RECOVERY ON TV – Shedding Good Light (and Bad) On a Tough Issue
RECOVERY ON TV
Recovery on TV - a sensitive issue that deserves to be handled with care
A Prescription Drug Not Designed To Treat Insomnia, Klonopin, a brand name of Clonazepam, Leads To Dependence And Serious Side Effects As Shown In Salon Article
In a powerful personal piece about her troubles with Klonopin and zombie-like side effects that drained her creativity, Diana Spechler uncovers how prescription drugs can be misprescribed. The Clinical Staff at ONE80CENTER believes it is important to prescribe prescription drugs with caution and as they are intended in order to avoid such negative outcome. Klonopin, a popular brand name of the benzodiazepine Clonazepam, was not originally designed as a treatment for insomnia. Although benzodiazepines, or benzos as users and abusers know them, does enhance naturally occurring chemicals in the brain that promote sleep, it also has countless side effects and extreme addictive properties.
Often Misprescribed, Klonopin Side Effects
The Happy K Of The Prescription Drug Klonopin
Like Valium and Xanax, Klonopin often is used to treat anti-anxiety disorders, panic attacks and certain forms of epilepsy. Although the FDA has not approved clonazepam for the treatment of insomnia, countless doctors prescribe it off-label to treat clients and patients complaining of an inability to sleep. The side effects of Klonopin include behavioral problems, lack of muscular coordination, and a number of other side effects that manifest in rare cases. There is a strong risk of dependency, abuse and addiction with benzos. In addition, Klonopin reacts poorly with a number of over-the-counter medications and even herbal remedies. The prescription drug has a history of being particularly deadly when combined with alcohol.
Diane Spechler And Klonopin On Salon
To read the entire article by Spechler on the Salon site, please click on this link — http://www.salon.com/2012/07/28/my_klonopin_fog/
Suffering from insomnia for countless years, Spechler was prescribed Klonopin by her therapist. At first, she believed the drug was a miracle answer to her insomnia. Spechler writes:
If the middle of the night had once been a storm cloud, it was now a fluffy cumulus. Daytime, too, felt dreamy and tranquil. “I love Klonopin!” I told everyone I knew. Like a new convert, I tuned out the naysayers, who decried benzos as addictive. “I’m on a minuscule dose,” I assured them. I kept saying, “It’s changed my whole life.”
But Spechler quickly discovered a number of adverse side effects as she began to take the prescription drug on a regular basis. Her emotions narrowed, her personality became muted, and her creativity shriveled. A professional writer, Spechler describes what happened in an evocative voice that is both engaging and descriptive. She experienced the worse writer’s block of her life and became depressed and embarrassed. When she did write, the results were second-rate as though her creativity has been drained away.
Luckily, Spechler was able to break out of the zombie-like side effects and throw away her pills before experiencing extreme dependence. Afterwards, she looked into the causes behind what happened to her and was surprised by what she found. She writes:
In retrospect, I should have done more research. Well-known benzo side effects include “emotional clouding” and “loss of creativity,” which can be distressing whether someone wants to make art or not. “I have not been able to feel anything … in three years. I can’t even cry right,” wrote one member of BenzoBuddies Community Forum, an online group for people withdrawing from benzodiazepines.
ONE80CENTER is happy that Spechler found freedom from Klonopin before her problem spiraled out of control into actual dependence, abuse or addiction. If you or a loved one is having problems with Klonopin, the clinical staff at ONE80CENTER has the experience and the expertise to provide a medically monitored detox and a road to long-term sustainable recovery. To learn more, please call (888) 588-4180 for help and a free consultation.
LET ME STAND NEXT TO YOUR FIRE – How To Help Our Dogs Overcome Fear of Fireworks and Other Loud Events Using Emotional Sobriety as a Leadership Tool
Earlier this month, I was reminded that the Fourth of July can be a very stressful time for our dogs. There are two reasons for this: one, their anxiety, two, our reactions. Dogs are easily rattled by loud events (like fireworks), but it’s how you respond to that stress that’ll help them overcome their fear, or push them further into it.
Dogs and fireworks: a bad mix
Compassion is one of our finest human qualities, yet it translates differently to dogs than it does to people. All animals, including humans, communicate through energy. Visual cues, sound, scent, mood, and body language are determinants in how we relate to each other as co-minglers on this planet.
RAW (Ready Active Watching) ENERGY.
The first energy your dog ever experienced was the RAW (Ready Active Watching) energy of its mother. It’s like the energy in certain martial arts disciplines, athletic competition – “being in the zone”, yoga or active meditation practices. The RAW energy of the mother creates a relaxed, safe energy for the pup. In recovery we’d call this RAW state “emotional sobriety”. It is the knowing that in this moment we have everything we need, and we experience the world as a safe place. This is the innate connection between you and a dog once you become its caretaker.
Weak energy is rarely tolerated in nature. It threatens the survival of the pack. Weak packs don’t hunt well, and poor hunters don’t eat. Animals accept this, which is why you see older dogs wander off to die, or litter runts not being fed. When your dog goes into a state of weakness (anxiety, fear, depression, shyness), you as the RAW leader must bring him out of it. And here’s where many dog owners, including me, have gone wrong.
By comforting a dog in a weak energy state: petting, cooing, reassuring (“it’s okay”), you are actually encouraging that weakness. You’re saying to the dog, “I know you’re scared and that’s a good place to be.” Instead, come from a place of emotional sobriety, our RAW state, to redirect the dog’s energy.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT DOGS AND FIREWORKS
Before the fireworks (or any unavoidable loud occasion) start, take her for a good run or a long walk. During the cacophony, have him dog do tricks or basic commands for treats, play games, challenge her to lie down and stay focused on you, bring in another dog with calm energy to share space, or mindfully ignore him until he realizes there’s nothing to be afraid of. Use any combination of these tools, but above all, be patient, and ALWAYS reward good behavior. Eventually your dog will choose your RAW energy over its own weakness.
I have a seven year-old Jindo rescue who was once paralyzed with fear by fireworks, helicopters, and general loud noises. Using these techniques he now barely flinches, often sleeping through most sounds. It has taken time but has made all the difference in his well being…and mine.
So next Fourth of July, celebrate your dog’s dependence on you by nurturing his freedom from fear.
Best,
Matt Beisner
THE ZEN DOG
Jacksonville-Based Company Charging For Phony Alcoholism Cure Stopped By Florida Attorney General And The Federal Trade Commission
A phony alcoholism cure offered by a Jacksonville-based company has been taken off the market. The company owners have been penalized through a united effort by Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Federal Trade Commission. On July18, they announced a court order against The Alcoholism Cure Corporation. If you can believe such insanity, the company also went by the names Guilt Free Drinking and Enjoy a Few.
The Alcoholism Cure Corporation Stopped In Its Tracks
Robert Douglas Krotzer, the company’s owner, must pay more than $730,000 to consumers negatively affected by the company. The order also bans the defendants from selling or marketing any treatment or cure for drug addiction, alcoholism or any health-related issue. The company stole money from their clients and threatened extortionary measures if they stopped using their products.
Taking advantage of desperation, the con men of The Alcoholism Cure Corporation lied to and extorted innocent victims
The clinical staff at ONE80CENTER fully supports such legal action taken against charlatans and con men that are trying to take advantage of people suffering from the disease of alcoholism. There is very little as terrible as trying to weasel money and resources out of someone when they are suffering from such an affliction. In fact, it is downright disgusting, and such actions show the integrity of both the FTC and the Florida Attorney General.
“The fact that this company deceived consumers and threatened to reveal their personal information is abhorrent,” Bondi said. “I am grateful to the FTC for their partnership in stopping this company from exploiting consumers and providing refunds for those harmed by this company’s actions.” The company allegedly prescribed concoctions of dietary supplements and claimed that the supplements could cure alcoholism. Krotzer charged consumers approximately $350 for the services and supplements.
Fake Doctors, Threats And Actual Extortion Of The Vulnerable
The company allegedly said that its team of doctors would come up with low-cost, customized and permanent alcohol cures. At the business, employees referred to Krotzer as Dr. Doug. Neither Krotzer nor any of the company’s employees were doctors. Krotzer allegedly said that the program had the best technology that could end alcohol abuse permanently and that the supplements were proven scientifically to cure alcoholism. The court ruled that the statements were unsupported and false claims.
What is even worse than the lack of medical credentials is that Krotzer claimed that the consumers could cancel at any time. But when a customer attempted to cancel, Krotzer allegedly threatened to publicly reveal the alcoholism of the consumers. Rather than offering treatment, it was a criminal-oriented con that expanded into extortion. The defendants went on to charge consumers’ accounts between $9,000 and $20,000 for fees without authorization. In some instances, Krotzer allegedly disclosed the consumers’ alcoholism to debt collectors, companies and a Florida small claims court.
Under the terms of the court order, the defendants are prohibited from using certain trade names, taking further collection actions against consumers and billing consumers without authorization. In addition, the defendants cannot misrepresent the terms or cost of any offers they make. They also cannot claim that the company is a charity or misstate the professional qualifications of any employee.
There Is No Alcoholism Cure But There Is A Path To Recovery
ONE80CENTER hopes that such measures will stop innocent people suffering from alcoholism and addiction from being further abused in a time of need. What is truly needed to stop such charlatans and con men is a national effort towards education and prevention that fully illustrates the need for treatment. When dangerous claims of being able to cure alcoholism and addiction are falsely being made by bottom-feeding criminals like Krotzer all the way up to high-end entitled rehabs like Passages, something needs to be done to educate the American public on the actual science of the disease.
The Garden of Earthly Delights
Slaves.
We, who have been trapped in the sheer unshirted hell of addiction, know unequivocally that we were slaves to our appetites. We might not have known it at the time, because our master was clever. Its like the saying “The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he doesn’t exist.” Its hard to see the Devil when you are in hell, and the Devil seems like the only thing that will give you relief. That, in itself, makes the Devil your Savior, and now the truly twisted, Hieronymus Bosch -like reality of a person’s private torment comes to light. How terrifying to consider leaving one’s so called Savior. One believes that is the only source of relief, when it is, very simply, the source of all hell. Like Bosch’s painting The Garden of Earthly Delights. It is a depiction of hell, terrifying and awful. Temptations take us there. Addiction leaves us there, in that not so delightful garden.
This Devil (which, for the purpose of this blog, is our disease, our addiction) is also a shape shifting bastard. Not only can he convince the afflicted that he doesn’t exist, he can change to suit a person’s temperament. A person’s weakness is the Devil’s camouflage. Spiritually speaking, this is the most profound battle of all. It is why it is said that desperation is the greatest gift one can enter into recovery with. Anything short of that is still very susceptible to dark motives. A lot happens in the shadows where you can’t really see it happening. Recovery is all about light. We don’t always want to see whats lurking in the dark corners, but its imperative that we do, in order to overcome whats there.
I have friends who are still using. I can think of three right now who, I suspect, are using in private, and putting up a great front in public. They are still very functioning; they either own, or run, businesses, and are regarded as successful individuals in their community. However, there is something going on that is preventing them from fully inhabiting their own skin. Some part of them isn’t there. I remember, when I was in this same situation, a part of me was always not there- it was busy thinking about the time when I could check out, later, when I was alone. I’d have my wine, and my downers, and I’d numb out after work, and still get up the next day and go to work, running a fashion company. Until the time came that I numbed out at work, too. No one really knew. But I was unhappy, I was lonely, I was bereft, I felt like a leftover, unwanted in the fridge. I could say- I own my car, I own my home, I run a company- but what does that really mean when you are a slave? When part of you is always listening for your master’s voice, like the little dog sitting in front of the speaker, head cocked to one side? You can’t really pay attention to the life you try so hard to hide behind.
To me, its very dangerous how cunning the Disease is. Not the obvious dangers of the substances, and how many lives are lost to them, that is clear to everyone, and never stops an addict from using. Its frightening how it can tell you that its only xanax and wine, no big deal, its not like you are shooting up in an alley or anything. Or it says, ‘its just pot, and you need it, its the one little thing you need to quell the anxiety, its the only thing that works.’ Why would anyone fight that? Its comfortable enough. And its just enough to keep you asleep, sleepwalking through life, enslaved in velvet manacles. People who know they are doing dangerous drugs in dangerous amounts already know they are gambling with their lives. The ones who think they are managing it are in denial, and that can kill them. Just ask several of my friends- but you’d have to do it by ouija board now- wine and pills can and do kill. Pot- maybe not, but it still keeps you imprisoned. Life will never be what it could be, which isn’t death, just sleepwalking- not really living. Not really.
I think the people who truly run the last wheel off are lucky. They know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they must stop using. They come to understand that the Devil is not the Savior they thought he was- the comfort that the Devil offers is the source of all their suffering. They understand that the hell they are in is created by the Master of their appetites. A life where appetites do not dictate one’s every move is required. A life of recovery. All else, for us, is death.
I love to look around at the recovery community, whether at the ONE80CENTER July 4th party (over 1000 sober people) or at the big sunday meeting in LA last night, and know that I am surrounded by people who are FREE. Free people, who have liberated themselves from the slave master of addiction. Its a powerful thing, and it always always touches my soul. I am honored to be a part of it.
A New International Method to Alleviate Chronic Pain Through A Blood Treatment Being Employed By Professional Athletes
How to treat chronic pain without creating drug dependence leading to prescription painkiller abuse and addiction has always been a serious problem. Although not approved by the FDA and quite expensive, professional athletes across the board are flying to Düsseldorf, Germany for a new blood treatment invented by a German doctor. This treatment and its meaning recently was examined in an investigative piece in the New York Times. Would Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers and Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees, both former Most Valuable Players and future Hall of Famers in their respective sports, fly halfway around the world for a treatment that didn’t work?
Dr. Peter Wehling Treats Chronic Pain
Dr. Peter Wehling Treats Chronic Pain
At the office of Dr. Peter Wehling on the bank of the Rhine River, an Olympic volleyball player Lindsey Berg explained why she is paying out of pocket for the novel blood treatments: “I’ve been struggling with knee pain for the last four years and just continuing to play on it.” After cortisone shots and surgery failed to alleviate the chronic pain, the novel treatments, even at over $8,000 for a regimen that lasts five days, seemed like a good investment before the start of the summer Olympics.
By bolstering the natural healing powers of the athlete’s own blood, Dr. Wehling has created a treatment for specific types of chronic pain related to physical injuries that seems revolutionary. His team withdraws blood from the client, incubates it, and then spins it in a centrifuge to rejuvenate the natural healing properties. Blood cells naturally produce proteins that reduce inflammation and stimulate cellular growth.
But not everything is natural and holistic. Often, Dr. Wehling adds additional anti-inflammatory proteins to the blood before injecting it back into the damaged area. Patients tend to receive treatment over a several day period. Although his offices have become a literal Mecca for many injured superstar athletes, it remains to be seen how effective the treatment will prove in the long run.
No Magic Cure For Chronic Pain
Called Regenokine therapy, Dr. Wehling claims that what makes his treatment so effective is that he heats the blood before it is spun to increase the concentration of anti-inflammatory proteins in his cell-free solution. The idea is not just to focus on the physical symptoms, but also to treat inflammation as a cause of tissue damage as well as a symptom. “The potential of biology to treat orthopedic problems is high because it has only been developed a little,” Dr. Wehling said in an interview. But the Doctor also emphasizes that sleep, diet and conditioning are among the important components that need to go hand-in-hand with the injections. There is no magic cure for chronic pain caused by bodily injury and, as Dr. Wehling explains, “There’s no such thing as the one therapy that fixes everything.”
Without question, Dr. Wehling is passionate about his work and about the effectiveness of his treatments. He has been developing the idea since his days as a young resident in neurophysiology and orthopedics, and is proud to finally see the work addressing chronic pain come to fruition. “When you’re one of the progenitors of a new way of thinking you really want to have it thrive,” said Chris Evans, the Müller professor of orthopedic surgery at Harvard Medical School, who wrote the introduction to Dr. Wehling’s book.
Chronic Pain & Prescription Painkiller Abuse
The clinical staff at ONE80CENTER has found that chronic pain often leads to severe prescription painkiller abuse and addiction. Nevertheless, the pain still needs to be treated. If Dr. Wehling’s treatments lead to a new field of helping chronic pain sufferers with bodily injuries heal and find relief, then it makes perfect sense. Anything that opens the door to relief without the burden of long-term reliance on prescription painkillers is worth more research and exploration. Ultimately, chronic pain must be addressed to alleviate suffering. If it can be addressed by amplifying the body’s own healing mechanisms and properties, it could truly be a revolutionary breakthrough.
4TH OF JULY AT THE HOUDINI MANSION – A RECAP
1024. Remember that number.
If you were there, you may have been number 2. Or 36. or 473. or 908. Just know that you were counted. That’s how many of you turned out for the ONE80CENTER July 4th party at the Houdini Mansion last week.Let me say this again: ONE THOUSAND TWENTY FOUR…that’s a thousand twenty-four smiling faces. A thousand twenty four ice cream sandwiches, grass-fed beef sliders and gourmet mac-and-cheese hors-d-oeuvres. A thousand twenty four hands in the air (okay, two thousand forty eight, technically, but bear with us) and a thousand twenty four screaming cheers for searing hot live music on a warm summer evening. That’s a thousand twenty four new friends, a thousand twenty four old ones, and one very vital community of people committed to recovery and having a rocking good time at it.
We jammed traffic on Laurel Canyon all the way back to Sunset. We ran out of places to park cars hours before the party was over. We packed the lawns, driveways and garden terraces of ONE80CENTER’s beautiful new facility until we were shoulder-to-shoulder and still we continued to rock the house, thanks in no small part to the reunited China Club All-Star band. Picture this: MC5′s Wayne Kramer, Doobie Brother and Steely Dan alum Skunk Baxter, Kat Dyson from the New Power Generation…Malik Pointer and rock legend Michael Des Barres…all on the same stage at the same time?! Are you serious?! When I asked a co-worker this morning about her favorite moment of the night, she replied, “I don’t even remember the party!”
Well believe it because it happened. We know because you blogged about it (HERE) and (HERE), Instagrammed it (HERE) and Facebooked and Tweeted about it more times than we could count. And whether you called it a festival, a madhouse or a mini Coachella, what really happened was a show of support, friendship and love that can’t be measured in numbers or social media clicks.
To us, this was much bigger than celebrating the two years since ONE80CENTER opened its doors. It was even bigger than our being able to give a little back to you, who’ve supported us in that time. To us, this was about laying claim to our freedom and declaring our independence from addiction, a disease which has taken so much from so many of us, and from so many people we love. This sentiment was echoed by ONE80CENTER’s clinical director and founder, Berni Fried, who made a point to pay a very emotional tribute to those we’ve lost as well as those of us who’ve had the courage and grace to survive. We heard as much from a lot of different people in a lot of different ways, but to quote an anonymous guest waiting patiently for a Cool Haus ice cream sandwich:
“What I saw that night was community, laughter, energy, and smiles all around. I went looking for sweets but what I found was much sweeter. In a town where so many people pass one another like ships in the night it’s nice to see people throw out the anchor once in a while and get to know each other.”
Suffice it to say that we weren’t expecting the turnout we got…not in our wildest dreams. But for showing up, we say THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts. If you’re reading this, you’re part of the spirit that we captured that night, like lightning in a bottle. You helped raise money to support the 12 Angels, a non-profit organization that provides capital, education and mentorship to support sustainable businesses that hire recovering addicts. You showed newcomers in sobriety that being sober is incredibly fun, cool, hip, sexy, playful and awesome. Most of all, you showed 1023 other people that we don’t do any of this alone.
So remember July 4th, 2012 and consider yourself invited for July 4th, 2013. We promise to out-do ourselves next year (and yes…you can count on at least 1024 more Porta-Potties).
Love,
The ONE80CENTER
When The Ryan Haight Consumer Protection Act Stumbles, What Can Be Done To Stop Rogue Internet Pharmacies From Illegally Dealing Prescription Painkillers?
Rogue Internet pharmacies continue to fuel prescription drug abuse and addiction to prescription painkillers in the United States. ONE80CENTER believes something has to be done in order to curb the illegal distribution of prescription painkillers, particularly Hydrocodone and other opiate derivatives. With the Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 2008 not doing enough, no major larges have been enacted on a national level to truly address this problem. Although Internet piracy and extreme pornography are serious issues that also need to be addressed, they simply do not compare to the rising death toll of overdoses and suicides that have been caused by the criminal business practices of rogue Internet pharmacies.
Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protect Act
The Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 2008 was an amendment to the Controlled Substances Act that aimed to control unlawful access to potent drugs that are potentially lethal. The Ryan Haight Act is named for an 18-year-old student who died after he took an overdose of what was represented to him as Vicodin (hydrocodone). An honor student in high school and a varsity tennis player, Ryan simply did not fit the traditional profile of a troubled teenage drug abuser. Most likely, Ryan was one more example of a young person in the experimental phase of drug abuse that became a victim of a system of easy access.
Prescription Painkillers – Overdoses And Deaths
In 2001, Ryan ordered Vicodin from an online site that claimed to be a legitimate pharmacy. He used the family computer in his home in San Diego and a debit card his parents had given him so that he could trade baseball cards on eBay. The rogue pharmacy indicated a physician’s prescription was not needed because it was affiliated with a doctor who would authorize the drug for distribution to the buyer. In the online questionnaire that was required, Ryan lied by saying that he was a 25-year-old male with chronic back pain.
A few days after he received the pills, he was found dead from what was described as an overdose of Vicodin. After his death, one of Ryan’s friends told his parents that Ryan used the Internet to get access to the drugs. His Mother testified before Congress: “At a time when we were worried about our children being exposed to pornography and predators, marijuana and alcohol, we did not know that drug dealers were in our own family room.”
A Tough Issue To Tackle
The Ryan Haight Act required Internet pharmacies to display the following on their Web site: 1) who owns the Web site; 2) the name of the pharmacist associated with the Web site; and 3) the name of any physician working for or with the Web site owner. An Internet pharmacy is also prohibited from referring the patient to a physician who never sees the patient in the context of a normal patient-physician relationship. Pharmacies that use the Internet for distribution and dispensing activities have to obtain a certification from the DEA indicating that the pharmacy is in compliance with all of the laws addressing these issues. That certification is in addition to the registration requirements of the Controlled Substances Act.
The Ryan Haight Act permits state attorney generals to initiate criminal proceedings in a federal court against those involved with illegal Internet pharmacy operations like dealing prescription painkillers. This provision is designed to help the state enforcement agencies overcome jurisdictional hurdles. It is not surprising that Internet pharmacy organizations tend to be located in states other than the one where the medications are being delivered. As a result, the law has proven to be very hard to enforce.
Rogue Internet Pharmacies Abroad
Moreover, the Ryan Haight Act does not address the problem of rogue pharmacies that operate outside the country. Statistics suggest that when an Internet provider operating in another country obtains a request for controlled medications, the actual dispensing of the drug happens at a local pharmacy within the U.S. The Ryan Haight Act makes a distinction between lawful acquisition of drugs from outside the U.S. border and unlawful prescriptions obtained within our borders for the purpose of diversion. Still, it has failed to have the impact that legislators hoped for in 2008.
Although the Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 2008 was a step in the right direction, the clinical staff at ONE80CENTER knows from experience that was not enough to stem the tide of prescription painkiller abuse. Oxycodone remains easily available on the web as the rogue Internet pharmacies continue to make a killing in more ways than one. In conjunction, the federal and state governments need to do something to prevent easy access to prescription painkillers and other prescription drugs. If you or a loved one is having a problem with prescription painkillers, the time to take action is now by calling ONE80CENTER at 888.588.4180.
National Study By NIDA Reveals The Majority of People With Drug Dependence Or Drug Abuse Problems Are Never Treated
Although the cultural perspective about drug dependence and drug abuse is that the majority of people who need help are receiving help, it is not the case in reality. According to a recent NIDA study, only 8 percent of people identified as drug abusers, and fewer than 40 percent of those diagnosed with drug dependence, have ever had any kind of intervention or received any kind of treatment. The clinical staff at ONE80CENTER is not surprised by such findings. Although recovery is more prominent in our popular culture, particularly in the wake of reality television and the tabloid media, it is not more accessible to the average American. Such awareness of actual treatment options is limited at best.
NIDA Study On Drug Dependence & Treatment Access
The study was conducted by scientists from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). Both institutes are auxiliary components of the National Institutes of Health. “Even though we know drug addiction treatment can work, lifetime treatment rates are substantially lower than corresponding treatment rates of other major psychiatric disorders,” says NIH Director Dr. Elias Zerhouni. “This tells us that we should focus on strategies designed to help us close the treatment gap.”
Nora Volkow On Drug Dependence
Originally published in the May 2007 issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, the survey results show that rates of drug dependence and drug abuse are generally higher among certain populations, including men, respondents aged 18 to 44 years, and people who have never married. The study also confirmed that the onset of drug dependence and drug dependence typically occurs during late adolescence or early adulthood. These findings suggest that certain groups are more vulnerable and should be targeted for early intervention efforts. ”We are concerned because treatment rates are this low despite the availability of effective interventions,” says NIDA Director Dr. Nora D. Volkow. “We must encourage the public to view addiction as a brain disease that needs to be treated like any other chronic disease.”
Educate Public About Drug Dependence
Says lead author Dr. Wilson Compton of NIDA, “Clearly, there is a need for increased information and outreach to destigmatize drug use disorders and develop approaches to educate physicians and the public about treatment.” This study and others indicate that significant associations exist between drug abuse and co-occurring mental illness, including mood and anxiety disorders, and personality disorders. In fact, help-seeking behavior was more common in those with co-occurring psychiatric disorders. The authors advise that a person with a substance use disorder should also be evaluated for mental illness, and conversely, a person with a mental disorder should be evaluated for possible substance abuse.
“Our results indicate that in 2001-2002, two percent of American adults experienced drug abuse or drug dependence in the preceding 12 months, while ten percent developed a drug use disorder at some time during their lives,” says Dr. Compton. “We see high rates of drug use disorders in persons who are now 30 to 44 years old. This means we might expect increases in drug abuse and addiction rates of older adults as that group ages.”
The authors analyzed data gathered from face-to-face interviews with more than 43,000 U.S. adults age 18 and older, as part of the 2001-2002 NESARC. According to the co-author of the report, Dr. Bridget F. Grant, “Because drug use disorders so commonly co-occur with alcohol use disorders, the NESARC provides rich information on the similarities and differences between these conditions.” What is fascinating is that among individuals with drug dependence or drug abuse problems that have never received treatment, more than 94 percent do not feel they need treatment.
ONE80CENTER believes that the findings in this important report suggest that a sea change is necessary in perception in order to address the growing problem of drug dependence and drug abuse. Before such problems become full-fledged addiction, the awareness of the effectiveness of early intervention and treatment is essential. If our society is willing to take the first step and fully support such options, many thousands of young people could be saved from years of mental suffering, intimate damage and careless destruction.
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Addiction Research
With Oxycontin Abuse All Over The News, Is Vicodin Abuse The Forgotten Prescription Painkiller Addiction?
more »Oxycontin, Vicodin, Percocet Are Brand Names Of The Plague Of Prescription Painkillers
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UNDERSTANDING ADDICTION – FRUSTRATING, QUIXOTIC, CONFUSING…OR IS IT?
more »One80Center Announces The January 14 Reception To Celebrate The Grand Opening Of The Step Up On Vine Facility
more »HOLIDAYS AND ADDICTION: The most challenging season for addicts / alcoholics
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What Is Gratitude?
more »The Zombie Apocalypse is Already Upon Us
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