APRIL 3 v 34 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB

The Lord mocks the mockers
but is gracious to the humble. 

( mocker ) - to attack or treat with ridicule, contempt, or derision. 2. to ridicule by mimicry of action or speech; mimic derisively. 3. to mimic, imitate, or counterfeit.



(humble ) - not proud : not thinking of yourself as better than other people. : given or said in a way that shows you do not think you are better than other people. : showing



STEP 7 - Humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings.

( shortcoming - a failure, defect, or deficiency in conduct, condition, thought, ability, etc.)



I felt it necessary to look up and share the true meanings of four particular words .Mocker ,humble shortcoming and gracious . I am discovering that when we think we know what the word means we understand the message ,what we fail to take into consideration is that most words have multiple messages in them and when a word is viewed in multiple contexts it gives multiple messages. Mocker , counterfeit that was me in active addiction trying to be someone I was never meant to be . Humble total opposite of counterfeit ! Being fake or counterfeit will keep you trapped in the make believe world in which you live . The sooner you realize that and ask God to give you humility then you will see who you truly were meant to be. Gracious means showing kindness, being compassionate, fortunate or happy . The promise in the Proverb can be yours but we gotta get real with ourselves , GOD and others .



2 Corinthians 12:20 For I am afraid that when I come I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be. I fear that there may be quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder.
By : Joseph Dickerson 

 From Lemons to Lemonade and Defense to Offense: An Activist’s Journey on the Road to Parity
 

By Carol McDaid | April 2, 2014 | 6 Comments | Filed in Addiction, Government, Healthcare, Legislation & Mental Health


In my recovery story, I often speak about making lemonade out of lemons. From my greatest personal struggle with addiction came my greatest professional passion and strength – being an activist, lobbyist and champion for those needing or seeking recovery from addiction and mental illness like me. My 18-year recovery journey to get parity passed and implemented is not over, but it’s important to share some lessons learned along the way.

The Early Years
In 1996, I began working on parity. Addiction was left out of the first mental health parity bill that was signed into law in 1996. From that point forward, my challenge was laid before me: get a parity bill that included addiction signed into law and implemented.

I brought lived experienced with addiction, anger, passion; Washington know-how; and staff that was consistently smarter than me to the table. I lacked a lot of technical knowledge initially, and it showed. I have learned about the clinical aspects of addiction, and later, mental illness from my clients, including addiction physicians, residential addiction treatment facilities, psychiatrists and psychiatric health systems. I learned about the very real tragedies that happen every day to families who lose loved ones, or worse, lose them behind the walls of prisons and jails through my work with Faces and Voices, the National Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health America. I began to carry around the picture of a 16-year-old girl who died from a heroin overdose to remind myself what I am fighting for on the days when I was discouraged and felt like parity would never pass. For good luck, I wore my lucky Irish clover necklace on the days of big votes and the day the Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Collaboration with Mental Health Advocates
To succeed, bridging the gaps between addiction and mental illness advocacy groups was going to be a necessity. I was an unlikely candidate as I had been a flag waving, card-carrying purist addiction advocate steeled against the discrimination I felt even among mental health advocates. To get the bill passed, former Congressman Patrick Kennedy issued an edict that I would work with another mental health advocate and establish a joint parity coalition. There were some awkward first meetings, but we made it work. Later, I had to go to a colleague who was negotiating the Senate version of parity. We compromised. The bill sponsors compromised. The bill passed, and the addiction and mental health communities have worked together on the broader health policy agenda ever since. Success has a thousand fathers and we all shared in it. We built on that shared success in the provisions we secured in the Affordable Care Act. The addiction and mental health communities had their own agendas as they should but my purist days are done. Politics is not about purity, especially when working highly stigmatized, under-funded advocacy campaigns. The goal is to find winning strategies, build coalitions and run plays that advance strategic objectives; sometimes with big sexy wins and others with baby steps that no one notices. The trick is to stay in the game, head down and work to build forward momentum.

Using “Luck” and Tragedy
Turning tragedies into lucky breaks and then forward momentum on issues is something that advocates in our field know all about. The trick is to feel and then afford the tragic situation the dignity, respect and healing time it deserves while planning strategies aimed at ensuring the tragedy never happens again. Sadly, overdose deaths and suicides are an all too familiar reality to recovery advocates. Sometimes the scale of these tragedies creates issue openings.The tragic shootings at Newtown resulted in a Presidential Executive Order that required that a final parity rule be out by the end of last year. Once that executive order was issued, it was just a matter of persistent, but polite pushing.

Other times electoral outcomes provided the luck needed to move meaningful parity bills. In 2006, when Democrats took control of the House and Senate, we had the opportunity to work on the introduction of strong parity bills that were championed by a bipartisan team of legislators, then Reps. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MN), former Senator Pete Domenici (R-NM) and the late Senator Kennedy (D-MA), all who had been touched personally by mental illness and/or addiction. Planning on these bills literally started the Wednesday after the elections when it was clear Democrats would control the House and the Senate. Struggling as we had to even get a hearing on parity legislation in the 1990s through early 2000s, when opportunity knocked in 2006, we opened the door and got busy. When these strategies worked and a compromise bill was reached, luck and Senate legislative acumen and tenacity were able to get our parity bill attached to the 2008 Bank Bailout Bill. Once President Bush signed the bill into law on October 3, 2008, we began planning a big celebration honoring the work of our House and Senate champions and allowing advocates, many who had worked on the law’s passage for more than a decade, to celebrate their hard-won victory.

Regulations Matter
I remember standing at the back of that party with a mental health lobbyist planning our attack on advancing the regulations to make the law mean something. That didn’t feel anti-social to me at the time – that’s just what advocates do, I told myself. We planned a lunch for the following week at a well-known DC restaurant and wrote out the regulatory strategy on scraps of paper and business cards. We were lucky enough to find committed addiction and mental health provider and consumer groups to fund the effort.

We stuck to the strategy and ran these plays for five years until we got the final rule last November. The work to implement the laws is ongoing and cannot be done just by advocates like me. Persistence in Washington is something that is not for the faint of heart. Most people can’t endure it and that keeps people like me in business. It can be frustrating, agonizingly slow and heartbreaking as lives are lost while it appears DC is doing nothing. Keeping clients to fund the advocacy work during the late 1990s to early 2000s when nothing moved was also challenging. A couple of years it was tough to distinguish whether I was a volunteer or a hired gun. I can remember going to conferences and meetings during that time and I could tell my colleagues and friends pitied me; a woman obsessed with an unwinnable cause.

Working to get regulations implemented is an “inside the Beltway” technician’s task but it is deadly important. Often well-funded opponents will rewrite a law through regulations and we worked really hard to make sure the parity law did not fall prey to that type of attack.

Burnout is a Reality
Two years into the regulatory process and 14 years in on parity, I had to face that I was burnt out, had let my health go and had neglected my marriage and my social life. It happened ever so slowly by working nights and weekends, traveling to shore up clients and pleading with the advocacy community that parity will make a difference, while fighting with payers every day and regulators about how the law is being improperly implemented. The intensely personal nature of parity to me has been my greatest strength and biggest weakness, but it remains an honor to work on something so important to me and the lives of so many. Always being on the defense, slaying dragons and fighting for the little guy is exhausting. I had to find a new positive way of looking at the pursuit of parity to allow myself to actually be balanced and well – what recovery is all about.

From Defense to Offense
I am not sure why it took me so long to realize why we should start playing offense instead of defense. It is a lot less draining and has given me a fresh perspective. Parity and the ACA have passed, the regulations are written and now we must offensively use the laws, the regulations, our grassroots and grasstops advocates to implement that which we have earned. We are not sitting at the kids table anymore begging for scraps from the adult table. We have a shiny new cost savings solution to provide public and private payers and that proves they are more efficient with us than without us.

While you can bet you will still hear me at a conference near you asking for your documentation of parity and ACA violations and why it is everyone’s job to see these laws succeed, I know now we are doing it with the wind at our back and not in our face. I take time out to enjoy some really good lemonade along the way.

Carol McDaid

Parents Influence Teens’ Drinking Decisions: Survey
 

By Join Together Staff | April 2, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Alcohol, Parenting, Prevention & Youth


Parents do have an influence on teens’ decisions about drinking, according to a new survey by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). Teens are much less likely to drink if their parents tell them underage drinking is completely unacceptable, the survey found.

The online survey of 663 U.S. high school students found only 8 percent of teens who said their parents thought underage drinking was unacceptable were drinkers themselves, HealthDay reports. In contrast, 42 percent of teens who said their parents believed underage drinking was somewhat unacceptable, or completely acceptable, were drinkers.

Teens whose parents told them underage drinking is completely unacceptable are 80 percent less likely to drink, compared with those whose parents give their teens’ other messages about drinking, the survey found.

“Decades of research show that there is no safe way to ‘teach’ teens how to drink responsibly,” Robert Turrisi, a professor and researcher at Pennsylvania State University, said in a MADD news release. “A clear no-use message is the most effective way for parents to help keep teens safe from the many dangers associated with underage alcohol use. This issue is too important to leave to chance and hope for the best.”

In conjunction with the survey, MADD launched a new campaign that encourages parents to tell their teens not to drink if they are under 21. Not everyone agrees with MADD’s message, including John McCardell, former president of Middlebury College. In 2008, McCardell joined with more than 100 other college presidents to demand reconsideration of the national drinking age in 2008, U.S. News & World Report notes.

“Are they saying that drinking on the day one turns 21 is OK? Are they saying that they expect everyone under 21 to abstain and to wake up on their 21st birthday prepared to make responsible decisions about alcohol consumption?” McCardell said. “Do they really believe it is that simple? Many of those who turn 21 will no longer be at home or under parental influence. To whom, then, do they turn, to learn about responsible alcohol consumption?”

New Test Developed to Detect Date-Rape Drug, GHB, in Drinks
 

By Join Together Staff | April 2, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Drugs & Research

Researchers in Singapore announced they have developed a new test that can detect the date-rape drug GHB in drinks, according to HealthDay.

GHB is predominantly a central nervous system depressant. It can be produced in clear liquid, white powder, tablet, and capsule forms. Because GHB is odorless and tasteless, it can be slipped into someone’s drink without detection. The drug incapacitates people who ingest it, making them vulnerable to sexual assault, the article notes.

The researchers mixed a fluorescent compound with a sample of drink containing GHB and found the mixture changed color in less than 30 seconds. They reported their findings in the journal Chemical Communications. They said the color change was seen in clear and light-colored drinks, including water and vodka. Better lighting was needed to see the change in darker drinks, such as cola and whiskey.

“We wanted to develop something that would give results within several seconds, so you can check whether it is a safe drink or whether you should stop and think again,” researcher Chang Young-Tae said in a news release. The researchers said GHB takes effect within 15 to 30 minutes, and can last for three to six hours. They are working with product designers to come up with a portable detection kit within a year.

Drug Used to Prevent Spasms May Help Prevent Cocaine Relapse
 

By Join Together Staff | April 2, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Drugs, Research & Treatment

The drug baclofen, used to prevent spasms in patients with spinal cord injuries and neurological disorders, may be able to help prevent relapses in people treated for cocaine addiction, a new study suggests.

Baclofen can help block the impact of the brain’s response to “unconscious” drug triggers, even before a person begins craving cocaine, according to the researchers from the University of Pennsylvania. This mechanism has the potential to prevent a relapse of cocaine addiction, MedicalXpress reports.

The findings will be published in the Journal of Neuroscience.

“The study was inspired by patients who had experienced moments of ‘volcanic craving,’ being suddenly overcome by the extreme desire for cocaine, but without a trigger that they could put their finger on,” researcher Anna Rose Childress, PhD said in a news release.

The study included 23 cocaine-dependent men, who had used cocaine on at least eight of 30 days before screening. They stayed for up to 10 days in a supervised inpatient drug treatment facility. Twelve men received baclofen, and 11 received a placebo. They were shown images, including pictures of cocaine, for very brief periods while their brains were scanned. They were also shown pictures of non-drug objects and scenes for longer periods. The subjects were aware of seeing the non-drug pictures, but not the “ultra-brief” pictures of cocaine.

The cocaine pictures were shown so quickly that the brain could not consciously process them, but the scan could still measure the earliest, subconscious effects of the pictures on the brain, the researchers said.

Participants who were treated with baclofen showed a significantly lower response in the reward and motivational circuits of the brain when they were shown the cocaine pictures versus the non-cocaine pictures, compared with participants in the placebo-treated group.

APRIL 2 v 11 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB
 

Wise choices will watch over you.
Understanding will keep you safe.



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





Steps one through twelve are wise choices . Step ten is good for producing understanding , humility , accountability , and most important responsibility for your actions. This step will also produce forgiveness which in turn brings peace to your life and your relationships and God knows we need that . Work the steps and receive the promises offered in the Proverbs. My poor choices kept me afraid , restless , depressed , anxious and addicted in fear of danger all the time .Wise choices lead me to God , Steps , forgiveness , joy and peace and I am no longer afraid of my future .





Matthew 6:14-15
If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.
by Joseph Dickerson 

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Saturday, September 20, 2014  Penn's Landing, Philadelphia Click here to see the video from last year

PLEASE HELP US TO RAISE FUNDS FOR  PRO-ACT RECOVERY WALKS! 2014    Whether you're an individual, a team captain, a team member, or just "thinking about it," there is something you can do NOW to begin raising funds. We need your help not only to defray the expenses of the Walk but, importantly, so that PRO-ACT can continue to serve the recovery community with our advocacy efforts and services designed to help people access and sustain long-term recovery. A contribution to PRO-ACT Recovery Walks! is a good investment! We will use more than 80 cents of every dollar you raise or donate to: Eradicate discriminating public policies Increase awareness of the benefits of recovery Honor providers of a wide range of treatment and recovery services Provide hope to those still suffering with substance use disorders Mobilize the recovery community to work toward increased funding for research, quality treatment and recovery support services Honor those who haven't survived this chronic disorder

We're Offering Two Prizes for Team Captains The First Prize will be awarded to the Team Captain whose team raises the most in donations. They will earn: The honor of throwing out the first pitch at the 2015 National Recovery Month Baseball Game! A pre-game tour of Citizens Park for four (4) people Four (4) complimentary field-level seats Their picture on Phanavision An electronic disc showing them throwing the first pitch in September 2015  Deadline for the winning team donations total is the day of Recovery Walks 2014, September 20. The winning total will include all donations made up to and including the day of the Walk. The names of the winning team captain and team will be announced from the stage on September 20. Congratulations to last year's winner, Christina Reice, on the left, who is very excited that she'll be throwing out the first pitch at the Phillies vs. Miami Marlins game on September 12 (we'll be selling tickets shortly). Her team, The 12-Step Fighters, on the right, worked very hard to push their total ahead of every other team so that Christina could win. The Second Prize of a $100 Gift Card will go to the Team Captain of the largest registered team on September 20.

RAISING FUNDS Your first step could be to write out a list of everyone you know: family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, classmates, book club members, community officials, teachers, etc. Each contact you have during any day can be an opportunity for you to talk about the Recovery Walk--you'll find that many of them have been touched in some way by substance use disorders.  Whether you ask in person or by phone, email or letter, the sooner you ask the easier your fundraising process will be. You could even make copies of the Recovery Walk flyer (click here) and add a personal note to it. It's very important to describe the purpose of the Walk, how the funds will be used, and not make an assumption that someone can't or won't donate.  Remember to tell everyone that their donations are tax deductible! Persevere--do you know that the average person needs to be asked SIX times before they make a donation? Many people from past annual walks have been touched by the support they received when they shared their story. Let people know that it's not only OK to talk about substance use and recovery, but by breaking the silence we can reduce the stigma surrounding addiction and recovery so those who struggle will find the strength they need to seek help. Recovery is real. Over the years, we have learned creative ways to supplement your donation gathering. Be sure to look through the Team Captain's Walk Kit for plenty of ideas and other useful information (click here to access it and copy as you wish). What To Do With Collected Donations As September 20 (the day of the Walk!) approaches, and you have gathered all the donations you can, there are a few ways for you to turn in your collection to PRO-ACT: If you are a team member, turn them in to your Team Captain. If you are a Team Captain or an individual: You can turn them in at any of The Council's locations (click here) You could convert them into a check or money order, payable to The Council of Southeast PA, and mail it to The Council of Southeast Pennsylvania, Inc., 252 West Swamp Road, Unit 12, Doylestown, PA 18901. If you wish, you can turn in your collection through making a donation and charging the amount you owe to your credit card (and keeping the cash) here  Bring the donations to the Recovery Walk in Penn's Landing on September 20 and turn them in at the Donations Booth.

REGISTER to walk, form a TEAM,  SPONSOR the event, make a DONATION, join the HONOR GUARD, or volunteer to help by clicking HERE

Zohydro Sales Banned in Massachusetts
 

By Join Together Staff | April 1, 2014 | 1 Comment | Filed in Community Related, Government, Legal, Legislation & Prescription Drugs


The pure hydrocodone drug Zohydro ER (extended release) will be banned in Massachusetts, Governor Deval Patrick has announced. He cited a public health emergency stemming from opioid abuse, Reuters reports.

“The introduction of this new painkiller into the market poses a significant risk to individuals already addicted to opiates and to the public at large,” Governor Patrick said in a news release.

Zohydro is designed to be released over time, and can be crushed and snorted by people seeking a strong, quick high. It was approved for patients with pain that requires daily, around-the-clock, long-term treatment that cannot be treated with other drugs. Other hydrocodone drugs on the market, such as Vicodin, also contain acetaminophen.

In a statement, Zogenix said, “We believe Governor Patrick’s ban on Zohydro ER only serves to unfairly restrict patient access to the only hydrocodone pain reliever available for long-term, daily, severe chronic pain patients who are obtaining relief with short-acting hydrocodone combination products, but who are at risk for potentially fatal liver toxicity due to their daily intake of acetaminophen. Ultimately, the ban on the prescription medication will add to patient suffering in the state.”

In December 2012, a panel of experts assembled by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted against recommending approval of Zohydro ER. The panel cited concerns over the potential for addiction. In the 11-2 vote against approval, the panel said that while Zogenix had met narrow targets for safety and efficacy, the painkiller could be used by people addicted to other opioids, including oxycodone.

Last week, Zohydro’s manufacturer, Zogenix, announced it will assemble an oversight board designed to spot misuse of the drug.

The FDA’s decision to approve Zohydro has been criticized by some legislators and public health groups. FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg has received letters protesting the decision from 28 state attorneys general and four senators, among others. Law enforcement agencies and addiction experts predict approval of the drug will lead to an increase in overdose deaths.

More States Soften Approach to Low-Level Drug Use
 

By Join Together Staff | April 1, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Community Related, Drugs, Legal & Legislation

A growing number of states are changing their approach to low-level drug users, emphasizing treatment instead of incarceration, according to The Washington Post. The change is a result of both reduced budgets and shifting views on drug use.

One-third of states have Good Samaritan laws, designed to prevent drug overdose deaths. The laws grant limited immunity to people who seek help for someone who has overdosed. In addition, 17 states have expanded access to the overdose antidote naloxone. The treatment, sold under the brand name Narcan, has been used for many years by paramedics and doctors in emergency rooms. It is administered by nasal spray. The medication blocks the ability of heroin or opioid painkillers to attach to brain cells. The U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy says it is encouraging police departments to carry Narcan.

At least 30 states have modified penalties for drug crimes since 2009. Many of these states have repealed or reduced mandatory minimum sentences for lower-level drug offenses, the article notes.

“States in particular are starting to make much bigger distinctions between personal use and commercial activity,’’ said Adam Gelb, Director of the Pew Charitable Trust’s Public Safety Performance Project. He noted some states have recently increased penalties for large-scale drug sales, while reducing them for drug possession.

The federal government is also changing its approach to low-level drug crimes. Earlier this month, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder testified in favor of changing federal guidelines to reduce the average sentence for drug dealers. He told the United States Sentencing Commission the Obama Administration supports changing guidelines to reduce the average drug sentence by about one year, from 62 months to 51 months.

The proposed changes would reduce the federal prison population by about 6,550 inmates over the next five years, the article notes. Currently, half of the 215,000 inmates in the federal prison system are serving time for drug crimes.

APRIL 1 v 32 v 33 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN PROVERB




For simpletons turn away from me—to death.
Fools are destroyed by their own complacency.
But all who listen to me will live in peace,
untroubled by fear of harm.”



STEP 2 - Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.



Choose death or peace ! It is that simple and it comes down to a choice. For a long time I ran the streets and I ran hard acting a fool choosing the choice of premature death you might as well say I was living death , my life was worthless and meant nothing to every one around me I caused pain and sorrow . Step two is the way but you must cry out to the one and only GOD . He is the creator of you , heaven and earth . The Proverb is His simple instruction the step is the key . Peace is what I have because I choose the one and only true GOD creator of heaven earth . I live or at least try to live the way He tells me to live. Today what do you choose His way PEACE or your way DEATH



Exodus 19 v 5 Now therefore, if you will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treasure to me above all people: for all the earth is mine:

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“Expanding Your Recovery Toolkit” Workshop April 15 in Doylestown



Free monthly workshop series for individuals and families with a current or past drug/alcohol addiction issue. Next session meets Tuesday, April 15, 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at The Council of Southeast Pennsylvania, Inc., 252 W. Swamp Rd., Unit 12, Doylestown, Pa. Topics include “I Got a Second Chance,” “Time Management” and a group discussion period focusing on “Problems With Meth.” Refreshments. To register, call 215-345-6644, ext. 3151 or email RPetrolawicz@councilsepa.org.

MARCH 31 v 10 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB
 

Who can find a virtuous and capable wife ? She is more precious than rubies .


STEP 9 - Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

After all the crap you put her through you better do everything you can to make it right. My first wife took off I couldn't blame her I did not like me either. Even after you have sobered up you have to change your entire perspective and attitude. Personally I believe when you have run over someone for so long you lose your respect for them .So now your sober you still put down your wife and take advantage. Men you have to put this in a new perspective she did not stay with you through all the bull because she had no where else to go she stayed because she is the only one in the world that stuck by you when you entire life was coming apart because she loved you . She has more than earned your love and respect , now give it uncodtionally and without limit . Give her steps 5 8 9 and 10 sincerely ! You cant take back all the wrong you did but you can sure as hell make sure you dont ever put her through it again.

Ephesians 5 v 28 - So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.

Smartphone App Could Help People in Recovery Cut Down on Drinking
By Join Together Staff | March 27, 2014 | 5 Comments | Filed in Alcohol, Prevention & Treatment

A smartphone app may help people in recovery from alcohol abuse to cut down on “risky drinking”—having more than three or four alcoholic drinks in a two-hour period, a new study finds.

Using the app also increased the chance that people recovering from alcohol abuse would totally abstain from drinking, Reuters reports. The app has guided relaxation techniques. It sends an alert when a person is near a bar or other place that could be risky to their recovery. The app includes a “panic” button that connects with a person’s supporters and other app users, and has games to help distract from cravings.

Only one in four people recovering from alcohol abuse abstains from drinking in the first year of recovery, according to study author David Gustafson of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He reported his findings in JAMA Psychiatry.

The study included 349 adults leaving rehabilitation centers for alcoholism. One group received normal post-rehabilitation treatment, while the other group received normal treatment plus a smartphone with the app, called the Addiction-Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (A-CHESS). They were able to use the app for eight months.

The researchers asked participants to report how many days within the past month they engaged in risky drinking. After one year, participants who didn’t use the app reported an average of three days of risky drinking in the past month, compared with about one day for those who had the app.

About 52 percent of those who had the app didn’t drink at all one year later, compared with 40 percent of those who didn’t have the app. According to Gustafson, the app is being used by more than a dozen treatment agencies, as well as the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Zohydro Maker Assembles Oversight Board Designed to Spot Misuse of Drug
By Join Together Staff | March 27, 2014 | 2 Comments | Filed in Prescription Drugs & Prevention


The manufacturer of the recently approved pure hydrocodone drug Zohydro ER (extended release) announced it will assemble an oversight board designed to spot misuse of the drug, the Associated Press reports.

The outside group will consist of seven medical, addiction and law enforcement specialists, according to Stephen Farr, President and Director of Zogenix. The panel will look at data from sources including prescribing statistics, law enforcement records and addiction center reports. “We will be monitoring patients, prescribers, pharmacists, supply chains and abusers, so all the populations that would potentially touch our product,” Farr told the AP.

Five out of the seven experts on the panel have previously received consulting payments from Zogenix, the article notes.

Zohydro is designed to be released over time, and can be crushed and snorted by people seeking a strong, quick high. It was approved for patients with pain that requires daily, around-the-clock, long-term treatment that cannot be treated with other drugs. In December 2012, a panel of experts assembled by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted against recommending approval of Zohydro ER. The panel cited concerns over the potential for addiction. In the 11-2 vote against approval, the panel said that while Zogenix had met narrow targets for safety and efficacy, the painkiller could be used by people addicted to other opioids, including oxycodone.

The FDA’s decision to approve Zohydro has been criticized by some legislators and public health groups. FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg has received letters protesting the decision from 28 state attorneys general and four senators, among others. Law enforcement agencies and addiction experts predict approval of the drug will lead to an increase in overdose deaths.

MARCH 29 v 23 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB

Pride ends in humiliation

while humility brings honor.

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

understood Him. 

The Proverb is right you know. No what do you mean no its not. Does this response sound familiar .No matter what you try to say to those still out there , you will always hear the same old excuses. Pride leads to denial which in turn lead most to a premature death or a wasted life in a jail cell . Do you really want to get sober and live life to your full potential then steps one through three are the only way. There came a point where I was so broken and desperate death seemed a pure joy but I was too much of a coward to commit the heinous act . Admitting you have made a mess of your life knowing GOD is the only one who can help is where I discovered humility. Once pride loses its grip your once closed ears and shut eyes will begin to open . True humility and recovery begins when you shut your mouth open your ears hold out your hand and accept GODS help and the help offered by everyone around you !

Ecclesiastes 7:8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.

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