Posted on 09/10/2017 2:34:17 AM PDT by Kaslin
The next three weeks we will look at possibly the largest and most dangerous crisis facing America. Please join us in taking an in depth look at the challenge for America.
If you were around in the 1980s, you’ll likely recall HIV/AIDS bursting on the scene with a vengeance. AIDS spread through the consciousness of America even faster than the disease. Who was exposed? Where did it come from? Today another epidemic has exploded into the minds of America that has everyone just as befuddled – opioids. People are dying in mass numbers and no one has totally wrapped their heads around the problem to solve it.
The numbers are staggering. For people under the age of 50, opioids are the single largest cause of death. More than cancer, more than auto accidents, more than gun violence, more than any other cause. In fact, opioids were a greater cause of death in 2015 than HIV/AIDS was in 1995.
To give you a perspective, in 2015 there were 52,404 people who died from a drug overdose as stated by the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention). Of that number, 33,091 involved an opioid. You might question that number since that includes heroin (which is an opioid). It is estimated that there are now 600,000 people using heroin in the United States and a full 80 percent started using prescription opioids, whether legally or illegally obtained. There are another estimated 1,900,000 Americans who currently either misuse opioids or have an opioid misuse disorder.
Like many other parents, Gary Mendell started confronting this challenge. Mendell was running his successful hotel business when he came to realize his son, Brian, was dealing with an opioid problem. For almost 10 years, Brian dealt with the challenge of addiction and all the negative aspects of life accompanying that. Brian lost his life in October 2011, but the world found a new leader on this issue -- his father.
Gary Mendell started seeing that there was really no national organization to confront the challenge. Mendell dug into educating himself to a different level and resolving the issue. He learned that eight of 10 of those who become addicted do so before their 18th birthday prior to their brains being fully developed. This led him to form Shatterproof (www.shatterproof.org). Mendell has thrown himself into the work behind this problem while putting the operation of his business in the hands of trusted lieutenants. He now works full-time to help others from suffering the same fate as his beloved son.
Where did this all start? As stated by Mendell, “This started with the change in prescribing practices initiated by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approval of OxyContin in 1995.”
Between 1999-2014, the number of opioid drugs prescribed quadrupled. The number of people who died from opioids (prescription opioids and heroin) also quadrupled. From 2000-2015, roughly 500,000 Americans died from drug overdoses.
Why is it important to tie heroin together with prescription opioids? Many people become addicted to prescription opioids and then no longer have access to the medication. To alleviate the effects of their addiction, they turn to inexpensive, readily-available heroin.
ADOLESCENT CHALLENGES
The fact that adolescents are the most exposed to opioid addiction falls in line with scientific work directed at the age group. One prominent study was performed in June 2011 through Columbia University and is known in common nomenclature as the CASA study.
This study addresses the normal issues of the age group such as peer pressure, adverse childhood events based around abuse or trauma, genetic predisposition or engaging in other unhealthy behavior like risky driving, violent behavior or unsafe sex.
The most troubling is how the behavior of their grown relatives spurs their errant behavior. We all know how parents can establish good examples for teenagers being hardworking, committed family members, but the flip side -- poor role models -- can be devastating. Nearly half (45.4%) of teenagers live with a parent who is a risky substance user. Worse, 17.8% of children under 18 years old live with an adult (most likely a parent) who has a full-fledged substance abuse disorder.
The most debilitating fact is the parents don’t seem to care. Less than half (42.6%) list personally refraining from tobacco, alcohol, marijuana or abusing prescription or illicit drugs as one of their top three concerns for their teenage children. When parents are setting such a meager example, it follows that we might have poor results from the teenagers in our society.
That would be immensely meaningful on its own, but then the CASA study defines the risks involved because of adolescent physiology. The overriding fact is that the teen brain is more vulnerable to addictive substances. As stated by the study, “A growing body of evidence suggests that due to this increased sensitivity, addictive substances physically alter the reward centers of the brain faster and more intensely in adolescents than in adults, heightening their vulnerability to addiction.”
During adolescent years the area of the brain related to such things as judgment, impulse control and decision making dramatically change in a manner that brings the brain to a fully-developed state. The primary transmitter signaling pleasure is dopamine. Dopamine decreases by a third as adolescents mature to adults. But dopamine initially spikes before falling which may lead to risk-taking behavior as teens seek external sensations.
It is this combination of risk-taking and increased sensation that leads to engaging in behavior while the adolescent’s brain is still developing, thus making it more susceptible to addiction.
The CASA study states, “A growing body of evidence suggests that due to this increased sensitivity, addictive substances physically alter the reward centers of the brain faster and more intensely in adolescents than in adults, heightening their vulnerability to addiction.”
The study found that addictive substances have a longer-lasting effect on teens and, more importantly, that teens are more prone to developing addiction and a lifetime of drug abuse. That accounts for why so many teens end up using opioids, becoming addicted to them and dying from them.
Next week: We look at the breadth and depth of the opioid problem
I would add a footnote here. You can travel into a fairly rural county in the south, with 100,000 residents, and find that between Opioids and Heroin...at least a thousand residents use one or both, and you could easily bump into one of these people every single day. Some got on the binge because of football or work-place injuries, and found that it was the only way to control the pain. Some found drifting over to Heroin was pretty easy with the Opioid usage.
I have a relative who up and disappeared six months ago for three days. Missing persons report turned in...cops searching...major effort of one single family and community. Then the young gal just turns up and acts like nothing occurred over the past seventy-two hours. It’s obvious that she was on some drug episode, but won’t admit to anything. Cops just accept it. The family never digs into it. You see this as a common theme now...disappearances are becoming an acceptable form of lifestyle while on some binge.
On this topic I think that the city of Highland, Utah ought to fire their City Attorney Tim Merrill and bar his law firm from any more business with them. I would be happy to publicly debate anyone on this topic and have all the evidence and issues involved on this brought forward with complete honesty.
>>Some got on the binge because of football or work-place injuries, and found that it was the only way to control the pain.
So, while we are doing our hand-wringing over this crisis, how do we help these people who have legitimate pain? Do we insist that they take liver and kidney destroying levels of NSAIDS just so we can feel good about how they die? Do we make them suffer until they become a suicide statistic?
These articles on opioids never address that. They just demonize the doctors and the victims.
And all too often the disappearances end up as dead bodies
The number of really young people addicted is heart breaking
My brother is a high level security cleared employee of a very big aerospace company having worked for the company for nearly 30 years. During the last 15 of those years, my very well off brother took 10-12 Norcos a day (vicodin). He is still working and still with his habit daily. His liver will eventually fall out and that won’t stop him.
The sad thing is, he recognizes he does have a problem and doesn’t have the strength to do anything about it.
The tragedy?....there are probably at least 500 vicodin clones of my brother in the same company. Probably more.
signed...vicodin addict’s brother....a recovered alcoholic....6 years sober on 9-21-17......me
He began his addiction with the stroke of the pen of his doctor who replaced his knee. The Dr. still refills his prescription 15 years later.
Problem?
Oh yeah, big, big, sleeping giant of a problem. Why is it just being talked about now. Anything due to the fact that the medical and pharmaceutical industries make billions off the stuff?
They are producing medicine to kill you and then making the medicine to prevent your death.
Anything at all wrong with this picture.
Probably won’t get any comments, as usual. People typing and moving on. Dinner as usual. eh?
What did I do about it?
I got sober.
Firebombing the poppy fields in Afghanistan will go a long way toward putting the CIA out of business.
When the supply dissipates, then we can address the addicted.
I have osteoarthritis in both feet the right knee and hip and lower back.
I can understand the need for someone to get pain relief.
I stay away from the opiods and limit the regular pain killers. Some days I just accept that I am going to hurt when I take a step. But, I am retired and can do that.
We could be twins. I have it in both feet, both knees, my left hip, lower back and neck.
I don't take a single opioid or nsaid. I try and keep things moving as best I can, work on my diet and have been using natural approaches to controlling inflammation.
I also have Ankylosing Spondylitis that I have to manage and that makes things pretty tough.
I'm 55. I'm thinking I probably don't have but maybe another 10 years or so left in this body and this is all temporary anyway. :-)
From what I gather, that might be happening - the pendulum might be swinging back too far. Also, as I understand, the problem now is with drugs like fentanyl, and less with prescription medications.
https://www.aei.org/publication/some-people-still-need-opioids/
I would suspect crack or meth usually mixed with opiods.
In the rural SE GA areas for the age groups around 18-40 we still see about an equal amount of methamphetamine and THC addiction, most. Next comes an equal amount of benzodiazepines and opiates, then cocaine, and then random exotics like mdma and synthetic pot. Heroin is not on the list. At this time.
In this area, the major opiate abusers are 80% women in their late-20s and 30s, but this “opioid epidemic” focus that the government is pushing ignores this area’s actual problems, outlined above, and I fear we are going to see incredible amounts of focus and money going to an issue that is no worse than ones we have already been working on (with very little focus or money).
ie, another ham fisted and poorly focused campaign pushed by the Fed govt which will misdirect time, money, and attention from equal or worse issues.
AIDs was an issue of a disease that affected homosexuals by massive margins, But because of PC the govt/CDC refused to be honest and more people died than should have (continues to this day). I see similar issues with this opioid focus and the information and “cure” being pushed by the govt.
I’m already getting casual social questions about “our opioid epidemic.” No, we have a family unit break down epidemic. We have a fatherless generation epidemic. We have a “Church is bad/boring/pointless” epidemic. And we have a society that has become immoral and immature.
Fix ^ that and the drug problem goes away. Personal opinion.
7-7-’81. for me.
“I’m already getting casual social questions about “our opioid epidemic.” No, we have a family unit break down epidemic. We have a fatherless generation epidemic. We have a “Church is bad/boring/pointless” epidemic. And we have a society that has become immoral and immature.
Fix ^ that and the drug problem goes away. Personal opinion.”
100% correct
Dealers cut heroin with fentanyl or its vastly more potent analog, carfentanil. People go to heroin because it is cheaper than prescription opioids. Fentanyl and carfentanil are cheaper yet, because they can be made in garage labs, and the recipes are highly available. There is also a tendency to go for more and more potent stuff because addicts build up a tolerance for the weaker stuff.
And whenever there is a report that a batch of opioids is causing a higher than usual number of deaths from overdose, that is like an advertisement to addicts. They hear that and think, it must be some good stuff. And they seek it out.
Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their drugs, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.
Rev. 9-21.
What's happening is folks who truly need these medications are finding it more difficult to obtain them. Then, they go to the streets. Chronic pain will leave a once strong, healthy man into a whimpering ball. It robs folks of a quality life, always focused on the pain.
My dad and F-n-law both elderly, both have conditions that causes severe pain. More often than not, they'll spend their dayz trying to make it, often times crabby, bad mood, lethargic and immobile to a large degree.
Given their pain meds, they are completely opposite of this. The medication does not eliminate the pain, but takes the sharp edge off of it. They can then focus, move and enjoy life. Many people have the notion these meds cause folks to be sloppy fools, slurring their speech with needles hanging out their arms. Leave it to the gubbamint to create a “crisis”.
If the federal government were TRULY concerned about opioid addiction, they'd have sealed that border along Messy-co decades ago.
Some war on drugs.
Heroin also comes from Mexico, South America, and South Asia. And much of it just pours across our still-unsecured border. If you live along the I95 corridor, you're along a major drug trafficking route.
That border wall needs to be built ASAP, and not just to impede illegal infiltration. The wall will also impede drug and human trafficking.
Today, one out of every ten Singaporeans is a millionaire. About 200 drug dealers meet their date with the hangman annually, a fraction of the drug fueled murder rate in any similar sized city in the United States. Addicts who repeatedly refuse help and rehab are exiled to one of the small islands off Singapore where a supply boats backs up a couple of times a month to drop off food supplies. They can apply to get back into mainstream society. Only a handful bother to so do.
Portugal goes the other extreme by registering the addicts and allowing them to live their useless life by providing the drugs at cost. There was neither the explosion in addicts nor crime that was predicted when they instituted this system a decade or so ago. In fact, crime rate plummeted.
There is a lesson here in either extreme, both of which work better than the method we are using.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.