Two States to Consider Banning Powdered Alcohol
By Join Together Staff | May 1, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Alcohol, Community Related, Legislation & Prevention


Legislators in Minnesota and Vermont have introduced measures that would ban powdered alcohol, The Washington Post reports. The federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau approved labels for a powdered alcohol product called “Palcohol,” but earlier this month said the approval was a mistake. Lipsmark, the company that makes Palcohol, has resubmitted an application, the article notes.

Lipsmark says it plans to offer powdered alcohol in six varieties, including rum, vodka, Cosmopolitan, Mojito, Powderita and Lemon Drop. According to the company, a package of Palcohol weighs about an ounce and can fit into a pocket. It warns people not to snort the powder.

Minnesota state Representative Joe Atkins this week introduced a bill that would ban powdered alcohol sales in his state. A similar bill is being considered in Vermont. Some health experts are afraid the product could be easily misused or abused.

“Virtually every possible use for powdered alcohol is nefarious, not to mention potentially dangerous,” Atkins said in a news release. “The different flavorings make it appealing to children and students who could easily sneak packets into school. This powder could also be inhaled or snorted, bringing a whole new world of problems into play. With how quickly this is moving, we shouldn’t wait until next session to deal with this issue. We need to move quickly to protect public health.”

Vermont state Senator Kevin Mullin, who introduced the measure to ban powdered alcohol in his state, told VPR News, “You can’t buy a bottle of gin at the liquor store if you’re 16. But there’s nothing that I can see in Vermont statute that would prohibit you from buying powdered alcohol, if it was available. So think about kids walking around with packets of powdered alcohol in their pocket – hard to detect.”

Sales of Drugs on Silk Road Website Bounce Back After Government Shutdown
By Join Together Staff | May 1, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Drugs & Marketing And Media

Six months after the FBI shut down the website Silk Road, which sold illegal drugs, the site has reopened and sales have bounced back, CNET reports.

The findings come from a new report by the group Digital Citizens Alliance. “What we see on Silk Road today is more drugs, increasing vendors, and an even greater commitment by this community to keeping their ‘movement’ alive,” said Digital Citizens’ Senior Fellow Garth Bruen.

The report noted Silk Road 2.0, the new version of the site, had 13,648 drug listings as of April 2, just slightly more than the 13,000 listings before the arrest of Silk Road’s founder, Ross Ulbricht, last fall.

The original Silk Road could only be accessed by using encryption software called Tor, which shields computers’ IP addresses, allowing people to make purchases anonymously. Silk Road facilitated more than $30 million in sales annually. It had been online since February 2011.

The website also sold other illegal items, such as forged documents and untaxed cigarettes. The site did not use credit cards, instead relying on “Bitcoins,” an untraceable digital currency that is available through online currency exchange services. The website told sellers to make shipments using vacuum-sealed bags so that drug-sniffing dogs would not detect the packages.

The Digital Citizens Alliance say Silk Road 2.0 is designed to look and operate much like the original website, but has better security.

Rob Ford, Toronto’s Mayor, Takes Temporary Leave; Cites Problem with Alcohol
By Join Together Staff | May 1, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Alcohol, Community Related & Drugs

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford announced Wednesday he will temporarily be leaving office, citing his problem with alcohol, The New York Times reports. Last November, Ford admitted to using crack cocaine.

His announcement followed the release of a still photograph from a video that appears to show Ford smoking crack last weekend. Two reporters from The Globe and Mail saw the video by a “self-professed drug dealer,” who was trying to sell it.

A video surfaced almost a year ago showing Ford smoking crack. When he admitted using the drug, Ford suggested he had only done so once. Ford has acknowledged he has been drunk and out of control several times since then. He has denied repeatedly that he has used crack again.

In his statement this week, Ford did not mention crack or other illegal drugs. “I have a problem with alcohol, and the choices I have made while under the influence. I have struggled with this for some time,” he said. “I have tried to deal with these issues by myself over the past year. I know that I need professional help and I am now 100 percent committed to getting myself right.”

April 30 v 3 v 4 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB

Surely I am more stupid than any man,

And do not have the understanding of a man.

 I neither learned wisdom

Nor have knowledge of the Holy One.

STEP 1  - We admitted we were powerless over our addiction  that our lives had become unmanageable .

Stuck in active addiction . Cant figure out why your life is this way . Hate yourself and everyone around you .Happiness and joy just turns your stomach .Haven't slept good in years ! I could go on because this was me fourteen years ago . Whats it gonna take for you to realize your way is not working .There is only one way and that is coming to the realization that your addiction has control of your life , and addiction wants you dead or behind bars . God has put you on this planet for a reason and a purpose but you and your foolish pride along with your addiction have tricked you into believing you got this , well your wrong and your life is crap and it will always be crap until you realize and commit step one . Commit step one and follow up with step two and never ever ,ever , give up on God or yourself and you will find sobriety , peace , and freedom .

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1)

By ; Joseph Dickerson

Expanded Use of Opioid Addiction Treatment Needed: Government Health Officials

By Join Together Staff | April 29, 2014 | 3 Comments | Filed in Drugs &Treatment

Health care providers must expand their use of medications to treat opioid addiction, in order to reduce overdose deaths, according to government health officials. Misperceptions have resulted in limited access to the medications, they argue in The New England Journal of Medicine.

“When prescribed and monitored properly, medications such as methadone, buprenorphine, or naltrexone are safe and cost-effective components of opioid addiction treatment,” said lead author Nora D. Volkow, MD, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). “These medications can improve lives and reduce the risk of overdose, yet medication-assisted therapies (MAT) are markedly underutilized.”

Methadone is usually administered in clinics; buprenorphine can be administered by qualifying doctors; and naltrexone is available in a once-a-month injectable, long-acting form, MedicalXpress reports.

According to Dr. Volkow and her colleagues, the public, insurers, patients and health care providers have misperceptions about these medications. Some people mistakenly believe these medication-assisted therapies simply replace one addiction for another, they wrote.

Many treatment facility managers and staff favor an abstinence model of treatment, the officials note. Or they may prescribe inadequate doses of MAT. “Systematic prescription of inadequate doses further reinforces the lack of faith in MATs, since the resulting return to opioid use perpetuates a belief in their ineffectiveness,” they wrote.

Insurance rules also place barriers to effective MAT treatment, they said. “These barriers include utilization-management techniques such as limits on dosages prescribed, annual or lifetime medication limits, initial authorization and reauthorization requirements, minimal counseling coverage, and ‘fail first’ criteria requiring that other therapies be attempted first.”

The Affordable Care Act can increase MAT use by expanding the number of high-risk people who receive treatment through either public or private insurance, the government officials noted.

High Antidepressant Doses Could Raise Risk of Self-Harm in Young People

By Join Together Staff | April 29, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Mental Health, Prescription Drugs, Research, Young Adults & Youth

When patients under age 24 are prescribed higher-than-recommended doses of antidepressants, they are more than twice as likely to attempt to hurt themselves, compared with their peers who are treated with the recommended dose, a new study concludes.

“If I were a parent, I definitely wouldn’t want my child to start on a higher dose of these drugs,” study author Dr. Matthew Miller of the Injury Control Research Center at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston told HealthDay.

The findings are published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning in 2004 about the risk of suicide in children and adolescents treated with antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). The FDA warning came after a government study found young people who took SSRIs were twice as likely to hurt themselves, compared with those who took placebo pills. In 2007, the FDA expanded its warning to include anyone under age 25.

The new study is the first to look at the rate of suicide risk by drug dosage, the article notes. The researchers evaluated data from more than 162,000 patients with a diagnosis of depression, who began taking an SSRI between 1998 and 2010. The study looked at patients who took Celexa, Zoloft or Prozac. Almost 18 percent of patients began taking SSRIs at doses that were higher than recommended.

The researchers found among patients younger than 24, the rate of self-harm was 32 per 1,000 for those taking a higher-than-recommended dose, compared with 15 per 1,000 for those taking the recommended dose. They did not find a significant increase in the risk of self-harm among patients over age 25 who took a higher-than-recommended dose.

APRIL 29 v 5 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB
To flatter friends
is to lay a trap for their feet.

STEP 7 - Humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings.

This is a big one for me . To avoid conflict I will tell you what you want to hear .This is not good because it will give who ever I am talking to a false perspective of reality . We gotta tell people the truth even if it is gonna hurt some feelings. I would rather you tell me the truth and I be mad at you for awhile then you lie too me and I go to hell . Even the small stuff matters ! In active addiction you have trained yourself in what the Proverb says , I call it manipulation and deception , I used it too control and get what I want. It will be a fight to change this behavior but with Gods help working step 7 , practice and a lot of self- discipline you will change it and it will change you !




John 8:31-32 … So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
By Joseph Dickerson

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"When someone is suffering deeply within themselves, their suffering spills over and they start making others suffer as well. What they truly need is our help, not punishment." - Thich Nhat Hanh

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APRIL 28 v 14 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB

Blessed are those who fear to do wrong,

but the stubborn are headed for serious trouble.

STEP 6 - Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

As I get older I get spooked a lot easier , you could say my nerves are shot . I look back and cant believe how quickly I was willing to do stuff I am afraid to talk about now. My stubbornness almost killed me !I could not wait for step six ! Pride , stubbornness ,and fear of nothing has left me with anxiety at times even though I am fourteen years sober. Get out while you still can , their are way too many gone too soon because of stubbornness and pride.

By :Joseph Dickerson

Proverbs 17:11, "An evil man seeketh only rebellion: therefore a cruel messenger shall be sent against him."

April 27 v 1 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB
 

Don’t brag about tomorrow,
since you don’t know what the day will bring.

STEP 3 - Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God.

How many times are we gonna spend countless hours of planning whats gonna happen next. So many times no matter what we plan to do or get done it never works out the way we planned. The Proverb is giving you a warning to save you from worry , disappointment , fear , and uncertainty . These four triggers can be just the ticket to get you a seat on the relapse roller coaster. Step three is key because we really dont have control whether we are sober or not . God is in control and you can stay on your program and continue to use , suffer , and struggle or his program. His program is a destiny , it is a plan to prosper you to give you a life of peace and joy .I am not saying you wont face difficult times on His program but He will take you thru it no matter what life has to throw at you. If you live in the past you will never find your future and if you live in the future you will wind up missing the present . Live each day as if it is your last , love like you never loved before , Forgive fast and laugh always .

Jeremiah 29 : 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

By:Joseph Dickerson

Rockers In Recovery
April Newsletter  April 2014
Latest Press Become A Sponsor Rockers In Recovery Radio and Productions Inc. ALL of Rockers In Recovery Productions are funded by sponsorship dollars.  If you  or your organization would like to be a sponsor of Rockers In Recovery through Rockers In Recovery Radio and Productions Inc  please  click here for more information or call us at 954-826-5968. Through Rockers In Recovery Radio and Productions Inc. we offer different platforms to carry the message of hope in an exciting new way. RIR Events, RIR Concerts,RIR Festivals, RIR magazine (in print and online), RIR Addiction Talk Radio, RIR TV, and RIR Live Concert and Event  Streaming ,makes it easy to reach hundreds of thousands of people globally with just a click of a mouse. Info RIR Website RIR Radio RIR Store RIR Blog RIR Fan Page Meet Our Sponsors		Rockers In Recovery Newsletter is dedicated to addiction recovery through music, news, interviews, events, and festivals taking place within the clean and sober community.   Upcoming Gigs The RIR U.S. TOUR Will Be Starting On The West Coast First Then Head East: May 4, 2014 Washington DC - Meet and Greet - SOLD OUT June 2014 - D&R THEATER - ABERDEEN, WASHINGTON September 20-Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - Pro-Act "Recovery Walk" November 1- Fort Lauderdale, FL  - "RIR Music Festival" 5 More Concerts and Meet and Greets To Be Announced In May RIR All-Star Band Rockin' The Philly Walk PRO-ACT RECOVERY WALKS! 2014 RIR All-Star Band Rockin' The Philly Walk - PRO-ACT Building on our 12 previous years of hosting Recovery Walks! in Philadelphia, PRO-ACT is asking you to support our 13th annual Recovery Walk on September 20, 2014. Once more, we are pleased to announce that we will hold it at the Great   History Of RIR Between 1951 and 1964 John's mother had several miscarriages in between the three brothers which is why there are many years between each brother. From a very early age with all the family dysfunction going on around him, John isolated a lot. He found safety with his Aunt Marge and Uncle Blackie his cousins Vince,Bo and Pat in New Jersey as well as his oldest brother Joe when he was home in NY.   Meet The Band "Rockers In Recovery  " and The Rockin' Recovery "East Coast All-Stars":   The  All Stars  combine cream of the crop musicians that are in recovery or support recovery.  This makes for some serious good time dance music and some good old Rock and Roll.  We also invite other musicians that are in recovery or support recovery to help carry our message of hope through music.  Most importantly the message of "Rockers In Recovery Live Concert Series" is that treatment and education mixed with "HAVING FUN" in recovery is indeed possible!!   Thank your to our 17,000 Email fans, and the millions we reach everyday through Rockers In Recovery. I want to thank you for your support.    Lori Sullivan Rockers In Recovery 954-826-5968 CALL For Help  877- 241- 8383 24/7

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April 26 v 4 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB



Don’t answer the foolish arguments of fools,
or you will become as foolish as they are.

 

STEP 10 - Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.



This reminds me of the song , The Gambler by Kenny Rogers . Every time I get caught up in some BS , I want to fight and make sure you hear my point of view whether I am wrong or not. I dont care if it is written down in black and white , its my or the highway . The lyrics too the song go like this you gotta know when too hold em and know when too fold em no when to walk away or no when too run! It cant get any simpler than that so why is it you wont listen too what i have been trying too tell you for the last four hours . Ohhhh I am acting a fool well that's all you had to say instead you stood there jumping up and down arguing with me til you were blue in the face. Do I need to say more. More times than not we need too just walk away our sanity and sobriety are just to damm important too keep arguing with a fool. Step ten when committed humbly and immediately will eliminate all of the drama described above.




James 4:1-2 “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God.” 

By Joseph Dickerson

The Effect of ObamaCare on Treatment
The Affordable Care Act has gotten a lot of attention since it was first introduced, but how does it change options for treating substance abuse? The Fix offers some practical information.



Does it care for addicts? Shutterstock


By Marissa Rosado

04/21/14
Source The  FIX
The course of events that add up to a substance abuse problem are often complicated and traumatic. The acknowledgment of the problem and the decision to enter a treatment program can be more difficult. And yet the most challenging part of this process, for many, is life after rehab: addiction resolution and continued sobriety.

Rehab can be like a cocoon. But once treatment has ended and the addict returns to society without the structure and support of the facility, he or she often relapses. For recovering addicts, the maintenance of their sobriety is a challenge that dominates their life. Will addicts be able to find continuing care from programs covered by their health insurance plans? With the landscape of health insurance options changing rapidly within the last year, what exactly can recovering addicts count on?

Previous healthcare reforms for the treatment of substance abuse

Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in the US in 1935, but it took the American Medical Association until 1952 to define and acknowledge alcoholism. Case in point: we are used to a government that falls short and lags behind the issues regarding substance abuse.

After mental health insurance coverage was protected with the enactment of 1996’s Mental Health Parity Act, it took another 12 years to get it amended to include the Addiction Equity Act (its name in total, the MHPAEA). The act placed annual or lifetime dollar limits on the cost of treatment for recovering substance abuse addicts. This was a landmark move not only because it recognized the importance of supporting recovering addicts under current insurance plans, but also because it also prevented insurance companies from taking advantage of insured parties. Care for recovering addicts was guaranteed, and it looked like it wouldn’t cost an arm and a leg.

Thanks to this legislation, the cost of substance abuse treatment was no more than the coverage for medical/surgical treatments allotted for in health insurance plans. While this doesn’t necessarily mean the treatments are affordable (especially for many in recovery, money is tight), it does provide a safety net for those seeking help. Copays, coinsurance, and out-of-pocket maximums are the same for someone treating heroin addiction as they are for someone with persistent seasonal allergies.

However: the MHPAEA did not make treatment for substance abuse a mandatory point of coverage for insurance providers. It also did not require plans to offer copays or any financial help for specific treatment of substance abuse, such as rehab programs or addiction resolution. So here is this terrific landmark legislation with giant loopholes embedded in it. This left a gap that left many in recovery without help or care.

The Affordable Care Act

In 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare” or “ACA”) into law. In late 2013 and continuing this year, the law has finally been put into practice. Millions (7.5 million, actually) of previously uninsured Americans now have health insurance. One of the tenets of the ACA is to increase the quality and affordability of health insurance. Another is to reduce the cost of healthcare for the government and insurable parties. So what does this mean for those seeking substance abuse treatment?

The good news

In a groundbreaking move, the ACA has declared the treatment of substance use disorders an essential health benefit. Where the MHPAEA fell short, the ACA is picking up the slack. Addiction recovery is now seen as a critical component to physical health. Now many more will have access to rehab programs. More in need of that treatment will receive it, which will decrease the number of abusers and, hopefully, the number of relapses.

The logic behind the ACA’s prioritization of treating substance abuse is simple dollars and cents: previously untreated addiction costs the tax payers billions of dollars accrued through privatized health care and law enforcement. Ideally, having addiction treatment covered will eventually save this country money and diminish the strain on law enforcement occupied with drug related crimes.

The methods of treating people with substance abuse under the ACA reflect a new approach. The law largely promotes the idea of preventative care. Previously, addicts were treated when they “hit bottom," when it was apparent to every outside perspective that the person needed help. Moving forward, the ACA will treat substance abuse the way it should be treated. This will include disease prevention. Think of all the campaigning to prevent obesity that’s sprung up in the last decade. Now think of that attention applied to preventing substance abuse. The ACA also promotes earlier intervention to prevent the addicted person from ever hitting bottom. The act also offers several treatment options when the insured party seeks care for their addiction.

An example of the advanced perspective of the ACA can be found in the way alcohol abuse is addressed. Screening and counseling for alcohol abuse is now considered preventative care, and under the ACA, preventative care must be fully covered. That means no deductible, co-pay or co-insurance for an insured party. People seeking care for alcohol abuse won’t be penalized or unnecessarily charged.

More good news: if someone has a history of substance abuse and is afraid of being disqualified from eligibility, there’s nothing to fear. Under the ACA, an applicant cannot be deemed ineligible for insurance based on a pre-existing condition. Under this law, substance abuse counts as a pre-existing condition; candidates cannot be rejected from the exchange based on previous drug abuse. Think of what this will mean to thousands battling drug and alcohol abuse: full health insurance, access to proper care, and a fresh start.

Are Online Pharmacies Fueling the Prescription Drug Abuse Epidemic?
The Ryan Haight Act of 2008 gave the DEA the power to prosecute and shut down illegal online pharmacies. So why are so many still in business?



Shutterstock


By Allison McCabe

04/23/14
Source The Fix

On the morning of February 12, 2001, Francine Haight found her 18 year old son, Ryan, lying lifeless in his bed. Francine, a nurse, tried to resuscitate her son but it was too late. Ryan was dead of a Vicodin overdose.

“I was in shock,” Francine recounts. “Just the night before, we had dinner together after he came home from work at a nearby retail store. He used my Jacuzzi tub because he said his back bothered him from lifting things at work. At midnight I had kissed him goodnight and he said ‘love you, Mom.’”

After asking Ryan’s friends about the drugs and finding out that he had purchased them on the Internet, Francine sent Ryan’s computer to the DEA. The DEA found that Ryan had purchased the Vicodin from an online pharmacy which had then delivered the drugs directly to the Haights’ home.

If you look in your spam folder, you will probably find an ad for an online pharmacy. The majority advertise Viagra and Cialis and maybe some cholesterol drugs; drugs that require prescriptions but are not controlled substances restricted by the federal government. If you dig deeper, however, you can very quickly find whatever you’re looking for.

I once tried to score on the Internet. Many years ago, mid-kick and desperate, I searched online classifieds, looking for hidden code or secret meanings in every post; I was sure I could find someone discreetly selling heroin or other strong opiates. Why wouldn’t a dealer exploit the new global access of the web? I followed a “Pain Relief, all kinds” to a trailer park in the valley. The woman who answered the door was disheveled and her place was stacked floor to ceiling with newspapers, electronics, clothing. “Do you have the money?” She asked. Turned out she didn’t have the dope, but if I gave her my money she would “make some calls.”

These days you no longer have to wait around for an unreliable dealer, forge prescriptions, doctor shop, or engage in some other hustle to score your dope. While the FBI goes after deep underground drug selling sites like Silk Road, illegal online pharmacies have sprung up on every virtual corner. All you have to do is visit a website, make your choices, give your credit card info, and you’re set with a month’s (or more) supply of Ambien, Xanax, Ritalin, or morphine.

Jennifer was addicted to Ambien. She was the kind of drug addict who would take a handful of pills, lose consciousness, and wake up on the sidewalk in the middle of the night half-dressed. Or she would walk into a favorite restaurant, sober, and find that she’d been 86’d because of some Ambien-induced behavior that she didn’t remember.

“I was getting them prescribed by three doctors with refills, but my tolerance was so high and my body needed them so I wouldn’t go into withdrawal.” Jennifer was constantly requesting early refills and she knew that her behavior was sending up red flags at the pharmacies, so last year she decided to try her luck online.

Jennifer did a search and clicked on the first online pharmacy that popped up. She placed her order and the pharmacy called her back to get her debit card info. There was no request for a prescription, no doctor’s consultation. It was as easy to order Ambien, a federally controlled schedule 4 drug, as it was to order aspirin. Jennifer’s problems getting early refills were over. “This pharmacy doesn’t care about when you order. If I ordered 200 pills on a Tuesday, I could order another 200 on that Friday. They didn’t care, they were all about the money.”

After Ryan’s death, Francine Haight found that there were hundreds of online pharmacies (as of 2013, more than 34,000) selling prescription drugs. These pharmacies were able to dispense federally controlled drugs because there was never any explicit law against it. Laws governing the distribution of controlled substances were written in the 1970s, when no one could have predicted that one day sales could be made over a computer network. Consequently the law included no explicit prohibition against online pharmacies prescribing and distributing controlled substances. If prosecutors wanted to convict, they had to rely on an implicit prohibition, and do some tricky maneuvering in order to prove that online pharmacists’ methods “fall outside the usual course of professional practice.” This argument was used successfully in Ryan Haight’s case, and the online pharmacist and associated doctor were sentenced to prison.

The Ryan Haight Act and the DEA

As a result of Ryan’s case, Congress passed the Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 2008. The act went into effect in April of 2009 and states that “No controlled substance that is a prescription drug as determined under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act may be delivered, distributed, or dispensed by means of the Internet without a valid prescription.” “Valid” means that the person writing the prescription has had at least one in-person visit with the recipient of the prescription. Also, each online pharmacy is required to list, on its homepage, the name of the affiliated pharmacist, his or her licensing info, the full name and address and phone number of the pharmacy, and a certification that the pharmacy is licensed to deliver controlled substances through the Internet.

Shortly after the Ryan Haight Act was made law, the DEA announced that the online pharmacy problem was close to being solved. According to a senior DEA official, “The Ryan Haight Act has pretty much eliminated the online business in the United States [and] the DEA hasn’t found a large number of foreign sites selling controlled substances to the U.S." In 2010, the DEA’s pharmaceutical investigations chief said that “(t)he Internet is not as big of a problem as we all think it is…especially dealing with controlled substances.” He added that he thought that the illegal pharmacies that were still in business were probably selling fake and counterfeit drugs. He went on to claim that the lack of any prosecutions (there have since been a couple of successful prosecutions, but they are drops in an ocean of illegal online pharmacies) under the Ryan Haight Act was due to the law having a successful deterrent effect.

Is Social Media Dependence a Mental Health Issue?
Selfie addiction or the inability to stop fishing for likes on Facebook may seem ridiculous, but could they actually be the new addictions of the 21st century?



Shutterstock


By Emma Stein

04/24/14

With the recent traumatic news of Danny Bowman, the 19-year-old UK resident who attempted suicide after being obsessed with taking ‘selfies,’ the general public has vocalized strong opinions on both sides of the social media debate. It’s no question that we are developing a dependence on the technological advance that unifies billions of people, but are we addicted? The Fix spoke with four different leaders in the field to uncover the growing obsession with status updates, and what this means for our psychological well-being.

“In moderation, social media can be a great way for teens to connect to others, to relate to their peers, and to express themselves,” Dr. Karrie Lager, a child psychologist practicing in Los Angeles, says. “However, excessive internet use can have serious negative consequences,” she explains in response to a survey published by CASA Columbia. The survey explores the relationship between teenagers, social media use, and drug abuse. They found that 70% of teenagers age 12-17 spend time on a social media site in a typical day, which amounts to 17 million teenage users. Those that interact via social media on a daily basis are five times likelier to use tobacco, three times likelier to use alcohol, and twice as likely to use marijuana. 40% of these teens surveyed admit to having seen pictures of people under the influence, and are four times likelier to use marijuana than those who haven’t scrolled through these images. The data makes sense: those exposed to pictures of drugs and alcohol are more inclined to seek and experiment with it themselves.

Dr. Charles Sophy, a Los Angeles-based psychiatrist and Medical Director for the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services, explains that “no matter what genetics a teen may possess, they are impressionable and adding social media to the already prevalent peer pressure only ramps that pressure up further.” He has treated several young adults that are now confronting the aftermath of prolonged social media exposure.


There is a small minority of people addicted and the good thing is that they can be helped. For some, social media is addictive and can be absolutely lethal.

The danger, Dr. Lager says, is that constant exposure to pictures of teens under the influence glamorizes the use of alcohol and drugs. “Teens may become desensitized and believe that since everyone else is trying them, they should too.” In terms of whether social media addiction exists, she explains that researchers have found some behavioral similarities between excessive Internet use and substance abuse, “including tolerance, withdrawal, unsuccessful attempts to cut back, and impairment in functioning.” However, Dr. Lager clarifies that additional research needs to be done before defining “social media addiction” as a distinct diagnosis.

While many are quick to praise Facebook for transforming our social landscape by connecting millions of people, the conversation that examines whether our dependence on it is reaching destructive levels is a few steps behind. The University of Michigan addressed this issue in a study published in August of 2013 that observed the relationship between Facebook use and well-being. By texting study participants five times a day over two weeks about how they felt after using Facebook and how satisfied they were with their lives after the two-week period, their study found that Facebook negatively impacted them with each variable. The more people used Facebook “the worse they felt” and “the more their life satisfaction levels declined over time." If Facebook makes us feel worse, why can’t we stop ourselves from going back for more?

The reason we can’t keep our thumbs away from updating, liking, and hashtagging was explored in a study conducted by Harvard University’s Psychology Department that found that there is a biological reward that happens when people disclose information about themselves. “Self-disclosure was strongly associated with increased activation in brain regions that form the mesolimbic dopamine system, including the nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental area,” the study reported. Rewards were magnified when participants knew that their thoughts would be communicated to another person. So why are we so enmeshed in the allure of social media? It’s because we’re programmed that way.

Our desire to disclose personal information about ourselves to others is ingrained in the human condition—it’s not just a product of social media. It’s so ingrained, in fact, that people would actually forgo money to talk about themselves instead of discussing other people or answering fact questions. While this may not be a phenomenon specific to social media, social media does supply the platform to self-disclose to the masses and receive immediate feedback. Dr. Adi Jaffe, who holds a Ph.D in Psychology and serves as the Director of Research, Education, and Innovation at Alternatives, an addiction treatment program, comments on the downside to this phenomenon. “The immediacy and reward associated with social media (especially through mobile avenues) can be thought of as a ‘quick hit’ and would be expected to result in a minority of users experiencing ‘addiction-like’ symptoms,” he says.

Meet Alex, a graduate of the Narconon Program who has been living a happy, healthy and sober life for over 3 years since graduating the Narconon Program.

 ”My name is Alex and I used to be a drug addict.  I was addicted to Opiates and Benzos for almost 10 years.  I was born and raised in West Palm Beach Florida.  I had a pretty normal childhood growing up and was a pretty happy kid.  Right before high school I started to run into certain things in life that I simply couldn’t handle or couldn’t figure out a solution to.  Around this time I was introduced to drugs and they became a great solution to those issues…so I thought.  I could be more social, more confident, work longer, be happier, and just feel “normal”.  All I was actually doing was making it harder and harder to function in life without using drugs.”

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"OUR STORIES HAVE POWER"   A free training for people in recovery from addiction, family members and supporters of recovery, designed to reduce stigma by learning the language of recovery!    Be an advocate for recovery!        Saturday, April 26, 2014 9:00 am - 1:00 pm Everyone welcome! This event is free of charge but you are encouraged to preregister for this training  by calling Karen at 215-788-3738, ext. 100   Location: Southern Bucks Recovery Community Center/PRO-ACT 1286 Veterans Highway, Suite D-6, Bristol, PA 19007    Presenter: Aaron Kucharski, NCADD-NJ Recovery Community Organizer   Join thousands of advocates who have taken this training across the country   This training is in cooperation with

    

	Friday, May 2: Celebration
	You're Invited to an   Overdose Prevention Act   Commemorative Celebration   Friday, May 2, 2014 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm  at the    Old York Country Club  228 Old York Road Chesterfield, NJ 08515    Hors d'oeuvres to be served *** Cash Bar will be available  RSVP TO PAUL RESSLER BY MONDAY, APRIL 28, 2014 press27148@aol.com or by phone at 609-581-0600 (office), 609-947-4296 (cell) _________________________________________ This event commemorates the first anniversary of the signing of this life-saving legislation, honoring those we have lost, and spending time in fellowship with others who  are committed to preventing needless overdose deaths in New Jersey.

Marijuana Edibles Linked to Two Deaths, Increased ER Visits in Colorado
By Join Together Staff | April 24, 2014 | 2 Comments | Filed in Community Related & Drugs

Health officials report legal marijuana edible products have been linked to two recent deaths and an increase in emergency room visits in Colorado, Fox News reports. Edibles include marijuana-laced baked goods, candies and beverages.

The effects of marijuana edibles begin more slowly than the smoked version of the drug, according to Dr. George Sam Wang of Children’s Hospital Colorado. Once the effects begin, they tend to last longer, he said. “One of the dangers that we’ve been seeing with adult recreational retail use is they’ll take the recommended dose, wait, feel no effects and then continue to stack doses. Then before they know it they have a pretty large amount in their system and then they get potentially pretty severe effects,” Dr. Wang noted.

A college student who had never tried marijuana before ate the recommended dose of one-sixth of a marijuana-laced cookie last month. He felt no effects, and then ate the whole cookie—six times the recommended dose. He later jumped off a hotel balcony and died, according to the article. The student’s autopsy report listed “marijuana intoxication” as a contributing factor in his death.

According to Colorado State Representative Jonathan Singer, about 40 percent of the marijuana industry consists of edible products. The products must be sold in child-proof packaging. Labels must state how much of marijuana’s psychoactive ingredient THC is in the product. Singer is co-sponsoring a bill that would require marijuana edibles to have a recognizable symbol on the product, so it can be easily identified even when it is out of the child-resistant packaging.

Childrens Hospital Colorado saw eight cases of marijuana intoxication in children last year. The hospital has seen eight more cases in just the first few months of 2014, according to Dr. Wang. Six of the children had to be admitted to critical care.

Three Teens Hospitalized After Taking LSD-Like Drug in Virginia
By Join Together Staff | April 24, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Community Related, Drugs & Youth

Three teenage girls were hospitalized in Virginia last weekend after taking an LSD-like synthetic drug. The compound is known by names including 25i, N-Bomb or Smiles.

The girls ranged in age from 13 to 18, according to CBS News. Police say the drug first produces a feeling of euphoria, but then can cause disorientation, violent behavior and death.

People who take the drug experience a fast heart rate, said Police Lt. Tony Matos, Assistant Commander of the narcotics division in Fairfax County, Virginia. “It starts off with a lot of sweating, maybe even some nausea and vomiting. But ultimately, it will lead to very aggressive, violent behavior, and ultimately it will lead to death.”

In November, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) made three synthetic N-Bomb compounds illegal for the next two years. The compounds were responsible for the deaths of at least 19 people in the United States between March 2012 and August 2013, the agency said.

The DEA made the synthetic compounds 25I-NBOMe, 25C-NBOMe, and 25B-NBOMe Schedule I, meaning they are illegal drugs under the Controlled Substances Act, for the next two years. These drugs are marketed online and through illegal channels as illicit hallucinogens such as LSD, according to a DEA news release. They are sold as powders, liquid solutions, soaked onto blotter paper, and laced on edible items.

The DEA warns synthetic drugs have no consistent manufacturing and packaging processes and may contain drastically differing dosage amounts, a mix of several drugs, and unknown adulterants. “Users are playing Russian roulette when they abuse them,” the agency states. During the two-year period when the compounds are illegal, the DEA will work with the Department of Health and Human Services to determine if they should be made permanently illegal.