily stop the usage of tunnels. “What drug trafficking groups do quite frequently is they send drugs in multiple cars and trucks in multiple ports of entry, and then they tip off U.S. law enforcement that one of the cars has…
Evidence-Based Talk Radio – JAN. 31 2019 – Each of the 10 episodes released so far explores complex stories of drug addiction, policy and research, but in a way that makes the heavy subject matter engaging — by showing the other side, by putting a human face on it. “The podcast allows us to paint a picture of this kind of life with more nuance than most media because you get to hear the voices and character of sources,” Moraff says. Narcotica’s sources include experts, doctors, researchers and people who Farah says media has historically left out of the equation…
FOREVER – Jan 31, 2019 – “This is just the beginning of the study. I think we have a lot of questions to answer,” he says. Some doctors say that in regard to this study, proceed with caution. “You may have a tendency towards alcoholism that could be accelerated. That could be possible, but we need to borne out a great deal further study and validation,” says Dr. Arnold Pallay, medical director of the Vanguard Medical Group. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism defines binge drinking as five or more drinks for men and four or more drinks…
Loudermilk and more… – Feb. 1, 2019 – Entering the New Year sober is an admirable, if misguided, practice. February, aka Sobruary (I am still workshopping a “sober” title), is a far better month in which to eschew the booze. For one, it’s shorter; secondly, it’s not as long. Don’t try and tell me that liquor affects cognition, you no-drinkin’ squares. In that spirit (get it?!), here are eight series that deal with the concept of sobriety; stream them in February while sucking down shaky tumblers of club soda. Flaked (Seasons 1-2 on Netflix): In underappreciated 2016-17 Netflix series Flaked,…
ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE – February 03, 2019 – CBD as an Addiction Antidote Research on CBD’s potential to treat opioid addiction itself is even more preliminary, though growing. Yasmin Hurd, Ph.D., director of the Addiction Institute at Mount Sinai in New York City, for example, has shown that CBD reduces cravings for heroin, in both rats and humans. And she point out that CBD has few side effects (most of which are minor), making it an attractive option to treat opioid addiction. Philip Blair, M.D., a family physician in Vancouver, Wash., and a consultant for the CBD manufacturer Elixinol, says…
FLASKBACK – Feb. 3, 2019 – I’ll tell another story with an unhappy ending. When I first became sober, in Boston back in 1992, I became friends with another newly sober guy, whom I’ll call Aaron. Bright guy, good guy. I moved to California in 1996 and then returned to Boston four years ago. I ran into Aaron once again. Aaron was only 90 days sober, even after more than 25 years in an out of a fellowship for problem drinkers. I asked him, “What’s the deal?” He basically scoffed at the recovery program the fellowship promoted to gain a…
The Weight of a Feather – February 3, 2019 – Now Hacker Araoz seeks to share her experience in “The Weight of a Feather, A Mother’s Journey Through the Opiate Crisis”. The book describes the heartache, despair and confusion she felt following her son’s announcement. Told in first person and reading almost like a diary, The Weight of a Feather, invites us into the the family’s dysfunctional and disquieting existence. As Martin, (Daniel in the book) grows increasingly unpredictable and violent, his parents struggle to navigate their way through the courts, therapy, long commutes, increasing stress and decreasing bank accounts. …
OPINION: Ryan Hampton – Feb. 5, 2019 – Cartels have been synonymous with the illegal drug trade originating from Southern and Central America. Some 800,000 federal employees did not receive their paychecks because of the president’s determination that a border wall be built. But the drug trade which underlies part of the rationale for a wall is in fact a perilous red herring. The most dangerous drug trade of all isn’t south of our border. It’s right in our own backyard. Over the last two decades, I have seen firsthand the consequences of our crisis. I began my journey into…