New Products Help Drinkers Monitor Their Blood Alcohol Levels

/BY JOIN TOGETHER STAFF

July 29th, 2014/

New products on the market are helping people monitor their blood alcohol levels. Some devices link to a smartphone, NPR reports.

One device, called the Vio, is a key chain alcohol test about the size of a lighter. It sells for $50. A person blows in the device, which then determines whether their blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is around or over the legal limit for driving.

Keith Nothacker, the CEO of BACtrack, which makes Vio, told NPR the device might help reduce drunk driving rates. “Previously there was a stigma with alcohol testing, and we’ve been fighting that stigma,” he said. “We want people to talk about their BAC and not be embarrassed.”

Another device, the Breathometer, plugs into the audio jack of a smartphone, and connects with an app. It also sells for about $50. Both the Vio and Breathometer can help a person determine how long it will take them to reduce their BAC back down to 0. “So if you’re drinking late, you’ll see that you won’t sober up until the next day in a lot of cases,” Nothacker said.

The devices are not as accurate as those used by police, the article notes. But they can still be useful in helping people decide they shouldn’t be driving, said Michael McDonell, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington. “In study after study, we see that just objectively tracking your use of [a substance] will reduce your use,” he says.

McDonell added, “If the outcome is to help a person stop using or reduce their use of alcohol, accuracy is less important. And those expensive devices are never going to get out there to everybody.”

PRO-ACT Family Addiction Education Program helps families address drug and alcohol addiction

Next free sessions start week of Aug. 5 at various locations in five counties

When someone is addicted to drugs or alcohol, the disease affects the entire family. Each month PRO-ACT (Pennsylvania Recovery Organization–Achieving Community Together) hosts a free Family Addiction Education Program to help individuals and families recognize and address an addiction problem in a spouse, parent, child or other loved one. Led by trained volunteers who have been in the same situation, these information and support programs begin the first week of each month and run one evening a week for three consecutive weeks. Each session lasts two hours.

Programs are offered at several locations throughout the five-county southeast Pennsylvania region:

· Tuesdays—From 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in Media and Northeast Philadelphia.

· Wednesdays—From 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in Pottstown; from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in North Philadelphia; and from 7 p.m.to 9 p.m. in West Chester.

· Thursdays—From 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in Northern Liberties; 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in Bristol and Colmar.

Sessions are free and confidential—first names only. Pre-registration is required. To register, call 800-221-6333, weekdays 9 a.m. through 5 p.m., or visit http://councilsepa.org/programs/pro-act/family-education-program/.

	Dear Joseph, You may have noticed some changes if you've visited drugfree.org in the past few weeks. We are excited to announce a newly revamped website and a new name: Partnership for Drug-Free Kids. The community of strength and support that you built as “The Hope Share” lives on our new website, but with a new name: “Stories of Hope.” All of your stories, videos and photos have been carried over to the new site and will continue to offer inspiration to those who visit and share their own recovery stories. We’ve also added a new feature: those who submit a new story to the site can now add a recovery date, and the days, months or years of recovery is displayed next to their submission. Since your story already lives on the site, we would be happy to add your years of recovery for you. Simply send us an email and we will update your story with your recovery date as soon as we can. Please visit “Stories of Hope” on our new site, and share some love and encouragement for those who need to hear it.  And thank you again for helping us build such a vibrant and supportive community. Sincerely, Partnership for Drug-Free Kids
We're here to help. Call our Parents Toll-Free Helpline 1-855-DRUGFREE (1-855-378-4373)            DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE. Messages sent to this email address are not read. If you have a question or comment, please use our interactive online help system. Subscribe to our RSS feeds. To prevent mailbox filters from deleting mailings from Drugfree.org, add thepartnership@drugfree.org to your address book. Partnership for Drug-Free Kids | 352 Park Avenue South | Ninth Floor | New York, NY 10010 Forward to a Friend unsubscribe from this list | update subscription preferences | view email in browser

Hello good people, 

I wanted to check in to see if any of you would be interested in a project called I Am Not Anonymous. The goal is to reduce stigma and inspire hope by putting a face and voice on recovery. There is more information in the below email from the folks leading this project. 

The quick and dirty version is that we are looking for folks to submit their recovery story (using the attached talking points to guide the narrative) and then get your picture taken on Saturday, August 9th. This is an awesome project that I had the honor of participating in and I think you'd enjoy it as well!! Check out the below email along with their website,www.iamnotanonymous.org , and let me know if you are interested!! Also, if you know of anybody else who may be interested, please connect them to me.

Thanks for your interest in participating in the I Am Not Anonymous project! This is a black and white portrait project that Kate Meyer (co-creator) is photographing. The focus, hope and vision of this project is to bring a face and a voice to recovery, in order to aid in breaking the stigma of addiction.

Most importantly, everyone must understand that this project is IN NO WAY affiliated with any 12-step program. We take the tradition of anonymity very seriously here and respect the fellowships that so many of us have recovered, and continue to recover in. However, this project is all about breaking PERSONAL anonymity. And the deal is that it is all about the principle of attraction ironically. However, again, it has nothing to do with AA or any other 12-step fellowship. It just has to do with RECOVERY.

Currently the stigma of alcoholism / addiction is tremendous and terrible, and for good reason. The only vision of our kind is negative. The only thing that the public sees is the untreated alcoholic/addict. So what advocacy work, the recovery movement, and specifically this project is about, is about bringing a face and a voice to the treated addict/alcoholic. Showing the public what we look like. Breaking the stigma of addiction and alcoholism by showing how beautiful, funny, intelligent, helpful and productive we are when we are treated.

Unfortunately what happens is so many of us get sober and just matriculate into society wearing this cloak of 'anonymity,' which is not a bad thing. And everyone is entitled to personal anonymity if that is what they so choose. However, oftentimes there is a misconception about in order to be a "good member" of my 12-step fellowship, and follow the traditions; I need to be quiet about my sobriety. This is false. What the traditions do is ask for us to not identify specially as a member of said fellowship; and they also ask us not to expose anyone else's membership. That is all.

So I can talk about my personal recovery all day!! And so can you! We just exclude directly tying ourselves to a particular fellowship. Recovery and AA/NA/CA ... although for many of us are simply synonymous ... truly are two very separate things!

My personal opinion is that the stigma of alcoholism and addiction cannot and will not be broken until the recovering community of alcoholics and addicts becomes visible. That onus falls on our shoulders.

Now that we have the fine prints out of the way... On to the fun stuff!

The photo shoot with be held:

DATE: Saturday, August 9th

TIME: 10:00am - 5:00pm (Please let me know what time you can arrive!)

LOCATION: 123 S Broad St. 22nd Floor ; Philadelphia, PA 19109

CONTACT: Brooke Feldman; BFeldman@pmhcc.org; 215.681.5323

Along with your photo, is going to be your accompanying story, in your own words! And you need to write this before the photo shoot and email it back to me. If I do not receive your written submission before the day of the shoot, we cannot shoot you. We are asking that all written submissions be about 1000 words- however; please feel free to write more if you feel so inclined.

To give you some guidelines for your writing...

It is up to you what parts of your story you would like to share. Please keep in mind the goals of the project while you are writing your story. For those of you are members of 12-step fellowships, this is more than a normal "Experience, Strength and Hope" share. The goal is to combat the negative stigma surrounding addiction and spread a positive message about recovery. This should be more recovery heavy, then addiction heavy. Really try and think about how the stigma affected your journey. How you felt while you were still active... How you feel now that you are in recovery... Were you judged... Are you still judged even now that you are in recovery due to people’s ignorance or lack of understanding? Tom and Kate have compiled a list of questions (which I have attached) that may spark your interest and help you think of specific instances that you can write about. Also I am here to help you form your story. Please don't hesitate to call, text, email me, and we can go over it! Most importantly, write from the heart. There is nothing more powerful than an authentic share to help shape and change someone's mind.

Along with your writing, we will also need for you to choose the message that will be placed on your image. Just a couple words, but a couple of words that scream you, your story, and your message. A couple of examples that other subjects have used already are: "You Are Not Alone," "God Shaped Hole," "Seeing Through New Eyes," and "I Am No Less Than You."

If you have ANY questions, comments, concerns... Please feel free to contact me. I am so humbled and excited to be a part of this project. Kate and Tom thank you from the bottom of their hearts for your involvement.

THROUGH OUR SILENCE, WE LET OTHERS DEFINE US.

http://www.iamnotanonymous.org

The Council of Southeast Pennsylvania, Inc.                                                   and           Pennsylvania Recovery Organization --      Achieving Community Together (PRO-ACT)
Recovery in Our Communities July 29, 2014      Like us on Facebook                                   www.councilsepa.org                       Follow us on Twitter   Information and Recovery Support Line 24/7: 800-221-6333 "Never believe that a few caring people can't      change the world.     For, indeed, that's all who ever have."   Margaret Mead "TURNING A CORNER" IN RECOVERY Believing In The Road To A Better Life   Courtney Barnes works for The Council as a TASC Manager.  She helps clients who are involved with the criminal justice system and have a substance use disorder.   As Courtney explains, "I have recently been working with a young adult...at a critical learning point in his/her recovery process...The idea of staying sober is difficult...I help people understand that there is a realistic path to a better, more meaningful life, and then I help them walk the path they choose...The process of growing in understanding is all part of their journey..." In life, obstacles are to be expected.  Read Courtney's Story on how she helps individuals overcome challenges and believe in a better life.   PARENTS ARE "TOP INFLUENCERS" Talk To Your Kids & Make A Huge Difference Not surprisingly, parents are the most powerful influence in their child's life.  According to The Partnership for Drug-Free Kids, "Parents have more influence over their child than friends, music, TV, the internet and celebrities."  But when it comes to talking to their kids about drugs and alcohol, many parents struggle because they fear the dreaded question, "Did you ever do drugs?"     Stop avoiding the subject.  Read "How to Talk To Your Kids About Drugs If You've Done Drugs."    The fact that you've had experience may be an advantage.  Be sure to visit The Council's website for resources on how to talk to your kids, including our  "Talk Kit For Parents."     REDUCE ADDICTION IN YOUR COMMUNITY A Personal Call To Action  Read Dr. Jana Burson's  practical summary of prevention research to learn how you can reduce addiction in your community.  This powerful article is a call to action for every spouse, parent, doctor, neighbor and friend.   Dr. Burson explains ways you can help to prevent the harm caused by addiction or substance abuse, intervene early and support your loved ones in recovery.   Decide today to get involved and stay involved.   Some Upcoming Events Beating the Blues8-session, web-based program on how to get through the rough periods of anxiety, stress and depression.  At PRCC.  Call 215-223-7700 to register.  Journaling for RecoveryTuesdays - 1:30pm:  Reflective writing as a process of self-discovery, change, and growth.   At SBRCC in Bristol.  Call 215-788-3738 x 100 to register. Morning Devotions Mondays 10-11am:  Jump Start Your Morning! Faith-based guided devotions consisting of quiet time, prayer and readings from the Life Recovery Bible.  At CBRCC in Doylestown.  Call 215-345-6644 for details. Aug. 20th:  September 12, 2014: 7:05 pm. Recovery Night at the Baseball Game, Phillies vs. Marlins, Citizens Bank Park. Click here for tickets.  September 20, 2014: PRO-ACT Recovery Walks! 2014, Great Plaza, Penn's Landing, Philadelphia. Click here to register and get more information. Employment Opportunities: Please click here

Fingernail Drug Test Gives Vital Information to DWI Program

/BY CELIA VIMONT

July 30th, 2014/

A pilot program that uses fingernail drug and alcohol testing is helping to spot drivers who have been convicted of driving while intoxicated who are continuing to drink or use drugs. Fingernail testing captures a person’s history of drug and alcohol use for the past three to six months.

The program, in Kenosha County, Wisconsin, is testing drivers who have been convicted of at least three DWI offenses, says Guida Brown of the Hope Council on Alcohol & Other Drug Abuse, which assesses drivers convicted of impaired driving in the county. Drivers must successfully complete the yearlong program in order to maintain their driving privileges.

“We do a lot of assessment, but until now there’s been no teeth behind it – no ability to help people see they really have a problem – and help guide them in a way to stay abstinent,” says Brown. “With this test, when we say you can’t use drugs or alcohol for the one-year duration of the driver safety program, we can verify the results.”

A Breathalyzer test can be negative in as soon as 12 hours after a person drinks, according to Douglas E. Lewis of the United States Drug Testing Laboratories (USDTL), which makes the fingernail test. In contrast, a blood alcohol test called a PEth test can detect alcohol in a person’s system for about two to three weeks and a fingernail test can detect alcohol in a person’s system for about 90 days.

Lewis and Brown presented the findings of the pilot program at the recent annual meeting of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence.

Most counties don’t do any drug or alcohol testing as part of their driver safety programs, Brown notes. “The big problem isn’t just drunk driving anymore – other drugs are becoming more of a hazard on the road, including marijuana and prescription drugs,” she says. The pilot program found 59 percent of those tested were positive for alcohol, suggesting they continued to binge after their last DWI arrest. Of those tested for drugs, 35 percent were positive. Cocaine, marijuana and opiates were the most commonly found drugs.

Lewis says the test typically costs $100. In Kenosha, clients of the DWI program pay for the testing themselves, which typically takes place about four times over the course of the year. While some counties see the cost of the test as a barrier to its use, Brown notes it is done much less frequently than a urine test, which must be conducted every few days to give accurate results. She has advocated for more state money to increase funding for drug and alcohol testing, and for extending the length of the program. “We’d like a longer monitoring program so we could help more people finish,” she says.

Drug testing using hair is more widespread than fingernail testing. Fingernails, like hair, are made of a protein called keratin. Drug and alcohol biomarkers are trapped in the keratin fibers of the fingernail. Biomarkers may be washed out of hair by common cosmetic treatments such as bleaches, dyes, permanents and straighteners. This reduces the presence of detectable substances. This isn’t a problem with nails, Lewis says. Unlike hair, which stops capturing drug and alcohol biomarkers once hair grows out of the body, nails continue to capture these substances as the nail grow in length and thickness.

Nails provide up to six months of drug use history and up to three months of alcohol history, according to Lewis. Biomarkers are detectable in nails as early as one week after drug or alcohol use. A typical sample is 2 to 3 millimeters, about the thickness of a quarter.

Lewis stresses the test won’t come back positive for the person who has a drink or two a day. “You need at least six standard binges—consuming five standard drinks in a two-hour period for a man, or four for a woman—in a three-month window for the test to come back positive,” he says. “This test finds someone who drinks often enough to cause concern.”

The test also detects amphetamines, opiates, cocaine, marijuana and PCP. While fingernail testing has been available for the past 20 years, until recently it has largely been used for research, according to Lewis. Improved technology has allowed scientists to refine the test so it can detect drug and alcohol use even when a person is not using these substances daily.

In addition to DWI programs, some professional health programs are using fingernail drug testing. “These programs, such as those for doctors, need clients to maintain a low level or as close to an abstinent level as possible for long periods of time,” observes Lewis. “This test allows evaluators to have an objective set of tools.”