Betty Ford Remembered for Her Addiction Recovery and Courage

by John Lee

Though she was popular as an open, outspoken and honest First Lady, by the time Betty Ford moved into The White House she was already dealing with a long addiction to prescription pain killers and a growing addiction to alcohol.

Perhaps more popular than her steady husband, Betty Ford won admiration along with controversy for her willingness to share the intimate details of her life and her true opinions to a national audience.  Such as when diagnosed with breast cancer just 2 months into her role as First lady when she went on TV to tell the nation about her need for a mastectomy and to encourage women everywhere to get checked out.

Gerald Ford lost his presidential reelection bid in 1976 to Jimmy Carter, and by 1978, Betty’s drinking and drug use had spiraled out of control. Ford talked about feeling useless once out of Washington and admitted to taking as many as 25 pain pills and Valiums per day before moving on to vodka tonics before and after dinner. As things got worse, Betty’s family got in touch with professional help to stage a family intervention and to get her into a much needed treatment program at the Navy’s rehab clinic in Long Beach.

Four years later and four years into recovery, Betty founded the Betty Ford Center, which has become one of the most respected names in addiction treatment and which has seen some 90 000 people healed through its doors over the past 30+ years. Notable graduates of the Betty Ford Center include Johnny Cash, Lindsay Lohan, Elizabeth Taylor and countless other celebrities.

When asked why she went on to found her namesake treatment facility, Ford replied, "They have to know there's help for them…There's not only help but there's hope for them."

Betty Ford Center graduate, actress Ali McGraw, released a statement on hearing of Ford’s death, saying, "She changed so many of our lives with her courage and intelligence, her honesty and humility, and her deep grace. Her vision impacted my own life as few people have." In another tribute, President Obama praised her for her good works, saying, "After leaving the White House, Mrs. Ford helped reduce the social stigma surrounding addiction and inspired thousands to seek much-needed treatment."

But though on her death so many have come forth to pay tribute to her influence, she retained a sense of humility throughout her life; a character exemplified in her autobiography, where she wrote, “I am an ordinary woman who was called onstage at an extraordinary time. Through an accident of history, I had become interesting to people."

Read more: Betty Ford Remembered for Her Addiction Recovery and Courage 

HARBOR COUNSELING OF WELLSBORO

Harbor Counseling of Wellsboro , offers most D&A treatment services and now has added a Certified Recovery Specialist to their staff.The Recovery Specialist is there for you from the time you walk in the door until well after your treatment has ended.Being in recovery myself ,I know how difficult it can be trying to put your life back together again, that's where the Recovery Specialist steps in! As you know, I am a Recovery Specialist and have had the awesome opportunity to assist many on there road to recovery.This is a wonderful addition to the staff at Harbor,you can call Harbor at 570-724-5272 or 607-242-4830 and ask for the Recovery Specialist and they will assist you! Harbor is located at 7095 Route 287 Wellsboro Pa. 16901

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

At some point in life we get stuck by a disappointment or a heart break.  If you truly think about it, it doesn't matter what it is you use to deal with that heart ache.  Some use drugs, food, gambling etc.  It's funny how people can experience the same type of heart ache but use different ways of dealing with it.  We must have good coping skills and if we haven't been taught any that's one reason some of us might use to the point of getting numb and going through life in a blur.  WE must not let the painful moments of life shut us down and keep us from moving on and finding success in life.  The definition of insanity is....Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result!  We must get out of our mold and create a new one.  Do not let your past determine you future.  Take your past and make it a part of your future by learning and growing from it.  REMEMBER JESUS LOVES YOU!

No One Needs To Hit Rock Bottom... Early Intervention and Treatment Saves Lives Read more: No One Needs To Hit Rock Bottom... Early Intervention and Treatment Saves Lives

by ChooseHelp -

© Rogatien

An addiction to drugs or alcohol can fragment previously happy families, derail promising careers, and seriously damage health and well being; and left unchecked, addictions inevitably run their full course of destruction. There's a truism that people need to hit rock bottom before they can really see what a mess they've made of things, and really get motivated to seek and benefit from needed drug or alcohol treatment.

Unfortunately, what's perceived to be true and necessary is not so, and people can benefit from intervention and therapy at any stage in the progression of addiction, and generally, the earlier drug treatment is sought, the easier the transition back to sobriety, and the better the ultimate prognosis of recovery.

People do not need to admit to a problem to benefit from therapies and treatment, and if you can ever convince someone needing help to get it, their wall of denial may come crashing down under during the scrutiny of individual and peer group therapies.

The best time to initiate an intervention is as soon as substance use threatens to become abuse, and well before an addition has taken hold. People should express their concerns or arrange informal and brief professional interventions as early as possible, using abuse prevention as a much easier and preferable way to manage substance use and abuse behaviors, before the problem becomes too severe.

If you hold concerns about the use behaviors of a loved one…those concerns are very likely justified. Not everyone one who flirts with heavy use and abuse consumptions will become dependent, and some may simply walk away unharmed from the abyss of dependency; but because so many unwittingly slide into addiction and heartache, early intervention is the best kind of kindness, and whether ultimately needed or not, can do no harm and may do a world of good.

Sometimes a 20 minute conversation of concern can spark a needed change in behavior, and new and not yet severe dependencies may respond well to minimally intrusive outpatient therapies, avoiding the expense and disruption of residential care.

No one needs to suffer the pains of hitting rock bottom, and to watch someone proceed through destruction without intervening certainly does nothing to assist them in their battles.

The earlier the better…drug treatment and intervention before the inevitable heartbreak of addiction.

Read more: No One Needs To Hit Rock Bottom... Early Intervention and Treatment Saves Lives 

How the Family Can Support a Recovering Addict

by ChooseHelp -

Getting a family member or friend the treatment they need is a huge and important step, but family assistance and support should never stop with the end of rehab, and when the addict is reintegrated into the home and into the community after a treatment period, family help and support can be important factors in the ultimate ability of the recovering addict to maintain sobriety.

Ultimately, the decision to stay sober must come from the recovering addict, but there are some things that the family can do to decrease the probability of relapse; and convincing an addict to get the help they need is a great first step to recovery, but recovery doesn't end with rehab.

Get educated and get involved

Firstly, the family should be involved in the rehab process, and the family of the recovering addict needs to learn how best to support the addict once home, just as the addict needs to learn how to stay sober. Most recovery and rehab programs will include a family component, and caring family members should make every effort to attend and get the most out of this available resource.

Stay sober with the recovering addict

Secondly, the family needs to make it as easy as possible for the addict to transition back into the home environment and newly sober living. The family should provide a sober and alcohol and drug free environment for the addict, and the house should ideally be emptied of all possible intoxicating substances. A recovering addict can always get drugs or alcohol if they truly want to, but sometimes if it is too readily available, the temptation to use can be overwhelming.

Help to reduce stress in the recovering addict's life

Thirdly, support the addict in all areas of their life. Many recovering addicts relapse in response to stress and due to poor problem solving and coping skills. The recovering addict needs to take responsibility for their life, and this in fact a part of the healing process; but family members should be available to assist in any area that threatens to overwhelm the recovering addict during their first months of recovery. Whether it's helping with the kids, helping with the bills, or just being their for companionship; family should make these first months as stress free as possible, so the recovering addict can concentrate all of their energy on staying sober.

Don't let a relapse happen

Lastly, the family needs to take action if they suspect a relapse is imminent. There is no need to wait until after a relapse to act, and if you think that the recovering addict is in danger of using, you need to make sure they get into a safe environment. Sometimes all it takes is a visit and some companionship to get the addict back on the right track.

The family needs to care of itself as it takes care of the addict

You can't do it for them, but by offering educated support you increase the probability of long term sobriety and an ultimately happy outcome for everyone. Addiction often causes pain throughout the family, and the effects of addiction can ripple through the family for a long while even after sobriety is achieved. The family may also need to heal itself, and sometimes professional family counseling, or family addiction peer group support services are very beneficial in this healing process.

Recovery is ongoing, and although it tends to get easier with time, the family will need to be there for a while; doing everything they can to help the recovering addict stay sober.

Read more: How the Family Can Support a Recovering Addict 

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

You don't have a drug problem,  you have a heart problem.  Think about that statement for a moment and you will know exactly what I am talking about. That's why working the 12 steps works, because it brings to the surface the reasons why we self medicate.  It does not matter who you are or where your at in the world if your heart is broken then your thinking is not right.  Fix the heart and the head will follow.

12 Steps Programs

by ChooseHelp -

With more than 75 years of history and tens of millions of alcoholics and addicts helped, 12 steps programs display some pretty impressive statistics of recovery.

The overwhelming majority of drug and alcohol rehabs in America use 12 steps group meetings as a part of their recovery programming. They use them because they work, because nothing else has helped as many people, and because studies show that people who stick with a 12 steps program for the first years after rehab have a far better than average chance at staying free from addiction.

The Basic Principles of 12 Steps Based Recovery

The 12 steps don’t work unless you believe in them, work them honestly and work them with commitment. You can’t fake it, and if they don’t work for you or if you can’t believe what they’re telling you, don’t waste your time trying, the 12 steps are not going to help you.

• You are an addict or an alcoholic for life. You can get into recovery, you never have to drink or use again, but nothing will change what you are, and you will never be able to use with moderation again.
• You can’t do it on your own. 12 steps based recovery methods are fundamentally spiritual in nature. They may be non denominational, but to work the 12 steps you must believe in some form of higher power, must pray to this higher power to remove your weaknesses and pray for strength and guidance down the road of recovery. You don’t have to believe in a traditional "God" but you have to believe in something greater than yourself.
• You have to make amends for your past. To work the steps you have to admit to the harms of the past, and try to make things right. No one but you will know if you do this completely, but lingering guilt and shame over past wrongs pull you back into abuse, and unless you do all in your power to make amends, the 12 steps are not going to work for you.
• You have to believe it, and you have to spread the word. A big part of 12 steps recovery is helping others achieve sobriety after you have. You may want to become a sponsor, or you may want to help in other ways, but to work the last of the 12 steps you need to give for the rest of your life at helping others to see the light of sobriety.

12 Steps are not for Everyone

A lot of people can’t get past the spiritual tones of the message, some people find the organization vaguely cultish, and others resent being told that they are an addict or an alcoholic, and that they lack the power to control their actions for all time.

There is no point in beating a dead horse, and if it's not working for you, try something else. There are alternatives, and you have to find something that works, that resonates, and that will keep you sober when nothing else will.

But because the 12 steps of programs like AA and NA have helped so many, because they have been successful for so long and because studies show that people that get actively involved in 12 steps groups have a far better chance of long term sobriety, 12 steps recovery methods are very worth a try.

Get out to a meeting, they're free, they're everywhere and all are welcome. If you don’t like it, there is nothing forcing you to continue, but you might just find that the strength and solace of the 12 steps that have helped so many millions before you, gives you what you need to stay sober.

One day at a time, you can do it.

Read more: 12 Steps Programs 

In recovery? Eat your spinach!

by ChooseHelp -

Vitamin deficiencies have been conclusively linked to certain cancers, pancreas and liver disease and even brain damage. If you are a recovering alcoholic, you need to pay close attention to your nutrition, and should consider adding vitamin and mineral supplements to compensate for any period of abuse.

Many of us who ultimately enter rehab do so in less than ideal health, and as a result, one important part of the rehab experience is getting good nutrition and exercise. Alcoholics especially can be prone to certain nutritional deficiencies as a consequence of their abuse, and can benefit greatly from good nutrition and the use of vitamin and mineral supplements.

Problem drinking is not only socially problematic; it also devastates whole body health and wellness. Alcohol interferes with our body's processing, absorption, and even consumption of vitamins and nutrients, and too often alcoholics show vitamin deficiencies, and may ultimately suffer serious health consequences from these deficiencies.

Read more: In recovery? Eat your spinach! 

Don't Let A Slip Become A Relapse

by ChooseHelp -

If you slip, it does not mean that you are a failure, and it does not mean that you need to start using again. Get immediate help from your support network, and start living one day at a time once again. The road to full recovery never ends, and a few bumps in the road are to be expected. Have the courage and the strength to get help when you need it, and never think that because you've slipped, you have to go back to abuse.

Most addicts that have successfully beaten their dependency have slipped or even relapsed once or more. Recovery is a journey, and there is no overnight cure. You should take steps to minimize the likelihood of a slip or relapse, and you do need to take responsibility for your actions and even your thoughts, but if a slip occurs, you also need to deal with it, and not use it as an excuse to throw away all of your hard work and fall back into your old ways.

The best way to maintain long term sobriety is to minimize the temptation to abuse, maintain appropriate family, peer and professional aftercare support, and live one day at a time with the goal of a day of sobriety above all else. The urge to use lessens with time, but you never know when that urge can come back with a vengeance, and often it’s after we think that the real danger has passed, that we are most vulnerable to a slip.

The two periods that are most dangerous are the period immediately after rehab, and the period a few months later, when our confidence increases to the point that we may let our guard down.

Read more: Don't Let A Slip Become A Relapse 

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY!

I posted the Christian 12 Steps to recovery today,to remind those who have found sobriety ,that these steps are to be worked everyday.We must be careful not to think we are okay and we have got it under control.Life has a funny way of pushing our buttons and if we are not persistent in working on ourselves and these steps,we can wind up , back on the hell train heading to stonedville. Twelve Stepping through life is the only way to go.  REMEMBER JESUS LOVES YOU!

The Christian 12 steps

1. We admitted we were powerless over our addictions and dysfunctional- behaviors, that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. Came to believe that God, a Power greater than ourselves, could restore us to sanity and stability.
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as revealed in the Bible.
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as revealed in the Bible, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and to practice these principles in all our affairs

Read more: What are the Christian 12 steps to sobriety? 

Researchers Seek to Predict Stress-Induced Substance Abuse Relapse

By Celia Vimont | January 10, 2012 | 3 Comments | Filed in Addiction, Recovery& Treatment

With more than two thirds of people relapsing after starting treatment for substance use disorders, researchers are looking for ways to predict a person’s susceptibility to return to drug or alcohol use. Researchers at the Yale Stress Center in New Haven, CT, are developing biological markers of recovery to predict who will relapse, and when.

Having validated markers to measure a person’s risk of relapse could help doctors better predict who is at highest risk and tailor treatments for them, says Rajita Sinha, PhD, Director of the Yale Stress Center. For instance, a doctor might recommend an extended stay in residential treatment, or more intense behavioral treatment for patients who are likely to relapse.

While much is known about the effects of stress on addiction, much less is understood about how stress affects a person’s risk of relapse and jeopardizes recovery, according to Dr. Sinha. “When the regions of the brain involved in regulating stress are not working well, it increases a person’s vulnerability to relapse,” she says. “We want to find those neural and biological measures that predict whether this will occur.”

She and her colleagues are testing a number of biological measures of stress in people with various substance use disorders, including cocaine addiction and alcoholism. They are studying patients who are discharged from inpatient substance abuse treatment, to see if and when they relapse. The researchers are looking for links between relapse and biological markers including high levels of the chemical cortisol and high blood levels of a protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), as well as brain atrophy in specific regions of the brain.

In a recently published study in the Archives of General Psychiatry, Dr. Sinha found several markers of increased risk of alcohol relapse, including high morning levels of the hormone corticotrophin. Another recent study, published in Biological Psychiatry, found high levels of BDNF in cocaine-dependent patients was predictive of an early relapse.

Dr. Sinha’s lab is also studying treatments to reduce stress-induced substance abuse. One recent pilot study found an older drug for hypertension called prazosin appears to decrease stress-induced alcohol craving. “We are also identifying newer drugs that could help those most susceptible to stress,” she notes. “But first we need to validate biological markers so we know who will benefit from these treatments.”

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Percent in New York State Over Three Years

By Join Together Staff | January 12, 2012 | 1 Comment | Filed in Community Related, Legislation, Prescription Drugs & Prevention

Oxycodone prescriptions jumped 82 percent in New York State from 2007 to 2010, The New York Times reports. The state’s Attorney General, Eric Schneiderman, who issued the findings, said they demonstrate the need for legislation to create an online, real-time database to report and track both the prescribing and the dispensing of certain controlled substances.

Prescription drug abuse has been a particular concern on Long Island, where several recent drug robberies turned deadly.

The Attorney General’s new report notes that the number of prescriptions for all narcotic painkillers increased from 16.6 million in 2007 to nearly 22.5 million in 2010—a 36 percent increase. In addition to the surge of oxycodone prescriptions, there was a 16.7 percent rise in the number of hydrocodone prescriptions over the same period.

Under New York’s current prescription database system, pharmacists must report sales of controlled substances at least every 45 days. The prescriptions themselves are not tracked. Pharmacists cannot confirm whether a prescription is valid unless they call the physician who wrote it.

The new system would create a real-time tracking database, the article notes. Doctors would have to check a patient’s prescription history in the system before writing a prescription, and would have to report a prescription for controlled substances at the time they write it. Pharmacists would have to confirm prescriptions of controlled substances with the system before they fill them, and the filled orders would be reported.

The Pharmacists Society of the State of New York told the newspaper that while it generally supports the proposal, it is concerned that pharmacists would have to check prescriptions for the most dangerous drugs and would face fines for knowingly failing to do so. Craig Burridge, Executive Director, said pharmacists should simply be able to check on customers they do not kno

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Our little boy seems to always be sick and we can get so caught up in the right here and now and then worry, panic and anxiety take hold.  Though it will be difficult we need to try and not focus on the immediate circumstances.  We have to get ourselves to a point where we realize that there are people in the world who I am sure have worse situations then our own.  My favorite book "Bible" states that the Lord is faithful and he has plans to bring good into our lives and to prosperous us.  When we are going through the toughest trials of our lives if we can just take a moment and look past the immediate circumstance we will find some of Gods greatest gifts.  We must make a stand and trust Him and let not the fear worry and panic over take any situation that we face.  He has a plan and a purpose.  Trust in Him with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding, acknowledge Him in all your ways and He will direct your path.  REMEMBER JESUS LOVES YOU!

The economics of curbing alcohol consumption.

Late last year, the Centers for Disease Control ran the numbers on how much binge drinking costs the United States. They came up with a pretty big number: Excessive alcohol consumption costs $223.5 billion each year, mostly due to lost workplace productivity and increased health care costs.

New research from a team of Canadian researchers explores one way to bring down that cost: Set minimum alcohol prices. They find, in an article to be published in the journal Addiction, that governments can drive down drinking by setting higher minimum prices for alcohol, an approach that could be more politically feasible than taxing liquor.

Researchers Tim Stockwell, M. Christopher Auld, Jinhui Zhao and Gina Martin combed through historical data on minimum alcohol prices in British Columbia, where the provincial government sets a price floor for various liquors, beer and wine. The number has moved around a lot in the past few decades, creating a natural experiment to look at what happens when alcohol is more or less expensive.

For every 10 percent hike in minimum alcohol price, they found people drank 3.4 percent less alcohol. For certain drinks, the effect was even more pronounced: Increasing the minimum price of wine by 10 percent correlates with an 8.9 percent drop in consumption. Beer, however, appeared relatively resilient to price fluctuations, with a 10 percent bump lowering consumption a paltry 1.5 percent.

The researchers contend that minimum alcohol prices could reduce excessive alcohol consumption, and the negative public health outcomes that come along with it, in a way that’s more politically palatable than a tax. Food taxes have also struggled to encourage healthy eating. A 2007 study from the Forum for Health Economics and Policy modeled the impact of a 10 percent fat tax on fatty dairy products and found unimpressive results, with little in the way of behavior change. For a soda tax to get results, it usually has to be about 1 cent per ounce, a level of taxation that most state-passed fees don’t reach.

Minimum pricing, the authors argue, could get around a lot of the political downfalls of taxing unhealthy foods. “Minimum pricing promises the twin advantage of greater effectiveness for health purposes and greater public acceptability,” they write, noting the “strong evidence that hazardous and problem drinkers seek out the most inexpensive alcohol so as to maximize ethanol intake per dollar spent.”

England and Wales recently passed legislation that prohibits selling below-cost alcohol, to take effect in April. Scotland is weighing a similar bill, but it’s come under fire from the alcohol industry there. The Scottish Whisky Association has been a particularly vocal opponent, arguing “Minimum pricing will fundamentally damage the Scotch Whisky industry at home and abroad with negative consequences for the wider economy.”

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Exercise Leads to Positive Results in Recovery

Regular exercise has always been recommended by doctors for multitudes of physical ailments and conditions—but exercise can mean a whole lot more when it comes to substance addiction recovery. In traditional alcohol and drug abuse treatment, both inpatient and outpatient recovery facilities recognize the importance of detoxification, rehabilitation, and aftercare maintenance which includes the application of cognitive-behavioral therapies and pharmacological agents. However, the most modern practices are considering the incorporation of daily or weekly exercise regimens for patients due to the multifaceted benefits it provides recovering addicts.


To Read more please click the link below:
http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/drug-addiction-treatments/exercise-leads-to-positive-results-in-recovery/

Drug Maker Recalls Some OTC Drugs to Avoid Mix-Up with Opioids Made at Same Plant

By Join Together Staff | January 10, 2012 | Leave a comment | Filed in Drugs &Prescription Drugs

The drug maker Novartis is recalling 1,645 lots of certain over-the-counter medication, including Excedrin and Gas-X, because the products could potentially contain stray capsules or caplets from other products. Prescription opioids including Opana, Percocet, and an extended-release version of morphine tablets were made at the same plant.

The drug company and the Food and Drug Administration said they were not aware of any adverse events from any pill mix-ups, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The plant where the medicines were made, in Lincoln, Nebraska, was shut down last month, the article notes. Novartis is recalling 1,645 lots of Excedrin and NoDoz with expiration dates of December 20, 2014 or earlier, and Bufferin and Gas-X Prevention products with expiration dates of December 20, 2013 or earlier. The plant also made opioids for Endo Pharmaceutical Holdings. Novartis said in astatement it is recalling its products as a precaution because an internal product review and complaints identified issues including broken gel caps and chipped tablets and “a potential for tablet mix up could not be ruled out.”

The company said Gas-X Prevention is the only Novartis product made on the same line as the Endo products, and it did not receive reports of mix-ups of those medicines.

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Should We Vaccinate Against Unhealthy Behavior?(Say smoking?)

www.Philly.com
http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/public_health/Should-We-Vaccinate-Against-Unhealthy-Behavior-Say-Smoking-.html

... the highest rate of highest rate of youth smoking among comparable ...unsettling and Orwellian about the idea of being vaccinated against a socially... - Blog Post - Inquirer - 131k - 2012-01-06