Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Communities Start to Organize Against Heroin
Communities across the country are beginning to organize
town hall meetings, support groups and campaigns to discourage the
growing use of heroin, The Christian Science Monitor reports.
Heroin, once mainly seen in poor urban areas, is now increasingly
used by young people in wealthy suburbs, small cities and rural towns,
according to the newspaper. “You would have to go pretty remote to find a
place that didn’t have this,” Kathleen Kane-Willis of Roosevelt
University in Chicago, who has tracked heroin use since 2004, told the
newspaper. “It’s just everywhere.”
A study published last summer in the New England Journal of Medicine
found that as OxyContin abuse has decreased now that the painkiller has
been reformulated to make it more difficult to misuse, many people have
switched to heroin.
Parents say they are having a difficult time finding treatment for
their children’s heroin addiction. They are forming support groups to
help one another. Some are turning to the Internet to find support from
other parents.
Advocacy groups are trying to address heroin overdoses by pushing for
state laws that give people limited immunity on drug possession charges
if they seek medical help for someone suffering from an overdose. Most
of these Good Samaritan laws
protect people from prosecution if they have small quantities of drugs
and seek medical aid after an overdose. These laws are designed to limit
immunity to drug possession, so that large supplies of narcotics would
remain illegal. Advocates are also supporting rules that allow doctors
to prescribe the overdose antidote naloxone to families of people
addicted to opioids.
Many Parents Not Concerned About Children’s Misuse of Narcotic Pain Medicines
A survey of parents finds just one-third are very concerned
about the misuse of prescribed narcotic pain medicine by children and
teens in their community, according to HealthDay. Only one-fifth are very concerned about the misuse of these drugs in their own families.
The national survey
of more than 1,300 parents with children ages 15 to 17 was conducted by
the University of Michigan Mott Children’s Hospital. According to the
findings, 38 percent of black parents, 26 percent of Hispanic parents,
and 13 percent of white parents are very concerned about the misuse of
narcotic painkillers in their own families. Misuse of these medicines
has been shown to be three times higher among white teens than black or
Hispanic teens, according to the researchers.
They found 41 percent of parents favor a policy that would require a
doctor’s visit to obtain refills on these medications. About half said
they do not support a requirement that unused pain medicines be returned
to a doctor or pharmacy.
According to the survey, 66 percent of respondents strongly support
requiring parents to show identification when they pick up narcotic
painkillers for their children, and 57 percent strongly support policies
that would ban obtaining prescriptions for the medicines from more than
one doctor.
“Recent estimates are that one in four high school seniors have ever
used a narcotic pain medicine. However, parents may downplay the risks
of narcotic pain medicine because they are prescribed by a doctor,”
Sarah Clark, Associate Director of the Child Health Evaluation and
Research Unit at the University of Michigan, said in a news release.
“However, people who misuse narcotic pain medicine are often using
drugs prescribed to themselves, a friend or a relative. That ‘safe’
prescription may serve as a readily accessible supply of potentially
lethal drugs for children or teens.”
FDA Panel Votes to Toughen Restrictions on Hydrocodone Combination Drugs
A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel voted
Friday to strengthen restrictions on hydrocodone combination drugs, such
as Vicodin. The panel recommended that the FDA make the drugs more
difficult to prescribe.
Supporters of the panel’s recommendation say it could help reduce addiction to painkillers, The New York Times reports. The agency is likely to adopt the panel’s proposal, the article notes.
The panel made the recommendation in a 19-to-10 vote. Opponents were
skeptical the proposal would be effective against prescription drug
abuse. They also were concerned the changes would make it more difficult
for patients in chronic pain to obtain relief. At the two-day FDA hearing
about the proposal, opponents noted it would require frail nursing home
residents to make a trip to the doctor’s office to obtain pain
prescriptions.
The proposal forbids refills without a new prescription, as well as
faxed prescriptions and those called in by phone. Distributors of the
drugs would have to store the drugs in special vaults. Nurse
practitioners and physician assistants would be banned from prescribing
the drugs.
Some panelists said the proposal could have the unintended effect of increasing abuse of other drugs, such as heroin.
“Many of us are concerned that the more stringent controls will
eventually lead to different problems, which may be worse,” said Dr.
John Mendelson, a senior scientist at the Addiction and Pharmacology
Research Laboratory at the California Pacific Medical Center Research
Institute in San Francisco.
The FDA convened the panel at the request of the Drug Enforcement
Administration. If the FDA accepts the panel’s recommendation, it will
be sent to the Department of Health and Human Services, which will make
the final decision.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Ruled by Rage
Today's Scripture
"Discipline your son while there is hope, but do not [indulge your angry resentments by undue chastisements and] set yourself to his ruin." - Proverbs 19:18
Thoughts for Today
This week we are looking at five types of dysfunctional families (described in The Thin Disguise by Pam Vredevelt) that can lead to the development of eating disorders. Perhaps you or someone you know has a loved one struggling with an eating disorder. Or perhaps you will identify some potentially harmful characteristic that needs to be addressed in your family.
In the "Rageaholic Family" only the parents (one or both) are allowed to express feelings. The predominant feeling is rage or anger. Unfortunately, the children are taught to believe that they are responsible for that anger. Mothers in rageaholic families may have anger and rage from their family of origin, and in some cases the daughter becomes an "emotional receptacle" for that rage. Although the mother is in actuality angry with herself and her parents, she pushes that anger onto her daughter.
Children in rageaholic families learn to repress their anger completely. This repressed anger can cause stress, bitterness and depression, leading to many types of inappropriate behavior.
(Note: We are grateful to Pam Vredevelt for her keen insights.)
Consider this …
Although there are appropriate times to discipline our children—always in love—we are not to be controlled by anger. And sometimes anger vented on children does not even relate to their behavior—it comes from a parent struggling with rage or bitterness caused by something else altogether. Today's scripture makes it clear that angry resentments and undue chastisements can lead to our child's ruin.
Prayer
Father, forgive me for sometimes taking out my anger on my children. Help me to admit when I've been wrong and allow my children to see that they are not at fault for my unfair words and actions. Help me to be sensitive to my children's honest feelings and to allow them to feel safe in expressing them. In Jesus' name …
These thoughts were drawn from …
Seeing Yourself in God's Image: Overcoming Anorexia and Bulimia by Martha Homme, MA, LPC. Written by a counselor with experience helping those with eating disorders, this study is born from her own struggles in adolescence. The group challenges members to find their identity in Christ as they overcome this difficult struggle. This guide offers understanding of distorted body image, denial, and the family systems influence. It also explains how to break free of social pressures and how to restore the temple and tie the recovery process together. A companion booklet Seeing Your Loved One in God's Image, can be used as a quick reference guide dealing with issues associated with eating disorders. Note: This curriculum was written especially for small groups, and we encourage people to use it that way. However, it can also be used effectively as a personal study for individuals or couples.
Would you like to have these devotions appear daily on your church or ministry website? Learn More
"Discipline your son while there is hope, but do not [indulge your angry resentments by undue chastisements and] set yourself to his ruin." - Proverbs 19:18
Thoughts for Today
This week we are looking at five types of dysfunctional families (described in The Thin Disguise by Pam Vredevelt) that can lead to the development of eating disorders. Perhaps you or someone you know has a loved one struggling with an eating disorder. Or perhaps you will identify some potentially harmful characteristic that needs to be addressed in your family.
In the "Rageaholic Family" only the parents (one or both) are allowed to express feelings. The predominant feeling is rage or anger. Unfortunately, the children are taught to believe that they are responsible for that anger. Mothers in rageaholic families may have anger and rage from their family of origin, and in some cases the daughter becomes an "emotional receptacle" for that rage. Although the mother is in actuality angry with herself and her parents, she pushes that anger onto her daughter.
Children in rageaholic families learn to repress their anger completely. This repressed anger can cause stress, bitterness and depression, leading to many types of inappropriate behavior.
(Note: We are grateful to Pam Vredevelt for her keen insights.)
Consider this …
Although there are appropriate times to discipline our children—always in love—we are not to be controlled by anger. And sometimes anger vented on children does not even relate to their behavior—it comes from a parent struggling with rage or bitterness caused by something else altogether. Today's scripture makes it clear that angry resentments and undue chastisements can lead to our child's ruin.
Prayer
Father, forgive me for sometimes taking out my anger on my children. Help me to admit when I've been wrong and allow my children to see that they are not at fault for my unfair words and actions. Help me to be sensitive to my children's honest feelings and to allow them to feel safe in expressing them. In Jesus' name …
These thoughts were drawn from …
Seeing Yourself in God's Image: Overcoming Anorexia and Bulimia by Martha Homme, MA, LPC. Written by a counselor with experience helping those with eating disorders, this study is born from her own struggles in adolescence. The group challenges members to find their identity in Christ as they overcome this difficult struggle. This guide offers understanding of distorted body image, denial, and the family systems influence. It also explains how to break free of social pressures and how to restore the temple and tie the recovery process together. A companion booklet Seeing Your Loved One in God's Image, can be used as a quick reference guide dealing with issues associated with eating disorders. Note: This curriculum was written especially for small groups, and we encourage people to use it that way. However, it can also be used effectively as a personal study for individuals or couples.
Would you like to have these devotions appear daily on your church or ministry website? Learn More
PO Box 22127 ~ Chattanooga, Tennessee 37421 ~ 423-899-4770
© Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending e-mail to info@LivingFree.org.
© Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending e-mail to info@LivingFree.org.
Ivy League Universities Unveil New Programs to Combat Drinking
This fall, seven of the eight Ivy League universities
introduced new alcohol policies in an effort to combat high-risk
drinking, the Yale Daily News reports.
The new policies at Yale, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Princeton,
University of Pennsylvania and Harvard emphasize educational programming
over direct disciplinary approaches, the article notes.
“We are in a wave where many universities are trying to curb
high-risk drinking,” Yale Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Affairs
Melanie Boyd told the newspaper. “There is a lot of research that
high-risk drinking has risen in recent years.”
Close to 40 percent of college students in the United States engage in binge drinking,
and that number has remained virtually unchanged for decades. Almost
2,000 college students in the U.S. die each year from alcohol-related
injuries. An estimated 600,000 students are injured while under the
influence, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and
Alcoholism.
Administrators from Dartmouth launched the National College Health
Improvement Project in 2010. This project includes 32 colleges and
universities that are collecting data on the effectiveness of alcohol
regulation policies on campus.
At Yale, all off-campus parties must now be registered with the
Dean’s Office. Two new committees have been formed to address alcohol
and drug use among students. Students at several Ivy League institutions
said a number of new alcohol-related policies are aimed at fraternities
and sororities. Dartmouth has instituted a ban on punch at parties held
by fraternity and sorority houses, and conducts random walkthroughs at
the houses by safety and security officers.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)