Author: Leonard Buschel

IN AND OUT AND BACK IN – May 28, 2025 – If there’s one thing we can count on Chrissy Teigen for, it’s her transparency. Whether she’s discussing her life-saving abortion or a wardrobe malfunction that revealed a little too much, Teigen is always willing to open up. She’s fearless when it comes to showing just how human she is, and never shies away from an opportunity to connect and relate with others. Teigen has a difficult relationship with alcohol. While she’s never called herself an alcoholic, on July 18, 2022… “I miss feeling loopy and carefree sometimes, but to…

THE BUSINESS OF ADDICTION – May 27, 2025 – Dealmaking in the addiction treatment space remains in a sustained lull, suggesting a deeper recalibration on the part of investors and operators in the space. “This slowdown will probably be a temporary correction and not one of gradual decline in the industry,” Michael Villarreal, CEO of California-based Tres Vistas Recovery, The addiction treatment segment is the prime and early example of investment in the behavioral health industry. But the overall appetite for dealmaking and investing in addiction treatment has changed and perhaps lessened, as perennial headwinds and new ones combine to…

WATCH – NO DRUGS EITHER –  May 27, 2025 – Award-Winning Beauty Editor, Donna Francis, talks with Gayle Guyardo, host of health and wellness show Bloom, about the benefits of going sober during menopause. CONTINUE@WFLA

NOW MORE THAN EVER – May 25, 2025 – Forget the outdated slogans. “Just say no” doesn’t cut it anymore. Today’s teens and young adults live in a world of pressure, performance, and constant scrolling — and they deserve real strategies, not scare tactics. Evidence shows that youth drug prevention needs to be science-based, stigma-free, and deeply human. That’s what the new wave of prevention is all about. CONTINUE@Dianova

VIDEO – NOT ILLEGAL ANYWHERE –  March 2, 2025 – For many young people, alcohol is the first substance they try, according to Chris Tuell, a clinical psychotherapist and a chemical and behavioral addiction specialist at the Lindner Center in Mason, Ohio. This makes them more likely to experiment with other drugs later. Consumption of alcohol impairs judgment and decision-making, which can lead to riskier behaviors, including trying other substances, Tuell noted. “Studies indicate that alcohol alters brain chemistry in ways that increase susceptibility to drug addiction,” the expert cautioned. Jeremy Klemanski, addiction specialist and CEO of Gateway Foundation…

TIMES THEY ARE A CHANGING – May 28, 2025 – Last week, Mayor Daniel Lurie signed District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey’s “Recovery First” ordinance to guide the city’s response to addressing substance abuse with an emphasis on long-term remission and drug-free living as its primary goals.”If there are people who are choosing to use drugs and who are resistant to getting in recovery, we should at least make their drug use safer. The largely symbolic piece of legislation builds on Lurie’s efforts to combat the city’s converging homelessness and addiction crises that he’s been addressing with initiatives like a new…

IT TAKES COURAGE or SURRENDER – May 27, 2025 – Nick Kroll appeared on the latest episode of the “Armchair Expert” podcast with Dax Shepard and got candid about orchestrating a drug intervention in 2020 for his friend and frequent collaborator John Mulaney. The intervention took place during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.“It was so scary and brutal to go through,” he recalled. “He was in New York. I was in L.A. It was at the height of the pandemic. So it was incredibly stressful to be in the midst of that, trying to literally coordinate and produce an…

“They don’t like you, but they still find time to watch everything you do.” – Jack Nicholson, b. 1937

VIDEO – ONE SONG AT A TIME –  May 19, 2025 – The singer/songwriter recounted a pivotal moment during a connecting flight that acted as a wake-up call. After a day of heavy drinking, she fainted in the airport and was attended to by EMTs, who mistakenly believed she had overdosed. That incident … Ari Lennox recently opened up in an interview with QuickSilva on the QuickSIlva Morning Show, offering fans a heartfelt glimpse into her personal growth, her creative process, and her new music. From her sobriety journey to her burgeoning “Soft Girl Era” movement, Lennox showcased vulnerability and…

VIDEO – BIG PHARMA AT WORK –  May 23, 2025 – “We want people to wear sunscreen and at the same time recognize there are other ways to protect their skin as well — seeking shade, wearing wide-brimmed hats, lightweight long-sleeve shirts and pants and covering up your feet are very effective ways, especially if you’re concerned about sunscreen ingredients.” Choosing not to protect your skin from the sun, an idea promoted by some Tiktok influencers, should not be an option, according to Dr. Kathleen Suozzi, a dermatologic surgeon at Yale School of Medicine. “Extensive research has shown that UV…

GOD BLESS YOU – May 23, 2025 – FDA warning over a new crippling side effect of allergy drugs taken by more than 60 million people worldwide. The FDA says it has received complaints from patients who suffered from severe itching after stopping the oral allergy medicines cetirizine and levocetirizine – sold under the brand names Zyrtec and Xyzal. The itching, also called pruritus, has been reported in patients who used these medicines daily, typically for at least a few months and often for years. Patients did not experience itching before starting the medicines. Pruritus in its most severe form…

PRAISE THE LORD – May 17, 2025 – There were 30,000 fewer U.S. drug overdose deaths in 2024 than the year before — the largest one-year decline ever recorded. Experts say several things could be driving the decline. They include increased availability of the overdose-reversing drug naloxone, expanded addiction treatment and shifts in how people use drugs. There were 30,000 fewer U.S. drug overdose deaths in 2024 than the year before — the largest one-year decline ever recorded. An estimated 80,000 people died from overdoses last year, according to provisional Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data released Wednesday. That’s…

ONLY 1 STEP? – May 19, 2025 – Under bright surgical lights, a surgeon makes a steady incision just over a centimeter long in Yuan Qizhi’s navel before implanting 10 white pellets — each the size of a soybean, into the subcutaneous tissue. The entire process takes less than 20 minutes, but it could just save this 56-year-old’s life. For more than 30 years, Yuan has been fighting a losing battle with alcohol. The implants he’s just received are sustained-release naltrexone hydrochloride, also known as the “sobriety chip,” a prescription medication used to treat alcoholic disorder.The drug will circulate his…

LESS EMPLOYEES? MORE PROFITS? – May 21, 2025 – Recovery.com has been actively weaving AI into its products and internal workflows, and this acquisition is poised to significantly advance these efforts. RedFox AI is primarily known for its product, Navigator, a voice-guided assistant designed to help users complete at-home diagnostic tests. The underlying architecture of Navigator utilizes a constrained retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) approach, specifically engineered to minimize AI “hallucinations.” This technological philosophy aligns seamlessly with Recovery.com’s vision for building responsible AI solutions within the behavioral health sector. “We see AI as a powerful tool to advance our mission of building…

AUDIO – LIVES AT RISK – May 18, 2025 – I vividly remember growing up and my grandmother warning me to be careful with alcohol — because addiction “runs in our family.” She wasn’t wrong. For generations, both sides of my family struggled with harmful alcohol use. I witnessed heavy drinking, explosive fights and relatives joking that I was being raised “street smart” by being around their substance use. With determination to change the narrative for other families like mine, I went on to study addiction for over a decade. I pursued a career as an addiction scientist while raising…

SHOT BLOCKED – May 19, 2025 – The 34-year-old son of NBA legend Michael Jordan stated he’s “40 days sober & counting” while chronicling a workout session. Marcus made headlines in February when he was busted in Florida for DUI after he was found by police with his Lamborghini SUV stuck on railroad tracks.He faces one felony count of ketamine possession, one misdemeanor count of DUI with property damage and one misdemeanor count of resisting an officer, and entered a not guilty plea, per TMZ Sports. Weeks after the incident, an attorney for Marcus stated his client “acknowledges that he…

VOTING FOR LIFE – May 19, 2025 – To help guide individuals and families looking for the best possible substance abuse treatment, Newsweek is partnering with global data analytics firm Statista for the sixth-annual ranking of America’s Addiction Treatment Centers. Newsweek is conducting a global survey of medical professionals in the addiction treatment industry to recognize the leading treatment facilities in the United States. Last year’s ranking recognized 400 inpatient, long-term and residential addiction treatment centers across 25 states, including four regional lists to cover states that were not surveyed individually. If you are a medical professional with experience in…

VIDEO – ARE YOU EXPERIENCED? –  May 19, 2025 – “We think we’ve done enough dumb things, or horrible things, to never be worthy,” Rob said. “And so, why get sober, I’ve already screwed up my life let me just keep making another bad decision, after another.” Motivational speaker and author Rob Ekno spent years struggling. He ended up on the streets of Ft. Lauderdale, when he knew things needed to change. Ekno has shared many stories from his life in his books, which center around his life in addiction. One of the stories he recalls is when a pastor…

UNLUCKY 13 (Years) – May 15, 2025 – The doctor was sentenced to 13 years in prison for running a pill mill scheme out of an urgent care center. The scheme was tied to multiple fatal drug overdoses, according to federal prosecutors. David Allingham, 65, owned and was the only medically licensed practitioner at Oakton Care Center, and the website advertised his specialty in treating patients with addiction. His sentence in federal court resulted from conspiring to distribute oxycodone and amphetamines, maintaining drug premises, and false statements relating to health care matters. Allingham pleaded guilty in January. The pill scheme…

HORRIFICAL – May 22, 2025 – A now-defunct youth drug rehabilitation program subjected a budding hip-hop artist to years of abuse in the early 1990s, derailing what his attorneys describe as a promising music career, according to a lawsuit. New arrivals, called “newcomers,” were reportedly forced to sit in silence for hours, chant confessions, and participate in violent “rap sessions”. Doe alleges he was routinely restrained in painful “five-point holds,” during which he was groped and sexually assaulted. The abuse allegedly extended beyond the facility to so-called “host homes,” where children were sent to sleep under the supervision of senior…

JUST LIKE ADULTS – May 16, 2025 – Lead author Gabriela López and her colleagues aimed to explore how alcohol use—and the simultaneous use of alcohol and cannabis—relates to the romantic and sexual experiences of heavy-drinking young adults. They also examined whether gender or a history of sexual assault moderated these associations.The researchers analyzed data from a longitudinal study on high-intensity drinking and blackouts. The sample consisted of 201 individuals between the ages of 18 and 29 (average age 22), all of whom reported at least two high-intensity drinking days in the past 30 days. High-intensity drinking was defined as…

VIDEO – MUSICAL INTERLUDE –  June 15, 2025 – The song for Christie Brinkley. I guess he doesn’t drink any alcohol which makes his voice stay as good as it was when he was young up till now.  Keep up the good work im a fan of your work F**king hell, I was not expecting Billy Joel to sound so good AND for the song to be in the original key. Billy Joel one of the great American singer, composer, songwriter, pianist… CONTINUE@YouTube

VIDEO – MUSICAL INTERLUDE – Oct. 13, 1986 – Thank you!!! Captain Jack will always be in my Top 5 songs, and the Philly fans bring out the best in Bill. I’m still searching for a live version of this song I heard in the 90s – it may even be a cover – what’s noticeable in that version is a pause in the chorus before the lyric “tonight” and an extra chorus at the end with possible ad-lib “I’m begging you, Captain Jack, please get me high…. tonight, Just a little push and I’ll be smiling” followed by some…

VIDEO – IT’S IN THE BIBLE –  May 17, 2025 – “A lot of people, you know, they don’t have a family, they don’t have a support system that can pay a lot of money to go to rehab. They don’t have a support system that can help them walk through these steps and so we are their family, we’re their friends that can that can be that relationship,” Mooney stated. Feed My Sheep also offers a helping hand to those struggling with hunger, homelessness, poverty, and abuse. The organization hopes that its comprehensive support can guide people toward a…

STICK WITH THE WINNERS! – May 27, 2025 – Nadine Jolson has over 30 years of extensive experience with a successful focus on image branding, powerful public relations, smart design, and strategic marketing for entertainment and lifestyle clientele. Jolson Creative is best known for generating buzz for independent films, producing immersive red carpet events, launching new businesses, and image makeovers to elevate people, businesses, and brands to reach the next level. Q. If you are in recovery, what was your drug(s) of choice and when is your sobriety date?A. Wine, fine wines, a few other drugs Sobriety date 4/24/1993.Q. What…

HOLD MY DRINK – May 16, 2025 – India Gants has graced the covers of several magazines, appeared on Times Square Billboards and grown her audience on social media to over 400,000. Most recently, India launched her podcast called “Hold My Drink: A Sobriety Podcast,” where she talks about quitting alcohol and living a sober life. Over the years, I’ve started feeling a bit lost with my content on social media because (let’s face it), I am “famous” for something that happened eight years ago. It’s a constant battle to stay relevant and come up with new content. But since…

NOT A REAL ALCOHOLIC? – May 20, 2025 – What if your drinking problem is really a thinking problem? That’s the core message behind Colleen Freeland Kachmann’s unique and fast-growing approach to alcohol recovery. A former high-functioning daily drinker herself, Colleen spent over two decades secretly wrestling with alcohol before deciding to question everything the recovery world had taught her. The result? Emotional Sobriety Coaching©: a science-informed, compassion-centered program she founded to help women reduce alcohol consumption by up to 80 percent without requiring full sobriety. Her motto: Get happy, not sober. Rethinking the Root Cause Colleen isn’t running a…

WHO’S HIGH? – May 14, 2025 – Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been branded “out of touch” for a remark he made Wednesday while testifying before Congress. RFK Jr. was grilled Wednesday by Republicans and Democrats alike over his controversial stances on vaccines, among others, that put him at odds with the scientific community, during his first sitting for a Congressional budget hearing. During the hearing, Rep. Josh Harder (D-Cali.) claimed that the average American would have to pay over $286,000 out of pocket to receive the same addiction treatment that he had. The comments…

Billy, Tommy, Susan WHOOPS – May 16, 2025 – A Pennsylvania kindergartner brought spiked Jell-O shots to school and shared them with the class – less than a month after a mom was arrested for bringing the booze-filled treats to her daughter’s 5th grade class. “The affected students were quickly taken to the nurse’s office for evaluation,” officials saidAadding that emergency medical services were called “out of an abundance of caution.” CONTINUE@NYPost

VIDEO – SO IS HER TONGUE –  May 22, 2025 – “I’m back on sobriety, two weeks sober, and I feel like I really accepted that time,” she said at the time. “One of the things I’ve used is ‘don’t get furious, get curious,’ so don’t get mad at yourself but ask yourself, ‘what happened.’” At the time, Miley also emphasized that sobriety is her own uphill battle. “I was so close to who is sitting here right now but life had more to teach me,” she detailed. “It had more lessons for me. I know I needed to fall…