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 must take opioids from time to time due to a muscle disease. I have suffered greatly for many years because if the difficulty in getting medication so I don’t have experience with doctors freely writing scripts for it.. I also fault the medical system and esp Ocare because doctors are put in a situation that they do not have time to really practice medicine. They write Rx because they don’t have time to do much else. Have Dr friends that say the Electronic Medical Record is killing the practice of medicine. I know doctors that will write Rx before they will recommend things like physical therapy which hurts like heck initially but in many cases, gives great relief.
Effin Zactly...
In the mid to late eighties I had pain on the bottom of my foot, it felt like a bone spur. To make the story short, I went to the emergency room at Fort Campbell and the stupid doctor gave me a bottle of Valium (I think he did that to get rid of me) I thought to myself there is noway that I will take them. So when I got home I flushed them down the toilet. At that time I did not know you're not supposed to do that.
#whitegenocide
And it's coming together nicely.
Why did this pop up all of a sudden? What did we do 30 years ago? What changed in pain management where people drift to heroin to deal with it?
The people overdosing aren’t all in so much pain that options are the only option. We had a gal where I used to work who had a prescription for oxy, but sold it on the street. She had “ unmanageable pain”, and we had to let her fail drug test after test, while she bought heroin and sold oxy. It ended when she crashed.
Well, we have the ability to shut down the poppy fields, but instead we have troops guarding them
You really don't think that only white people are hooked on drugs, do you?
In rural areas it's easy to go out in the woods somewhere and not be seen. Also there are usually groups of 4-5 who do it together. They all know. One or two of them will start stealing to support the habit. Probably not your relative, but she'll be complicit.
I think that's the main one. I have a beer or two or a mixed drink when offered like many people might. But I know this is not a healthy social habit and I avoid those people. On my own I will have one beer for no particularly good or bad reason. But that's it. I was socially alcoholic and come from a line of alcoholics.
The young these days are learning that pot is ok even in my state where it is illegal. Acceptance of alcohol abuse just adds to the acceptance of drugs. Pot is not a "gateway" drug, but look at any young abuser and I will bet they used pot early on. They didn't go on crack or meth or opioids from nothing. That includes some that I know with functional families.
Above all we must not sentence people like you to pain just because other people abuse some drugs. The abusers are easy to tell apart: they say yes whether offered opioids, crack or meth.
Ignore that if you'd like.
>>Why did this pop up all of a sudden? What did we do 30 years ago? What changed in pain management where people drift to heroin to deal with it?
People expect to run at full speed like a 25 year old until they die at age 90. Employers demand that you never slow down and workers rarely get promoted into supervision like they used to.
The pain was always there, but people got old and slow and died much younger as the excesses of youth caught up with them.
I cannot but recall when Rush Limbaugh went into rehab, and we had FReepers waxing self-righteous and claiming that Rush had been a big war-on-drugs guy while also being an oxy addict.But Rush was just in the van of the situation - he had a legit condition, and he had every motive to treat it with medication rather than surgery which would have endangered his vocal chords. He trusted his doctor, and found himself hooked on oxy. Thank God, he was able to recover.
I think if we knew the truth of the relationship between congress and the military complex, and big pharma and -keeping Afghanistan war alive and poppy protection-CIA/black ops, we’d start crying...I really think the cash flow therein is so lucrative and well hidden...and I do believe our rino pals in the Bush community are benefiting.
To stop opiods, this web of deceit has to be crushed. The duplicity in our congress is so disgusting. Wouldn’t surprise me if here in Ohio Kasich is on the take.
1.9 million opioid abusers is about 1% of the USA adult population. Compare that to the 15.1 million American adults who abuse alcohol.
Also, about one half of prescription opioid deaths are suicides. It's easy to understand why suicidal people choose Oxy - it's a pain free, fall asleep, non-traumatic death.
The other half who die are almost always idiot people who mix OxyContin-type pills with alcohol or other drugs that suppress breathing and heart rate.
Deaths from prescription opioids have increased about 5% per year since 2000, which is roughly one half the rate of increase in opioid prescriptions.
Exactly the same as my dad. I hate to see him in pain.
I have been taking opiates under prescription continuously since 1994. I stopped taking them a dozen times for one or two months at a time but since I suffer from chronic chronic pain I need to take them in order to be pain free. If I suffer from an addiction it’s an addiction of not wanting to be in pain all the time.
Has He tried Pain Meds ?
Actually the Tylenol in that many Norcos is a far greater threat than the hydrocodone
Let’s have an acetaminophen crisis shall we?
I’m in that mood
Thank You for realizing that some do need them and don't abuse them.
I wish the dea and others would realize it.
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