Author: bkellaway

Addiction Recovery Bulletin

WATCH – Moms are the saddest –  

Sep 27, 2020 – On Sunday, Coleman’s family held a birthday party and balloon release in Chris’ honor at Lees Lane Park. His mother has also created a support group called Chris Rest Easy Son to help other families who are struggling. Four years ago, Rhonda Coleman’s son passed away from a heroin overdose at just 20 years old. Now, she wants to stress to the public how wide-ranging drug addiction is and how families can get help. 

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Addiction Recovery Bulletin

LISTEN – Public Radio –

Sep. 28, 2020 – For those experiencing homelessness, navigating life during coronavirus brings some unique challenges.  

“The fact that the current opiate epidemic isn’t being addressed with the same type of force of any type of epidemic that is killing a particular group of people in of itself sort of speaks to forms of prejudice that is triggered by stigma against those people who may be suffering,” said Jeffrey Schonberg, a lecturer in the department of Anthropology at San Francisco State University

Schonberg is also a fellow at the Berkeley Center for Social Medicine at the University of California Berkeley. He’s co-author of “Righteous Dopefiend”— a book for which he and Phillipe Bourgouis spent several years doing participant observation with the homeless in San Francisco.  

During much of that time, both Schonberg and Bourgouis lived and even slept outside along with the homeless population in San Francisco, and experienced a lot of stigma. Schonberg has also witnessed examples of this stigma during the pandemic among healthcare workers. 

more@UPR

The post DEBUNKED: Intersections of Addiction, Homelessness and the COVID-19 Pandemic appeared first on Addiction/Recovery eBulletin.

Addiction Recovery Bulletin

Doing the right thing –

Sep. 30, 2020 – When images of Delonte West emerged online showing the former NBA star begging for money, the basketball community instantly rallied behind him.

Fans, TV personalities and big-name players all urged the NBA to step in an help the struggling 37-year-old who had clearly fallen on hard times.

West, who enjoyed an eight-year career in the NBA, has clearly fallen on hard times recently after various footage emerged of him begging on the streets and even being beaten up. It’s understood West made upwards of $16 million during his time with the Boston Celtics, Seattle SuperSonics, Cleveland Cavaliers and most recently the Mavericks. But West’s fall from grace meant he was forced to turn to the streets.  Now, though, it appears he has checked in to a rehab clinic under the guidance of Dallas’ owner Cuban.

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Addiction Recovery Bulletin

Lock them up! –

Sep. 30, 2020 – “We need to stabilize the city now and there is a lot of anxiety,” Cuomo said. “I have seen this city go through cycles. Most of the younger guys—you’ve only seen an upcycle. You don’t remember what the city was like because you weren’t born. In the 60s, when it was really bad, and the ‘70s.” The governor’s remarks were markedly different from his rhetoric earlier in the briefing, when he questioned why an armed police officer would be the responding authority during 911 calls regarding substance abuse or mental health issues. Cuomo made the remarks as he introduced a five-point plan to stabilize NYC, which had few details besides listing off NYC’s cascading crises, which included gun violence, cleanliness, and the economy.

Overdose prevention advocates were dismayed Cuomo’s directive to crack down on people using drugs in public.

The vice president of public policy advocacy at the Legal Action Center, Tracie Gardner, called it a “step backwards.”

“We’re supposed to be the leader in responding to people who use drugs,” said Gardner, who worked for the Cuomo administration for three years. “This is not leadership.”

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Addiction Recovery Bulletin

It’s Complex –  

2020 – The mother wound is not a specific diagnosis — although it can hurt so much that you’re sure it warrants one. While both daughters and sons can feel the impact of the under-mothering that leads to the mother wound, it’s typically considered a mother-to-daughter wound.

Thanks to psychologist Mary Ainsworth and her attachment theoryTrusted Source, we know that the trust that a mother instills in childhood positively affects not only the child’s present, but also their future relationships. Meaning, a child who acquires the mother wound is most likely to perpetuate this type of relationship with their own children. In patriarchal societies, it may be easier for mothers to pass on their own mother wound to their daughters. Women who have internalized stereotypical beliefs that relegate women to second-class citizens are more likely to consciously or unconsciously transmit these beliefs to their daughters.

Daughters in these societies may find themselves caught in a double-edged dilemma: Accept what Mom believes in so that we’re in the same boat and she keeps on loving me, or fight for my own beliefs and aim for empowerment. It’s no easy feat to take up the fight.

more@Healthline

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Addiction Recovery Bulletin

Remember Hash? –  

Sep.30, 2020 – LAS PALMAS, Spain (Reuters) – Spanish authorities have seized about 30 tonnes of hashish hidden in four sailing boats, in their biggest drug bust at sea, local authorities said on Wednesday.

Nine Bulgarian and Russian citizens were arrested in the raid.

“The logistical capacity of the Bulgarian criminal organizations’ top leaders engaged in drug trafficking in recreational vessels has been hit, preventing new routes from emerging or that they take advantage of the pandemic,” police and tax authorities said in a statement.

Earlier this year 4.6 tonnes of hashish were seized in two sailing boats from the same criminal group near the Balearic Islands.

more@Reuters

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Addiction Recovery Bulletin

WATCH – Time to stretch… –  

Oct. 1, 2020 – The organization has provided free athletic activities and a sober support community to more than 36,000 people across the United States. Now, clients can log on to free virtual classes offered throughout the day — everything from yoga and strength training to meditation and recovery meetings. “We hadn’t done virtual programming before, but we pretty quickly learned that it allowed the Phoenix to offer programs to rural communities that we historically couldn’t reach,” Strode said.

The group now has people in recovery joining classes from all across the US, and four other countries. They’ve also been able to bring their programming into prisons nationwide by recording content that is then distributed to inmates.

“I don’t think we’re going to find some magic solution that’s going to fix addiction in all of our communities,” Strode said. “I think we have to do it as a community and be there for each other — letting people step into the pride and strength in their recovery can get us out of this.”

more@CNN

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Addiction Recovery Bulletin

WATCH – No Escaping –

Oct. 2, 2020 – “Running is a big part of my sobriety tool kit. I use it when I’m having a hard day or I feel triggered,” said Rosales.

For about ten years, Rosales said she suffered with addiction to alcohol, she’s almost two years sober. The runner said it wasn’t easy to run her first couple of races but said the medals she won at the end of her races were tangible proof of what she’s overcome.

“To me it illustrates simply taking action. No pun intended put a step at a time and so looking back at her running journey a year and a half ago, she probably wouldn’t believe she’d be this marathon runner running upwards of 50 miles a week,” said running friend Marcos Avila.

Rosales said she’s sharing her story in hopes of helping some in her community.

“I just hope that Latinos take away that it’s ok to talk about having alcohol issues addiction issues,” said Rosales.

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Addiction Recovery Bulletin

Stigma in high places –  

Oct. 1, 2020 – “Addiction is a medical condition that affects millions of Americans each year, irrespective of any demographic. It is a disease, not a moral or character failing,” Marvin Ventrell, CEO of the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers, told The Daily Beast. “It is inappropriate, harmful, hurtful, and irresponsible when a public figure or person of influence disparages people suffering from addiction.”

“Pointing out a father because his son may have struggled in the past with a substance use disorder is wholly unconstructive and serves to perpetuate misconceived perceptions of addiction,” said Dr. Paul H. Earley, president of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). “Our nation must respond with compassion and evidence-based treatments if we want to treat addiction and save lives.”

Trump’s comments, which characterized substance use as a character failure, also undercut the hard-fought understanding in the medical community that addiction is a disease, said Dr. Lawrence Weinstein, chief medical director of American Addiction Centers, which provides treatment for substance use disorders.

more@DailyBeast

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Addiction Recovery Bulletin

Stick with the Winners! –

October 1, 2020 – Laura Martella is an accountability and certified recovery coach with over 20 years of active sobriety. She has a strong track record for creating sustainable change in the lives of her clients.Laura’s 90 day one on one accountability program teaches her clients how to transform their daily habits into acts of intention and self care. Her personalized plan offers practical and relatable guidance on how to simplify “ eating clean “ in today’s world of unlimited choices. Laura reminds us there is no “magic pill, shake or powder.” Her comprehensive program with defined goal setting and daily reinforcement with her clients makes her unique in driving sustainable transformation. It starts with a commitment for self care, proper nutrition and a mindset to improve one’s life. 

Laura is a true accountability partner with her clients. Laura’s film, “If You Are Still Breathing” is featured in The REEL Recovery Film Festival this November 6-12 available on Film Festival Flix. She is the author of Gentleman Norman How To Be A Man.

Q. If you are in recovery, what was your Drug of Choice? – and when did you stop using?
A. Alcohol did it for me. I got sober at 35.

Q. Do you think addiction is an illness, disease, a choice or a wicked twist of fate?
A. I definitely believe it is a physical, mental and spiritual disease. The description in the Drs. Opinion in our Big Book explains it perfectly. An allergy of the body coupled with a mental obsession.

Q.  Do you log on to ZOOM 12-step meetings? How often? Do you share?
A. I do an average of 3 meetings a week. I go through stages where I feel I need to share. Other times I really need to listen.

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