CONSPIRACY? – Feb. 19, 2025 – France was one of the first countries to most fully exploit the drug’s potential. In the 1990s, French health authorities began allowing any doctor to prescribe buprenorphine. By the early 2000s, overdose deaths there from heroin and other opioids had declined by nearly 80 percent. CONTINUE@NYTimes
Author: Leonard Buschel
ALCOHOLISM A FACTOR? – Feb. 17, 2025 – Actress Kim Sae-ron’s cause of death has been revealed.“We believe she made an extreme choice and plan to handle it as a suicide,” a police official told reporters. Sae-ron was found dead at her home on February 16, by a friend who had visited her house. She was 24 years old. Sae-ron began acting in 2009, starring in A Brand New Life, The Man From Nowhere, The Neighbors, A Girl at My Door, Snowy Road and The Villagers. She last appeared in Netflix’s 2023 series Bloodhounds. Sae-ron’s acting career suffered following a…
VIDEO – LET THEM DIE – Feb. 14, 2025 – Drug users can take their drug of choice from heroin to cocaine inside the centers and supervisors intervene, most times with oxygen, if the user starts to overdose. They also provide test strips for drugs to ensure they don’t have fatal doses of fentanyl inside. Opponents say the centers encourage people to do illegal drugs. “They’re encouraging people to use by giving them a community center to go to and to use heroin, it’s something that’s encouraging addicts not helping them,” said Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis. She sent a letter to…
VIDEO – 6 out of 10 – Feb. 21, 2025 – There’s a fine-line to determine whether or not someone may be an alcoholic. “But when it crosses over to dysfunction in your life, it’s affecting your family, it’s affecting your work, it’s affecting just your daily functioning,” Adams said. “And it’s always attached to some sort of mental health.”% of Syste After nearly a decade of alcoholism, 60-year-old Tracy realized she needed help. Tracy did not want to share her last name with Spectrum News 1. It was in 2018 she started her journey to get sober. “I was…
SMACK DOWN – Feb. 18, 2025 – Part of Trump’s sweeping “Making America Healthy Again” order is to “assess the prevalence of and threat” posed by the prescription of antidepressants and other medications. During Kennedy’s confirmation hearings, he made several unfounded claims about antidepressants, including that they are as addictive as heroin. CONTINUE@VeryWellHealth
ONE FROM THE HEART – Feb. 14, 2025 – Jones took to Instagram to commemorate the fourth anniversary of her father’s passing and to celebrate her nearing two years of sobriety. In her emotional post, Jones reflected on the profound impact of her father’s absence, urging followers to cherish their loved ones. She wrote, “It’s been 4 years today since I lost my dad. If you still have your dad around, give him a call. I’d also record him saying ‘I love you’ because I’d do anything to hear his voice say that when I’m sad.” Jones also highlighted her triumph…
NOT TOO MANY NOTES – Feb. 22, 2025 – “The moment I started drinking too much was when I started writing music in 2016 and it was making me go to places and feel sorry for myself,” she says. “I don’t know why I wanted to feel sorry for myself other than the alcohol was lying to me and saying, ‘You’re braver because you can say this with me on your side.’”… Simpson continues, “Probably through all of Nashville Canyon, I came in with: forget who they told you to be. That was the manufactured version of myself. Remember the…
AT GAS STATIONS EVERYWHERE – Feb. 16, 2025 – Approved for use as an antidepressant in some European, Asian and South Americas countries, tianeptine is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration for any medical use in the U.S. The FDA in late 2023 issued a public safety alert warning consumers and sellers of tianeptine’s risks. Despite that, some companies are marketing and selling tianeptine products to consumers with claims that the substance can improve brain function and treat anxiety, depression, pain, opioid use disorder and other conditions, per the FDA. Gas station heroin is a pretty accurate nickname,…
A MIRACLE DRUG? – Feb. 17, 2025 – The study authors reported that in the last month of treatment, participants in the semaglutide group significantly reduced their number of heavy drinking days, and about 40% of the group detailed no heavy drinking days during that last month. They also found that participants treated with semaglutide and were also cigarette smokers significantly reduced their average cigarettes per day. “These data suggest the potential of semaglutide and similar drugs to fill an unmet need for the treatment of alcohol use disorder,” Klara Klein, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine in the Division…
LESS THAN ZERO? – Feb. 14, 2025 – This list includes many movies about substance and alcohol abuse, and we’ve also included pictures about other addictions, like workaholism, gambling and sex addiction. Some films actively explore the process of recovery; others do not. The primary requisite for a spot on this list is a truthful, respectful depiction of a complex, often misunderstood disease that affects millions of American families. There’s no right or wrong time to have a conversation about mental health and substance use struggles. Mental Health Month (May 1–May 31) raises awareness of the possibilities of treatment, other services…
TERRY COLE’S MISTAKE – Feb. 11, 2025 – Cole’s stance on cannabis appears to align with late former first lady Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say No” campaign that took off during the 1980s as part of the country’s drug war. Trump selected Terry Cole to head the DEA three weeks after he appointed Derek S. Maltz as the agency’s acting administrator and two months after he removed his original pick for consideration in early December. Pro-rescheduling advocates may not be too enthusiastic about Cole taking over the hearing process. Specifically, Cole’s stance on cannabis appears to align with late former first…
“See every opportunity as golden, and keep your eyes on the prize—yours, not anybody else’s.” – Roberta Flack, Feb. 10, 1937–Feb. 24, 2025
VIDEO – SO TASTY – Feb. 14, 2025 – Le Pigeon’s award-winning chef teams up to support sobriety in restaurant industry. CONTINUE@YouTube
WATCH & PUKE – BOTTLED HYPOCRITE – Feb. 7, 2025 – Despite a lifetime of sobriety, Dolly Parton has plans to expand her wine brand with a red blend, as the reason for her decades of teetotaling is exposed. With its vibrant character and exceptional craftsmanship, this Pinot Noir perfectly embodies the spirit of Dolly’s vision – a whine meant to be shared with those you love … But the country music legend set the record straight on her alcoholic abstinence , confessing now, at 78, she finds a glass or two of wine to be therapeutic. Parton was said…
VIDEO – DON’T BLAME THE EAGLES – Feb. 15, 2025 – That’s almost five times the amount of tickets issued during the 2024 enforcement period. During the 2024 Super Bowl campaign, law enforcement officers arrested 262 people for impaired driving and issued 8,388 total tickets. Sobriety checkpoints and increased patrols were put in place to identify and arrest impaired drivers during the enforcement period. Governor Kathy Hochul says 49,948 tickets were issued. Here’s the breakdown: Impaired driving – 1,021 Distracted driving – 1,914 Move over – 227 Speeding – 8,536 Seatbelt – 1,083 Other violations 37,167 CONTINUE@WWNYTV
WORDS SAVES LIVES – Feb. 7, 2025 – Barbara Kingsolver has put royalties from her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel to work in the region it portrayed, starting a home for women in recovery. When she was writing “Demon Copperhead,” a novel exploring the devastating effects of the opioid crisis in Appalachia, she was doubtful that people would want to read about such a grim subject. CONTINUE@NYTimes
VIDEO – MUSICAL INTERLUDE – 4,525,720 views since Nov 18, 2017 – Godspell is a musical in two acts with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by John-Michael Tebelak. The show features eight non-Biblical characters, who sing and act out the parables. CONTINUE@YouTube
ROMANTIC PUZZLES – Feb. 8, 2025 – I was on my first date in 14 years, and I was excited, nervous and sober. In my car, waiting for my date to approach, I was feeling and looking good. I got this. He texted me he just parked, and I stepped out of my car, my stomach in knots. As he waved over at me, I was elated because he was tall and handsome. We went to the movies. We shared a large bucket of popcorn, into which he poured some butter and sprinkled chocolate Milk Duds that melted in my…
AUDIO – SCARY WORLD – Feb. 5, 2025 – Kratom contains dozens of psychoactive compounds or alkaloids that are not well understood, and a main one is mitragynine. It binds to the same opioid brain receptors as morphine and, like opiates, can relieve pain or cause euphoria or sedation. Cox died from consuming products with kratom. An autopsy found fatal levels of mitragynine in Cox’s blood and the cause of her death was mitragynine toxicity. A wrongful death lawsuit claims a Scranton woman died from a product containing kratom, a botanical native to Southeast Asia. With a scientific name of…
CAN NOTHING? – Feb. 5, 2025 – Ending the fentanyl crisis won’t be easy. Speaking as a professor who studies social policy, I think both fentanyl and the proposed import taxes represent significant threats to the U.S. While the human toll of fentanyl is undeniable, the real question is whether tariffs will work – or worsen what’s already a crisis. The first real attempt to regulate drugs in the U.S. occurred in 1890, when, amid rampant drug abuse, Congress enacted a law taxing morphine and opium. In the years that followed, cocaine use skyrocketed, rising 700% between 1890 and 1902.…
LIFE OR DEATH – Feb. 7, 2025 – Three men parked in a quiet car park in the southern English market town of Abingdon-on-Thames. The men, returning from a night out, had pulled over to smoke heroin. Unknown to them, the drug had been fortified with a nitazene compound called isotonitazene, a highly potent new synthetic opioid. CNTNE@ndepedent
VIDEO – Harlan County, USA – Feb. 7, 2025 – Roe and Bacon effectively portray the troubled couple, still in love with each other but facing different ends of the addiction spectrum. If some scenes in the film seem like clichés, it’s really unavoidable, since there’s nothing as numbingly repetitive as living like this. Filmed on location in Harlan County, Kentucky (with cinematography by Matthew Boyd and production design by Michael McKowen), Hazard vividly captures the empty lives of a people in a town that’s in the process of slowly disappearing, Will (Alex Roe) spends his days wandering around his…
AUDIO – AND DRUG STORES – Feb. 11, 2025 – Hundreds of convenience stores are selling untested, highly addictive and potentially deadly drugs as over-the-counter dietary supplements, and law enforcement is not keeping up. I recently found a product called 7-Hydro next to the register at a Refuel station. A company called Real Botanicals labels the three-tablet package as “#1 Kratom, Pure and Potent.” While the cashier checked my ID to ensure I was over 18, he did not warn me that the active ingredient, 7-Hydroxymitragynine, would bind with the opioid receptors in my brain and potentially create a life-threatening…
VIDEO – MUSICAL INTERLUDE – Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV, And you think you’re so clever and you’re classless and free, But you’re still fucking peasants as far as I can see, A working class hero is something to be A working class hero is something to be CONTINUE@YouTube
WHAT TOOK SO LONG? – Feb. 6, 2025 – “It’s the most obvious thing in the world to be in support of,” Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) said in a speech backing the bill. “Fentanyl is supposed to be used in the operating room, it is supposed to be used on the battlefield. It is not meant to be laced into street drugs and sold online to kids.” The legislation permanently reclassifies most fentanyl as a Schedule I drug, meaning it has no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. The bill would not impact the Schedule II status…
TRUTH BE TOLD – Feb. 13, 2025 – Most importantly, be honest with those you are beginning a relationship with, whether in recovery or not. Transparency about your recovery journey can set the tone for a healthy relationship. Discuss your boundaries and triggers early to avoid misunderstandings. Building trust requires open and honest communication about past struggles and current goals. Clear expectations about triggers and personal needs can create a safe environment for both partners. When you are dating, choose sober-friendly activities. Choose dates that don’t center around alcohol or drugs. Hiking, art classes, coffee meet-ups, playing sports, going for…
BIG PHARMA FRIENDS – Feb. 13, 2025 – Following a three-week trial, Yousef Ennab, 27, and Mohamed Hassan, 34, both of Brooklyn, were found guilty on charges of conspiracy to dispense and distribute oxycodone, as well as distribution and possession with intent to distribute oxycodone, according to court documents. Prosecutors allege the two licensed pharmacists were part of a large-scale operation that used illegal medical prescriptions to obtain oxycodone for distribution across the city, as Hassan held ownership stakes in more than a dozen pharmacies throughout Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island that conducted business under the names: Nile RX, Nile…
AUDIO – HIGH-Ho – Feb. 14, 2025 – The CDC reports that among individuals who use cannabis, approximately 3 in 10 have cannabis use disorder. The risk of developing cannabis use disorder is even higher for individuals who begin to use the drug before the age of 18. Though it is federally illegal, dozens of states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis at the state level, heightening use of the drug nationwide and across multiple age groups. In 2021 alone, 52.5 million people, or about 19% of Americans, used cannabis at least once. Critically, there are currently no…
HE’S A HERO – Feb. 13, 2025 – Motivational speaker and former Boston Celtics basketball star Chris Herren speaks to students about drug and alcohol abuse, and how they ruined his career, during an assembly program at Panther Valley Junior/Senior High School. SPECIAL TO THE TIMES NEWS. CONTINUE@TNonline
STICK WITH THE WINNERS! – Feb. 18, 2025 – Joan Borsten Vidov was born and raised in Los Angeles. Her mother was one of the Navy’s first female officers (then known as WAVES). Her father had a long career in the entertainment industry. Joan graduated UC Berkeley with a degree in comparative literature, served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Panama, and received a graduate degree from USC in bi-lingual education. She worked as a journalist from 1974-1985, first for Israel’s English language daily “The Jerusalem Post.” She then became a regular contributor to the LA Times Calendar (Entertainment) section. …