Saturday, February 15, 2014

Teens Who Consume Energy Drinks May Be More Likely to Use Alcohol and Drugs: Study


By Join Together Staff | February 13, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed inAlcohol, Drugs, Research & Youth

A new study suggests teens who consume high-caffeine energy drinks such as Monster or Red Bull may be more likely to use alcohol, drugs or cigarettes.

The study included almost 22,000 students in grades 8, 10 and 12,HealthDay reports. The researchers found 30 percent said they drank high-caffeine energy drinks or shots, while more than 40 percent drank regular soft drinks daily, and 20 percent drank diet soda daily. Teens who consumed energy drinks were two to three times more likely to admit recently using drugs, alcohol or cigarettes, compared with teens who didn’t consume energy drinks.

Eighth graders were more likely than older students to use energy drinks. Boys, teens without two parents at home, and those whose parents had lower education levels, were also more likely to consume the drinks. Drinking sodas was related to substance use, but the association was much weaker compared with energy drink consumption.

“The current study indicates that adolescent consumption of energy drinks/shots is widespread and that energy drink users also report heightened risk for substance use,” the University of Michigan’s researchers wrote in the Journal of Addiction Medicine.

The researchers note teens who are risk-taking may be more attracted to both energy drinks and to other substances.



The Addict's Mom is thrilled to be a community sponsor for a very special group Heroes in Recovery 6K run & walk On May 3rd 2014.


THE ADDICTS MOM REALLY NEEDs YOUR HELP.

TAM TEAM LEADERS ARE NEEDED

If YOU A SOUTH FLORIDA MOM, REHAB, PROFESSIONAL OR AN...YONE WHO’S LIFE HAS BEEN TOUCHED BY ADDICTION PLEASE CONTACT ME. I CANNOT DO IT ALONE, YOU HELP MEANS SO MUCH.
I HAVE BEEN ASKED BY MANY OF YOU, WHAT CAN WE DO TO EFFECT CHANGE?

YOU CAN VOLUNTEER A LITTLE OR A LOT.

PLEASE CONTACT ME AS SOON AS POSSIBLE SO WE CAN RAISE MONEY TO CHANGE THE FACE OF ADDICTION, TO CREATE NEW LAWS, BREAK THE STIGMA AND HELP A WONDERFUL CHARITY SUSAN B. ANTHONY WHO SPECIALIZES IN SERVICES FOR SUBSTANCE-ADDICTED PREGNANT WOMEN AND MOTHERS WITH CHILDREN.

PLEASE CONTACT BARBARA THEODOSIOU 954 309-0992 OR EAMIL BARBRAA@THEADDICTSMOM.COM

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GHB, Conspiracy, and Suicide | The Fix

GHB, Conspiracy, and Suicide | The Fix

Genetics Or Self-Fulfilling Prophecy? | The Fix

Genetics Or Self-Fulfilling Prophecy? | The Fix

Thursday, February 13, 2014




February 13 v 20 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB

Walk with the wise and become wise;
associate with fools and get in trouble

We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it. So if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall. (1 Corinthians 10:12)



Wow the Proverb is telling it like it is. One of the toughest times I have faced in recovery is walking away from the fools. I have a hard time with that statement the fools the Bible is referring to are the very people who I would have at one time walked through the fires of hell with.When we get on the bus to recovery one of the hardest things to do is leave your peeps behind.Those peeps looking back now ,I realize or at least with some , I wonder were they really looking out for me or were they just using me to get the next high. The very ones we hate the most durinig addiction are the very ones who do have our backs but we are so blinded with self we cant see their true loyalty. I chose step ten because it is so important when taking personal inventory we must be honest in our evaluation of past relationships. I guarantee you the phone is gonna ring and its gonna be one of your peeps from back in the day and if we are not careful they will take you for a ride on the relapse roller coaster. My biggest piece of advice is , early in your recovery you gotta get on that bus , dont look out the window , and never look back because we are one stop away from going back to where we fought like hell to get out of. It helps to mention and remember them , but is it okay or could you hang with them again ?



Jesus said I am the truth the life the way no one comes unto the Father except through me.
The Council's Board of Directors 
and the Bucks County Chapter of PRO-ACT, 
cordially invite you to a FREE showing of 
The Anonymous People 
a feature documentary film about the 23.5 million Americans living in
 long-term recovery, and the emerging public recovery movement that will transform how alcohol and other drug problems are dealt with in our communities.

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To view the trailer, click here 

Help us to change the conversation from problems to solutions for America's top health problem!
  About The Council
  
The Council of Southeast Pennsylvania, Inc., an affiliate of the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD), is a private nonprofit organization serving Bucks County, Chester County, Delaware County, Montgomery County and Philadelphia County. The Council provides a wide range ofservices to families, schools, businesses, individuals and the community at large regardless of ability to pay, ethnicity, race, gender, age and/or sexual orientation. 
About PRO-ACT

PRO-ACT is the regional nonprofit organization working to mobilize and rally individuals in recovery from addiction, as well as their families, friends and allies in a campaign to end discrimination, broaden social understanding and achieve a just response to addiction as a public health crisis. 


Join Our Mailing List!

Addiction Is a
Disease

Support the New Recovery Movement
FREE Showing
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
(2 PCB Credits)
Location: Bucks County 
Community College Auditorium
275 Swamp Road, Newtown, PA 18940
 
Doors open at 5:30 pm; Welcome and Expo Opportunities 6:00-6:30 pm; Film Begins at 6:30 pm followed by a Panel Discussion (8-9 pm) with behavioral health and public policy experts. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions of panelists.
RESERVATIONS NOT NECESSARY
BRING A FRIEND!
A freewill collection will be taken 

All proceeds will help us to continue to advocate for and support individuals and families accessing and sustaining long-term recovery
Special thanks to the generosity of our Sponsors:
BioCare Recovery
Pyramid Healthcare
Seabrook House and the 
Bucks County Community College

Sponsorship and Expo Opportunities Available
For sponsorship information email Michael here
"A.A. members may disclose their identity and speak as recovered alcoholics, giving radio, TV and Internet interviews, without violating the Traditions - so long as their A.A. membership is not revealed."
General Service Office of
Alcoholics Anonymous, New York, NY

         The film, Anonymous People, is critical viewing for anyone concerned about how people in recovery are viewed today. Individuals, families, communities, legislators, policymakers, the recovery community, and those in the judicial system can benefit greatly from the experiences and messages conveyed by the faces and voices of citizens, leaders, volunteers, corporate executives, public figures, and celebrities who are laying it all on the line to save the lives of others just like them.
Council Masthead

Wednesday, February 12, 2014


February 12 v 14 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB

Wise words bring many benefits,
and hard work brings rewards.

STEP 8 - We made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make admends to them all. Do to others as you would have them do to you. (Luke 6:31)



This step along with the rest will require just that , hard work is the only way I can stay sober and keep my sanity . I chose number eight specifically because thirteen years of sobriety has taught me this is a tough one and it will take a long time to complete but its well worth it .My memory was one part of me that suffered the most from addiction , and as time passes and through prayer and step work , I discover memories most not good but important because I have to get rid of my pain , regret , remorse and sorrows. Working the steps has helped me discover that if I don't work this step my heart and mind will be jam packed with all the terrible stuff I did too myself and others. When I first started early in my recovery there were too many sleepless nights wasted time spent watching all the movies in my head and the what ifs and how comes. What a waste of time ! That's why this step for me was so important and still is.Working this step on a daily basis will be just that hard work and for me it was painful but it must be completed if you want to keep moving forward. I said it before and I will say it again It works ,if you work it.
 
 
Jesus said I am the truth , the life , the way no one comes unto the father but through me .
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 Greetings!,

     In this February edition of the "His Mansion Newsletter", you will read about Tim's story... a story of the Lord's grace and redemption in the midst of the panic and anguish caused by the sudden and tragic death of his mother when he was four-years-old. Out of this heartbreak came a life-long quest for relationship that eventually lead to poor choices and addiction.

     One of those choices led Tim to face significant jail time. Through God's providence, that lengthy sentence was reduced to one month. While serving out his sentence, God led Tim to share his spiritual journey of forgiveness and new life in Christ with a fellow inmate. That young man is now on The Hill seeking new life.

     For more on the amazing story of God's grace in Tim's life, click here for your February 2014 His Mansion Newsletter. 

Thank you,
 
Ed Perrine
CEO 


P.S. If you would like give a gift to help support the redemptive work that 
Christ is doing on The Hill, 
simply click here and put "214" in the purpose field followed by your desired gift amount. 
There is one body and one Spirit-just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call- one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
Ephesians 4:4-6 ESV

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Fentanyl-Laced Heroin Suspected in at Least 50 Recent Fatal Overdoses in Three States
By Join Together Staff | February 6, 2014 | 2 Comments | Filed in Community Related & Drugs

Heroin laced with the synthetic opiate fentanyl is suspected in at least 50 recent fatal overdoses in three states, according to law enforcement officials. In Pennsylvania, the drug combination is suspected in at least 17 deaths. Officials in Maryland and Michigan are also investigating deaths linked to the drug mix. In Flint, Michigan, fentanyl-laced heroin is suspected in four recent overdoses.

Fentanyl is often used during surgery. Drug dealers add it to heroin to create a stronger high, ABC News reports.

People who use the drug combination “don’t know that fentanyl is in it and shoot it up and stop breathing, because they were unaware of the added punch in the narcotic,” said Ray Isackila, counselor and team leader of addiction treatment at University Hospitals Case Medical Center in Cleveland. He noted fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more potent than heroin, and affects the central nervous system and brain. “Heroin with illicit fentanyl laced into it makes it stronger, cheaper and more desirable on the street,” he said. “People hear about this new heroin or this super strong heroin that someone is selling,” and they want it.

“There’s an odd mindset in the drug addiction world if people have overdosed on this, they think I’ve got to get some of it,” Isackila said. They say “they’ll just use a little — a dangerous drug becomes more desirable to the addict on the street.”

Heroin Overdose Antidote Naloxone Becoming More Widely Available
By Join Together Staff | February 6, 2014 | 1 Comment | Filed in Community Related, Drugs, Legislation & Treatment


The heroin overdose antidote naloxone is becoming more widely available nationwide, the Los Angeles Times reports. California greatly expanded availability of the treatment as of January 1. Currently 17 states and the District of Columbia have adopted laws allowing family and friends of people who are addicted to heroin or prescription opioids to have the antidote.

The treatment, sold under the brand name Narcan, has been used for many years by paramedics and doctors in emergency rooms. It is administered by nasal spray. The medication blocks the ability of heroin or opioid painkillers to attach to brain cells. The U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy says it is encouraging police departments to carry Narcan.

Ohio is considering a measure to allow distribution of Narcan, the article notes. Ohio is one of many states that have experienced a surge in heroin use. Much of the increase is driven by people who have switched to heroin from prescription painkillers, because it is much cheaper and easier to obtain than pills such as oxycodone. The state measure would increase naloxone’s availability to anyone “in a position to assist an individual who there is reason to believe is at risk of experiencing an opioid-related overdose.”

According to Wilson Compton, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, when naloxone is injected into an overdose victim whose heart is still beating, “it’s virtually 100 percent effective.” When overdose victims are discovered, “they’re kind of blue, they’re breathing very shallowly, or hardly breathing at all,” he said. “If this medication is administered [properly], they wake up within a minute or two. It’s remarkable. You save their life.”

Last summer, the police department of Quincy, Massachusetts, the first in the nation to require every officer on patrol to carry Narcan, reported a 95 percent success rate with the treatment.

Babies Born to Addicted Mothers a “Troubling Epidemic”: Maine Governor

By Join Together Staff | February 6, 2014 | 1 Comment | Filed in Community Related, Drugs, Government, Parenting, Prevention & Youth

Maine Governor Paul R. LePage this week said the births of 927 babies born to mothers addicted to drugs last year in the state is a “troubling epidemic.” The babies represented more than 7 percent of all births in the state, The New York Times reports.

In his State of the State address, Governor LePage said the babies create “a lifelong challenge for our health care system, schools and social services.” He added, “It is unacceptable to me that a baby should be born affected by drugs.” He urged legislators to add four special drug prosecutors and four judges to sit in enhanced courts, and to add 14 agents to the state’s Drug Enforcement Agency. He did not mention a role for treatment, the article notes.

“We must hunt down dealers and get them off the streets,” Mr. LePage said. “We must protect our citizens from drug-related crimes and violence. We must save our babies from lifelong suffering.”

Last month, Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin said his state is suffering from a “full-blown heroin crisis.” In his State of the State Message, Governor Shumlin said he wants officials to respond to addiction as a chronic disease. He focused his entire speech on drug addiction and its consequences.

He called on the state to treat heroin addiction with treatment and support, instead of punishment and incarceration. “In every corner of our state, heroin and opiate drug addiction threatens us,” he said. “The time has come for us to stop quietly averting our eyes from the growing heroin addiction in our front yards, while we fear and fight treatment facilities in our backyards.”
PRO-ACT Joint Head


Free PRO-ACT Facilitator Training for
Family Addiction Education Program
(6 PCB Credits)

Saturday, February 15, 2014

        When someone is addicted to drugs or alcohol, the disease impacts the entire family. PRO-ACT needs people with a sincere desire to help families recognize and address a loved one's addiction. We particularly need facilitators in the Philadelphia suburbs: Doylestown, Bristol, Pottstown, West Chester, Media and Northeastern Philadelphia areas.

        PRO-ACT is offering this free, day-long Facilitator Training to teach volunteers how to help. The training will take place on Saturday, February 15.

9:30 am until 4 pm
The PRO-ACT Recovery Training Center
444 North Third Street, Suite 307
Philadelphia

"I always feel energized after a session because I'm able to help struggling families just through what I know" said Judy McQuarrie, a veteran Family Program Facilitator.
Family Program logo  
Instructor
Kathy McQuarrie, Family Education Program Founder
PCB Credits
This Facilitator Training is approved for 6 (six) hours of Pennsylvania Certification Board (PCB) credits. Being a facilitator for the Family Program requires a commitment since it runs every month in multiple locations. In return for the free training, PRO-ACT requires at least 10 hours of volunteer service.
Registration Is Required
To register for the free New Facilitator Training on Saturday, February 15, please call Noni West at 215-345-6644 or email her here. For information about the Family Education Program and registration call 1-800-221-6333.

PRO-ACT Administrative Office 252 West Swamp Road Unit #12 Doylestown PA 18901
  PRO-ACT Philadelphia Office 444 N. 3rd Street Suite 307 Philadelphia PA 19123 
   PH: 215.923.1661 FX: 215.923.2216
 PRO-ACT is an advocacy and recovery support project of 
The Council of Southeast Pennsylvania, Inc.
2014 Masthead
            Like us on Facebook                        www.RecoveryWalks.org                       Follow us on Twitter
Did you hear the forecast?
        
        Are you as tired of this weather as we are? Car stuck in ice. Events cancelled. No school. Kids bored. Lost gloves. Hat wet. Out of peanut butter. And branches down!

School  Bus
         This is one tough winter for anyone, but for those of us in need of our community, our support system, our programs and our fellowships, the isolation is
even more challenging. If you have electricity, though, this is when you should double up on makinphone calls and using social media.
        You can also get on your computer and explore how to expand your knowledge of addiction recovery. Just Google those two words and a whole world of resources will open up. Hopefully, one that will come up is PRO-ACT's Recovery Walks! 2014--or just click here.                                                                                        Gotta work out!
 
Crowd of Walkers
        PRO-ACT and The Council will host our 13th annual Recovery Walk on September 20 in Philadelphia to celebrate addiction recovery. Everyone is welcome--you don't need to be in recovery. It provides a fun way for families to spend a day together and break the multi-generational impact that addiction has on them and our communities. And it's a great way to catch up with friends. Bring grandma, the family dog, your kids, and other loved ones. 
        
        The Walk has several purposes, but one is fundraising so that we can continue to provide the free recovery support services and programs that many of you have benefited from. For those unfamiliar with what we offer, here's just a keyhole glimpse of what we have done in just the last year alone (we could go on and on but by the time you'd get to the end, the snow may have melted):
  • The Philadelphia Recovery Community Center, with 12,726 visitors, provided one-to-one 
    support to 1,561 individuals with a combination of peer-based recovery support services, face-to-face direct services, and other trainings and events. The latter included a monthly average of 76 peer-led workshops, groups, events, and/or social activities. 
  • In Bucks County, 207 youth participated in school-based groups receiving "Life Skills Training" or "Too Good For Drugs" evidence-based curricula. And 531 students participated in psycho-educational groups to assist with coping skills and behavioral health needs.
  • 418 young people aged 15-20 completed the Juvenile Awareness Program, which educates them on the various effects of substances on them and others. 
  • In our Family Education Program, we helped more than 250 family members understand what they must do to get their loved ones into recovery and shed their own enabling behaviors.
  • We provided consultation, technical assistance, best practice guidance, group facilitation and assessment services to 48 secondary school teams and 20 elementary school teams. 
  • Baby polar The Philadelphia Recovery Training Center served 2,356 individuals, providing a combination of peer-based recovery support services, face-to-face direct recovery support services and trainings and workshops. They also trained 102 new volunteers, 32 of whom became Recovery Coaches and 35 became Group Facilitators.
  • 94 percent of participants in our DUI Program reported that our classes helped them gain new insight into their substance use and allowed them to develop new alternatives to replace using alcohol and other drugs.
  • And, of course, we hosted 20,000 participants in PRO-ACT Recovery Walks! 2013 at Penn's Landing in Philadelphia.
    
        Being snowed in is a great opportunity for you to contact your family, friends and associates and have them commit to your team for the Walk. If you click here, you'll find many handy tools and advice on how to form your team and get people excited about the Walk and collecting donations. Beginning now will save you a last minute rush in August or September. Remember, there's a prize for the team that collects the most in donations and also for the largest team.
        Now, please take a look outside and see if your neighbor needs a push!
To make a donation to the Recovery Walk, please click here 

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How to Isolate and Treat Protracted Withdrawal Symptoms | The Fix

The High Risk of Relapse Leading to Accidental Overdose | The Fix

The High Risk of Relapse Leading to Accidental Overdose | The Fix

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Philip Seymour Hoffman, RIP | The Fix

Philip Seymour Hoffman, RIP | The Fix

Use of Heroin and Prescription Painkillers Have Become Integrated, Experts Say
By Join Together Staff | February 11, 2014 | 2 Comments | Filed in Drugs & Prescription Drugs

A growing number of people switch back and forth between prescription painkillers and heroin, experts tell The New York Times. They call prescription opiates “heroin lite.”

“The old-school user, pre-1990s, mostly used just heroin, and if there was none around, went through withdrawal,” said Stephen E. Lankenau, a sociologist at Drexel University. Today, he said, “users switch back and forth, to pills then back to heroin when it’s available, and back again. The two have become integrated.”

Some young people are introduced to opiates through prescription painkillers. For people in recovery, painkillers can set off heroin craving. “You can get the pills from so many sources,” said Traci Rieckmann, an addiction researcher at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU). “There’s no paraphernalia, no smell. It’s the perfect drug, for many people.”

About half of the 200 people being treated for heroin addiction at the Cleveland Clinic’s Alcohol and Drug Recovery Center every month started on prescription opiates, according to addiction specialist Dr. Jason Jerry. “Often it’s a legitimate prescription, but next thing they know, they’re obtaining the pills illicitly,” he said. They realize heroin is much less expensive than pills, so they switch.

People who have gone through rehab may be vulnerable to an overdose because they don’t realize their tolerance level has dropped, according to Dr. Nicholas L. Gideonse, the medical director of OHSU Richmond Community Health Center in Portland.

Merger of Hazelden and Betty Ford Center Approved
By Join Together Staff | February 11, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Addiction & Treatment

California has approved the merger of the Hazelden Foundation and the Betty Ford Center, the Star Tribune reports. The new organization will be called the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation. It will be the nation’s largest nonprofit treatment organization.

In a statement, Mark Mishek, President and CEO of the merged organization, said, “We are now well-positioned to respond to the challenges and opportunities presented by health care reform and the rapidly changing marketplace. Together, we will be able to better utilize the addiction treatment field’s most extensive expertise, knowledge and data to accelerate innovation in treating the chronic disease of addiction and expand our already robust national system of care. Together, we will be better able to help all those who seek recovery find it.”

Analysts said the merger will allow the organizations to reduce administrative costs, and to bring treatment into more outpatient settings. Each organization has its own specialties, such as Betty Ford’s programs for treating chronic pain and addiction, and Hazelden’s programs for treating health care professionals and young people, the article notes.

The combined organization operates 15 sites in nine states. It will be headquartered in Center City, Minnesota, where Hazelden is based. It offers residential and outpatient services, a publishing house, an addiction research center and an accredited graduate school of addiction studies. The Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, California will keep its name. It will add the tagline: “a part of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation.”

The boards of both organizations announced last June that they were considering a formal alliance. At the time, officials at both organizations said one incentive for a possible alliance was the Affordable Care Act, which is expected to greatly increase the number of Americans who will receive health care coverage.