Best of the Week: January 17–23 COMING UP IN THE FIX// How to Recover from Recovery * Wildest Gambling Losses of All Time * To AA or Not To AA: a Debate Between Lance Dodes and Joseph Nowinski * New Pro Voices * Getting High on Our Own Supply * Changes *Ask an Expert * New Rehab Reviews * PLUS: Other incisive articles ACT NOW// Seven Steps to Fix the Opioid Addiction Crisis Now We already have most of the tools we need. By Dr. Richard Juman NO REGRETS// Not So Golden Hollywood's award season brings up ghosts of the past—what might have been, where I am now, and, finally, how lucky I am. By Malina Saval HIGH SOCIETY// 2014—The Year in Celebrity Drug Stories From bizarre product placements to tragic deaths, The Fixlooks at 15 of the most prominent celebrity drug-related stories of 2014. By McCarton Ackerman WILD TREATMENT// Can Horses and Dolphins Help You Kick the Habit? Animal-assisted therapy may not be the first thing you think of when it comes to recovery. It works, but how effectively? By Jeanene Swanson GOOD LAUGH// Joe Sober's Guide to the 12 Steps I'm gonna hypnotize you back to joy. By Joe Sober   BEST OF THE QUICK FIX One Year After Obama-Ordered Release, Former Drug Prisoner Finds New Career 'Big Bang Theory' Star Kaley Cuoco Admits to Nasal Spray Addiction Pot-Infused Sex Lubricant Company Expands to Colorado Workaholics More Susceptible to Risky Drinking Will Israel’s Ban on Underweight Models Have Any Impact on Eating Disorders? Taiwan Gamer Dies After Three-Day Gaming Binge COMMENT OF THE WEEK A Real Pain This week, Dr. Richard Juman discussed how we can end the opioid crisis now. Readers agreed that our current measures cause more problems than they solve: This is already impacting the people with severe chronic pain. Even people under the care of pain management specialists are finding all kinds of barriers in the way of getting their medicine at pharmacies. They're holding up dispensing drugs so the person who is on a stable maintenence dose who misses a few days winds up in agony and has to take higher doses for a while just to get the pain under control. And of course, if you go to the ER you're accused of drug seeking behavior. Do you know, according to NIH, there are virtually no studies longer than 16 weeks on long term use of opiates for chronic pain. There are people who are better treated with other drugs that are not opiates like amitriotyline for neurogenic pain, genuine muscle relaxants like tizanidine) and God knows if insurance paid for maintenance physical therapy instead of demanding improvent in each session that would be of great help in avoiding opiates. But for some people opiates are all there is at this time. And even for conditions like neurogenic pain better trated with other drugs, there is the phenominon of breakthrough pain, which may well require opiates. -Camilla Cracchiolo, RN MORE »