Leslie Glass's Blog, page 397
February 9, 2018
12 Steps Do They Really Work
Unless you’ve been under a rock for the last 80 years, you have heard of Alcoholics Anonymous and the 12 steps. You may know about meetings and fellowship, and how addicts help each other. You may have heard slogans like “One day at a time” and “Easy does it.” But what happens in those 12 Step meetings may remain a mystery to you.
It’s not a secret society, like the Masons, or Scientology, or the Mormons. And it’s not a cult. The 12 Steps have become for many the universal language of recovery. They have endured through the changes of the 20th Century and spread exponentially so that almost everyone entering a recovery program now becomes familiar with it.
Over Eighty Years Old
The 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous was created in 1935 when two hopeless drunks discovered that they could stay sober only if they regularly talked with other alcoholics. Bob Smith (Dr. Bob) and Bill Wilson (Bill W) knew that alcoholics needed a way for people to emerge from a self-destructive life that wasn’t working to a more positive and sustainable life without drinking or using substances.
This was a tough challenge since no treatment throughout the ages had worked for people with this deadly chronic, relapsing brain disease. There was, and still is, no cure for it. Family members also needed a new way of thinking to help them move from being controlled by someone else’s addiction to living their own lives in a safe and peaceful way.
They developed a process involving group meetings that provided a context for exploring aspects of behavior in addiction. This process helped abusers stop using and family members to modify their own behavior with regard to their addicted loved ones. Addiction is a family disease, and everyone plays a part in it. Surprisingly, the same process helps both populations in the same way.
The 12 Steps Are Like The 10 Commandments Of Mental Health, Except There Are 12.
The 12 Steps was the first effective program for substance and alcohol addiction and for healing families affected by it. Those who have been transformed by the language, the fellowship of acceptance and caring, and the group talk environment believe that the 12 Steps should be taught to everyone. The steps can be seen as the ten commandments of mental health. Only there are 12 of them.
Try It. You May Like It
Those who haven’t been to an AA meeting have certainly seen snippets of meetings portrayed on TV and in movies. We see people telling their names and stories, and very importantly, they identify as addicts or alcoholics or family members.
We all know what addiction looks like, but the transformation that takes place in recovery is not something that is shown in movies or on tv. It would take way too long to show how change occurs, over often a long period of time, as people begin to understand what those around them are talking about. Unless you attend a few meetings yourself, it’s virtually impossible to get a feeling of the process recovery in a 12 step program. And of course, each group has a different dynamic. Though 12 programs do work for those who stick with it, not every group is a good fit. So shopping around for the right meeting may be necessary.
12 Steps Are No Walk In The Park & Don’t Work For Everyone
Another important point is that the 12 Steps don’t work for everyone. Just as no single treatment for any illness works for everyone. Transformation doesn’t happen just because someone is learning a new vocabulary and brand new way of thinking. Phrases like “Higher power,” “defect of character”, and “Will of God” can make people really angry, or turn on the light bulb, or inspire both reactions at different times, or even at the same time.
A family member, for example, often has this response at first, “If I’m a good person who cares for someone who is an addict, how can I have a defect of character? I don’t have a defect of character!” But later on they may see a bit of toxicity in all that caring for someone who may not want it. 12 Steps provides a blame-free language and a safe place to explore of what makes us all tick. Especially in relation to our behavior dealing with addiction.
The Power Of The 12 Steps Is That It Makes People Think
Who am I really?
What am I doing?
Who or what is in control?
How can I get better?
How do I relate to other people?
Am I a bully or a doormat?
How Do I Stay Calm?
How do I stay away from whatever problem I have?
These are things that 12 Step meetings and the literature that goes along with them inspire people to think about. Finding a safe place to explore the impact of addiction is a lifesaver for those who feel imprisioned by the disease. People are empowered for the first time to decide for themselves how they want to be. It takes a lot of courage to enter a room full of complete strangers and admit you need help. Those in 12 Step programs say they are welcomed everywhere in the world they go and know they are never alone. One of the slogans, “take what you want and leave the rest” is always helpful.
Want to find a therapist who understands the impact of addiction? Visit Recovery Guidance to find help near you.
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February 8, 2018
Fruit Is Vindicated And Can Help You Lose Weight
Natural substances in fruit—including vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber and prebiotics—are incredibly good for you, not just in terms of protecting against chronic diseases, but also for managing your weight. Even if you eat plenty of veggies, nixing fruit means missing out on the unique antioxidants they provide.
In research, fruit has actually been tied to weight loss, not weight gain. One study found that overweight and obese adults who ate more fruit experienced greater weight loss than those who didn’t. Another study, which followed more than 130,000 adults over 24 years, found that consuming fruit was associated with improved weight loss over time.
This link may be because fruit can help boost satiety, satisfy a sweet craving and decrease your desire to dig into goodies like candy or baked goods. Fruits also tend to replace higher-calorie treats, whereas veggies tend to be add-ons. In other words, you’re much more likely to choose an apple rather than a piece of broccoli in place of a cookie; that swap can help you limit total calories and avoid added sugar, the real culprit when it comes to weight gain.
As for sugar, even the strictest guidelines from groups like the American Heart Association and World Health Organization don’t lump the sugar from fresh, whole fruit in with added sugar, the refined type used to sweeten foods (think almond milk, or the spoonful you add to your morning coffee).
That’s because the naturally-occurring sugar in fruit is much less concentrated, and bundled with water and a number of key nutrients. For example, one whole orange provides about 17 grams of carbs, about 12 of which are natural sugar. But it also supplies fluid, 12% of your daily fiber needs, and nearly 100% the recommended amount of vitamin C, along with B vitamins, potassium, and substances like hesperidin, which has been shown to help lower blood pressure, cholesterol and inflammation.
Compare that to one tablespoon of table sugar, which contains 16 grams of carbs and no nutrients. Essentially, whole, fresh fruit and added sugar don’t belong in the same category.
Of course, that doesn’t mean you can eat unlimited amounts of fruit. Fruit does contain carbohydrates, and the job of carbs is to fuel the activity of your cells. When you eat more carbs than you can burn after a meal or snack, even from fruit, the unneeded surplus can either feed existing fat, or plump up fat cells.
For this reason your total carb intake, including fruit, should correspond to your fuel demands, which are based on your height, ideal weight, sex, age and physical activity level. Most of my women clients can afford to eat two servings of fruit per day (more if they are taller or more active), with one serving being one cup, or one piece about the size of a baseball.
Since the carbs in fruit help fuel activity, when you eat fruit matters too. Downing a huge bowl of grapes late at night while you’re watching TV or surfing the web (when your fuel requirement is low) doesn’t make a lot of sense. Instead, build fruit into the meals and snacks you consume before your more active hours of the day. For many of my clients that may mean eating a small banana 20 or 30 minutes before a workout, or eating berries with breakfast before heading to work—and pairing an apple with almond butter in the afternoon to help power through the rest of the day.
As far as the type of fruit you choose, try to get a good variety to expose your body to the broadest spectrum of nutrients and antioxidants. In my opinion no fruit is off limits if you’re thoughtful about the amount and timing. For example, while watermelon is a high glycemic-index fruit, enjoying it when it’s in season is smart, since one cup of cubes contains less than 50 calories, and it provides vitamin C, potassium, and antioxidants tied to anti-inflammation, protection against heart disease and improved exercise endurance and recovery.
Bottom line: fruit is incredibly nutritious and not inherently fattening. Its impact on your weight depends on when you consume it, and how much you eat. Banishing fruit completely can backfire for weight loss, and negatively impact your overall wellness. Instead, strike the right balance to reap all the benefits of fruit and still achieve your slim-down goals.
This article originally appeared on Health.com
Finally, choices in addiction and mental heath treatment are all in one place. Visit Recovery Guidance to see options near you or anywhere in the US.
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Rural America’s Epidemic Of Despair
From Melissa Healy@ LA Times: An epidemic of despair is disproportionately claiming the lives of rural white Americans in the prime of adulthood. And for a second year in a row, their deaths by drugs, drink and self-destruction have caused life expectancy in the United States to fall.
That milestone, suggests an editorial in a respected medical journal, marks a sustained reversal of close to a century of improving health for Americans. And it raises a puzzling mystery: What is causing the despair, and what will restore hope and health to these battered Americans?
The opioid epidemic, which claimed the lives of 64,000 Americans in 2015 alone, “is the tip of an iceberg,” a pair of public health scholars wrote in the journal BMJ.
In an even larger public health crisis unfolding in the United States, death rates from alcohol abuse and suicides have also seen sharp increases in recent years, wrote Steven H. Woolf of Virginia Commonweath University and Laudan Aron of the Washington-based Urban Institute.
Between 1999 and 2014, the suicide rate rose by 24%. And mounting evidence has shown that deaths linked to alcohol abuse are rising as well among white Americans.
Nowhere are these trends more dramatic than in rural counties, where decades of social and economic changes have made the lives of white Americans less secure than their parents’, Woolf and Aron wrote.
About 15% of the nation’s population — some 46 million persons — lived in counties outside metropolitan areas in 2014. In a January 2017 analysis, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that those living in nonmetropolitan areas were more likely to smoke cigarettes, to be physically inactive and obese and to suffer from high blood pressure than were metropolitan county-dwellers.
Fully 18.1% of rural Americans lived in poverty, compared with 15.1% of those living in and around cities. And people in rural counties reported less access to healthcare and a lower quality of healthcare than did those in metropolitan counties.
In October, a study published in the American Journal of Public Health found that, while premature deaths were down among all American adults between 1999 and 2015, nine of 48 subgroups studied saw increases in early mortality. The lives of non-Latino whites, largely in rural or small or medium metropolitan counties, were mostly being shortened by suicide, drug overdoses and liver disease — a condition closely linked to alcoholism.
That study’s data showed steep declines in deaths due to HIV infection, cardiovascular disease and motor vehicle crashes among African Americans and Latinos and in urban and suburban areas. But those declines were more modest or nonexistent among whites living in any setting. And they were offset by dramatic increases in drug overdoses and suicides in whites, no matter where the victims lived.
The authors of the BMJ essay note that the roughly 15-year run-up in drug deaths and suicides has not been seen in black Americans.
While the racial gap in health is narrowing, African Americans’ rates of premature death have always been starkly higher than those among whites, Woolf said. And it may be that the uptick in “deaths of despair” seen in whites will eventually be detected among blacks as well, he added.
But Woolf said it’s also possible that black Americans have some “resilience factor” that white Americans do not. Perhaps, he said, African Americans’ response to the discrimination, structural disadvantages and health inequities they’ve long endured has buffered them from following whites down their path of self-destruction.
At the same time, the despair of whites is “unclear, complex, and not explained by opioids alone,” Woolf and Aron wrote. In once-thriving communities outside the nation’s metropolitan areas, industries have collapsed. As steel mills and coal mines have closed, timber production has gone bust, and automation has left rural communities behind, their economies and their residents’ health have suffered.
The result is a national phenomenon that has been unfolding for at least three decades. Relative to life expectancy in other affluent, industrialized countries, Americans’ once-commanding lead in longevity began slipping in the early 1980s. By 1998, U.S. life expectancy had fallen below the average for industrialized countries. It is now 1.5 years behind that benchmark.
“It’s really sad that a baby born today will likely live less long than one born even a year ago. It’s not the direction you’d expect the richest country on Earth to be going,” Woolf said.
But economic collapse might be too easy an explanation for rural white communities’ epidemic of despair, said Woolf, who has studied the urban-rural health divide across the country. More important might be the fraying of communities’ social fabric that followed.
“Poverty rates don’t capture the frustration and hopelessness people experience when they can’t get ahead or can’t give their kids a better life,” Woolf said. When the social fabric of a community is frayed, its residents may be more inclined to salve their woes in self-destructive behaviors, he added.
A look at broader U.S. trends and policies may also shed light on the roots of some Americans’ despair, Woolf and Aron wrote. During the three decades during which U.S. life expectancy has slid, the nation’s educational performance weakened. Its social divides (including income inequality) widened. Its middle-class incomes stagnated. And its poverty rates exceeded those of most rich countries.
“These are all factors we know are important to health,” Woolf said.
If policy makers wanted to reverse the trend of shortening U.S. lifespans, “they would promote education, boost support for children and families, increase wages and economic opportunity for the working class, invest in distressed communities, and strengthen healthcare and behavioral health systems,” Woolf and Aron wrote.
At the end of the day, Woolf said, “it’s probably not a good time to make policy choices that don’t invest in helping these people. A policy agenda that’s focused on improving value for shareholders is not really going to bring relief to these families and communities.”
Mental health and addiction help is available. Change the ending to your story. Find help at Recovery Guidance.
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How To Choose The Therapy You Need
As a consumer, you need to understand what type of therapy your therapist utilizes in order to evaluate whether this is the best type of therapy and practitioner for you. While there are many types of therapy, most of them fall into one of these four types. These are the therapies that will help you on your healing process.
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT):
Looking for a quick fix? Cognitive-behavioral therapy is a commonly used, short-term therapy which usually about 10 – 15 sessions. The therapy focuses on changing cognitions (thoughts) and behaviors (actions). Here, one works on problems that can be changed such as irrational thinking, and unhealthy behaviors like drinking and drugging. The goal is to reduce or extinguish the symptoms of unhealthy behaviors. CBT does not focus on insight into deep-seated core issues. Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is a related therapy that combines CBT with humanistic and trans-personal therapies.
Psychoanalysis Or Psychodynamic Theory
In this type of therapy, one works to uncover the unconscious processes and core issues in order to heal. The focus is on gaining insight and coping with deep-seated psychological issues. Psychoanalysis is based on the work of Sigmund Freud, who is touted as the “father of psychotherapy.” Modern psychology has revamped this work to make it more user-friendly. This is a longer term therapy, which might span several years.
Humanistic Or Existential Theory
Humanistic therapy focuses on healing through the mind, body, and spirit connection. This theory focuses on acceptance of self, healing techniques, and a positive, warm, accepting relationship with the counselor. In this type of therapy, the counselor and client are more equal in the process. The goals include discovering and utilizing the self-healing abilities of the client.
Existential therapy is a branch of humanistic theory which focuses on the existential questions of today such as: “Why am I here and what is my purpose in life?” and “What is the meaning of life?” With this work, you are tasked with coping with suffering, despair, loneliness and the responsibility for yourself in dealing with these deep life struggles throughout your life span.
Trans-personal Or Integrative Therapy (psycho-spiritual)
Developed by Ken Wilber, trans-personal therapy is an eclectic practice which embraces all of the three previous therapies. The focus of trans-personal therapy is to “transcend and include.” The patient learns how to integrate all the stages from the human pre-ego (baby), to ego, to beyond the ego. The result is a development of the higher self, a transcendent self. This type of addresses every aspect of being human: the mind, body, spirit, and soul.
In this work, the patient focuses on spiritual, transformative beliefs and practices. Because trans-personal literally means “beyond the personal (ego),” this practice encompasses explores many dimensions including:
Science
Philosophy
History
Religion and spirituality
Social work
Psychology
Trans-personal therapy employees the following tools, including:
Meditation
Art and music
Dream interpretation
Religion,
Journaling
Tai chi
Body work
Exercise
Healthy eating
Spirituality
We believe that an eclectic focus (utilizing the techniques that work best for any given client) is the most valuable. In an eclectic focus, the therapist picks various ways to help you instead of just focusing on one therapy. However, please remember that the most important factor in finding a therapist is your connection with that therapist. While techniques are valuable, they aren’t as valuable as the relationship you have with the counselor.
Find therapists and counselors who understand the complicated dynamic that addiction brings to the table at Recovery Guidance.
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Philly’s 1st Safe Injection Facility May Soon Open: What You Need to Know
SIFs, which currently operate in Canada, Europe and Australia, offer drug users a place to use heroin and other narcotics under the supervision of medical professionals. (SIFs do not provide drugs, nor do their employees inject users directly.) Proponents say they can help curb overdose deaths, improve injection hygiene and expand access to addiction treatment. Adversaries, meanwhile, argue that they condone and enable illicit drug use.
Here’s what you need to know about the debate around SIFs.
Where are there currently SIFs?
There are approximately 100 SIFs in operation today, sprinkled across countries in North America, Europe and Australia. The first in North America opened in 2003, in Vancouver. Though no authorized SIFs currently exist in the U.S., cities including Seattle, San Francisco, Denver and Ithaca, N.Y., along with Philadelphia, are seriously considering opening such facilities. There is also an unauthorized, underground SIF operating somewhere in the U.S., according to a study published in the International Journal of Drug Policy.
Some U.S. cities, such as Boston, also operate facilities where drug users can ride out a high under medical supervision, though they cannot actively inject drugs inside. Many cities also offer needle exchanges, where users can get access to clean equipment.
Are SIFs legal?
It’s complicated.
States have the power to authorize SIFs within their borders, just as they have the power to locally legalize medical or recreational marijuana, according to an analysis published in the American Journal of Public Health.
Things get tricky, however, when looking to federal law. At least two sections of the federal Controlled Substances Act — one that bars drug possession, and one that makes it illegal to operate a facility specifically meant for drug use — could be interpreted to mean that SIFs are illegal, according to the analysis. As such, a SIF could be subject to federal legal action, even if it’s operating in a state that has authorized its existence. Still, “federal inaction would be enough to allow a state SIF to proceed,” the authors of the analysis wrote. “The attorney general could simply instruct federal law enforcement personnel to ignore the SIF, either because he or she interprets the Controlled Substances Act to allow SIFs or in the exercise of ‘prosecutorial discretion.’”
Do SIFs work?
A number of studies suggest that SIFs not only cut down on drug overdose deaths, but also reduce public drug use and improve community health by curtailing transmission of blood-borne illnesses including HIV and hepatitis C, according to a commentary published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
A 2011 paper published in the Lancet, for example, found that in the first two years after Vancouver’s SIF opened, overdose deaths in the immediate area decreased by 35%. Another paper published that year in Drug and Alcohol Dependence found that the Vancouver SIF led to significant increases in the number of people seeking methadone and other addiction treatments. Meanwhile, a 2014 review of 75 studies concluded that SIFs cut overdose deaths and improved health among drug users, without causing a concurrent increase in drug trafficking, drug use and crime in the surrounding area.
Why do people oppose SIFs?
Some opponents argue that SIFs encourage drug use — despite studies that suggest they are not correlated with any such increase — and do little to help addicts wean themselves off the habit. SIFs also give rise to a number of ethical issues. For example: Can a patient give informed consent for medical treatment if he or she is under the influence of drugs? And are doctors in conflict with the Hippocratic Oath if they allow patients to do themselves harm by injecting drugs? The dubious legality of SIFs has also raised concerns about legal and professional consequences for the doctors and nurses who would work there.
Still, while the issue is far from black and white, physician groups including the American Medical Association have come out in favor of SIFs.
When would a SIF open in Philadelphia?
That’s still unclear. While city officials have given the green light for a facility to open in Philadelphia, they still need to find a private operator to run it. James Garrow, a spokesperson for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, told TIME that some parties have expressed interest, but declined to name them.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that at least 63,600 drug overdoses occurred in the U.S. in 2016. About 900 of those were fatal opioid overdoses in Philadelphia, according to a report from Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney’s Task Force to Combat the Opioid Epidemic — and officials are expecting the 2017 death toll to rise.
Garrow estimated that a SIF could open within the next six to 18 months — and said city health officials are not concerned with being the first in the country.
“Our only motivation is trying to save as many lives as possible,” Garrow said.
Looking for treatment choices? You have options: centers, rehabs, doctors and therapists. Find resources near you at Recovery Guidance.
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Acne Linked To Increased Risk Of Depression
From Nicholas Bakalar @ Time: People with acne are at substantially higher risk for depression in the first years after the condition appears, a new study reports.
Researchers used a British database of 134,427 men and women with acne and 1,731,608 without and followed them for 15 years. Most were under 19 at the start of the study, though they ranged in age from 7 to 50. The study is in the British Journal of Dermatology.
Over the 15-year study period, the probability of developing major depression was 18.5 percent among patients with acne and 12 percent in those without.
People with acne were more likely to be female, younger, nonsmokers and of higher socioeconomic status. They were also less likely to use alcohol or be obese.
After adjusting for these factors, the scientists found that the increased risk for depression persisted only for the first five years after diagnosis. The risk was highest in the first year, when there was a 63 percent increased risk of depression in a person with acne compared to someone without. The reason for the association is unclear.
The lead author, Isabelle A. Vallerand, an epidemiologist at the University of Calgary, said she was surprised to see such a markedly increased risk.
Depression is treatable. Find therapists, counselors, and centers that specialize in mental health and addiction at Recovery Guidance.
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More Teens Identify As Transgender, Not Just Boy Or Girl
From Lindsey Tanner @ Fox News: Far more U.S. teens than previously thought are transgender or identify themselves using other nontraditional gender terms, with many rejecting the idea that girl and boy are the only options, new research suggests.
The study looked at students in ninth and 11th grade and estimated that nearly 3 percent are transgender or gender nonconforming, meaning they don’t always self-identify as the sex they were assigned at birth. That includes kids who refer to themselves using neutral pronouns like “them” instead of “he” or “she.”
“Diverse gender identities are more prevalent than people would expect,” said lead author Nic Rider, a University of Minnesota postdoctoral fellow who studies transgender health.
The study is an analysis of a 2016 statewide survey of almost 81,000 Minnesota teens.
Nearly 2,200 identified as transgender or gender nonconforming. The study found that these kids reported worse mental and physical health than other kids, echoing results seen in previous research. Bullying and discrimination are among possible reasons for the differences, Rider said, although the survey didn’t ask.
Rider said it’s a study based on a statewide population of teens in ninth and 11th grades and that the results can be used to estimate numbers of trans and gender nonconforming teens in those grades across the United States.
The study was published Monday in Pediatrics.
Although the study only included teens in two grades, the rates are higher than a UCLA study released last year estimating that 0.7 percent of teens aged 13 to 17 are transgender, or about 150,000 kids. That study used government data on adults to estimate numbers for children. It said 0.6 percent of U.S. adults identify as transgender, or about 1.4 million.
Some experts believe rising awareness of transgender issues has led increasing numbers of transgender teens to come out, or to experiment with gender identification.
“With growing trans visibility in the United States, some youth might find it safer to come out and talk about gender exploration,” Rider said.
But differences in estimates may also reflect differences in how gender identity questions are phrased, Rider said.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not asked about transgender status on its youth surveys, noting that it is difficult to find the right question to yield a credible answer.
The survey Rider analyzed asked about the sex the teens were assigned at birth, and if they considered themselves transgender, gender queer, gender fluid or unsure about their gender identity. Kids were not asked if they had undergone surgery or other medical treatment to transition to the opposite sex.
Dr. Daniel Shumer, a specialist in transgender medicine at the University of Michigan, wrote in an accompanying opinion article in Pediatrics that the study supports other research suggesting that earlier counts of the trans population “have been underestimated by orders of magnitude.” He said that the higher numbers should serve as a lesson to schools and physicians to abandon limited views of gender.
“Youth are rejecting this binary thinking and are asking adults to keep up,” he wrote.
Rider said to improve health disparities affecting transgender teens, doctors should help them feel more comfortable about seeking health care by asking how they identify and if they’ve experienced bullying, discrimination or other victimization. That’s important, Rider said, “because this conveys competence, inclusivity, and caring.”
That advice echoes American Academy of Pediatrics policy that says pediatricians should use gender-neutral terms and encourage teens to feel comfortable talking “about their emerging sexual identities.”
Find therapists, counselors, and centers that specialize in mental health and addiction at Recovery Guidance.
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February 7, 2018
Suicides Spiked After Robin Williams’ Death, Study Says
In the four months after Williams’ death by suicide in August 2014, CDC data revealed that there were 18,690 deaths by suicide in the U.S. — significantly more than the 16,849 suicides that past data and trends would have predicted for that time period, according to an analysis published Wednesday in PLOS ONE.
“When you looked at the data, you didn’t need statistics to see that something happened,” says study author David Fink, a doctoral candidate in epidemiology at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. “You see this very large spike in August that you can just tell is off.”
The study is among the first to examine the impact of celebrity suicide in the U.S. (One paper in 1996 paper focused on Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain’s death two years earlier.) While the research doesn’t prove that Williams’ death, and the resulting news coverage and social media response, caused the observed spike in suicides, a number of parallels suggest that it at least played a part, Fink says.
For one thing, the jump was particularly significant among men ages 30 to 44, a demographic similar to the actor’s. A disproportionate number of the victims also died by strangulation, as many news outlets reported that Williams did, according to the paper.
That overlap isn’t very surprising, Fink says. While the factors that contribute to every suicide are different, Fink says a common theory is that many cases share three precursors: a breakdown in the person’s social structure, access to a means of suicide and an ability to overcome a natural fear of death. A high-profile celebrity suicide may partially fulfill the third element, Fink says.
“When you see somebody that you can relate to that has overcome this natural fear of death, you might be able to relate to that and take the same behaviors you were incapable of prior,” he says. “That’s why we expect to see the same demographics.”
While Fink’s study didn’t look at how, exactly, media coverage affects suicide rates, the volume of stories about Williams may have contributed to an uptick. Many outlets strayed from the World Health Organization’s responsible suicide reporting guidelines in the wake of Williams’ death, the study says, since many titles published details about the actor’s death and others speculated about possible causes.
Other research has found that when publications do follow these guidelines — avoiding sensationalization and focusing coverage on warning signs and suicide prevention resources, for example — copycat suicides may be minimized. Taken together, these findings suggest that the media plays an important role in managing the aftermath of a tragedy.
“This really was a study to identify that this effect is occurring, and hopefully stimulate new research into how to mitigate its effects,” Fink says. “There is some evidence that changes in reporting can have an effect.”
If you or someone you know may be contemplating suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
Treatment is available near you. Find therapists, counselors, and centers that specialize in mental health and addiction at Recovery Guidance.
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The FDA Gives Kratom A Hard No
The Food and Drug Administration analysis, published Tuesday, makes it more likely that the supplement, kratom, could be banned by the federal government.
The FDA also said it has identified 44 reports of death involving kratom since 2011, up from 36 reported in November.
Sold in various capsules and powders, kratom has gained popularity in the U.S. as a treatment for pain, anxiety and drug dependence. Proponents argue that the substance is safer than opioid painkillers like OxyContin and Vicodin, which have contributed to an epidemic of drug abuse. More than 63,000 Americans died in 2016 from drug overdoses, mostly from opioids.
FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb reiterated that there are no FDA-approved medical uses for kratom, which is derived from a plant native to Southeast Asia.
“Claiming that kratom is benign because it’s ‘just a plant’ is shortsighted and dangerous,” Gottlieb said in a statement. “It’s an opioid. And it’s an opioid that’s associated with novel risks because of the variability in how it’s being formulated, sold and used recreationally.”
FDA scientists analyzed the 25 most common chemical compounds in kratom and concluded that they behave like those found in opioids including morphine.
Kratom remains legal under federal law. But FDA inspectors have been seizing and destroying shipments at international mail facilities for months.
The FDA has submitted its review to the Drug Enforcement Administration, which is considering whether to place kratom in the same category of illegal drugs as heroin and LSD. The agency was poised to take that step in the summer of 2016, but delayed a decision after a flood of public complaints, including a letter signed by 62 members of Congress and a protest at the White House by kratom supporters.
There is no timeframe for the DEA’s final decision.
Looking for other recovery and treatment options? Recovery Guidance lists centers, physicians, and therapists near you.
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What Is Emotional Abuse
From Natasha Silverbell: Emotional abuse in relationships is more common than we would like to admit. If we’re going to be realistic about it, abusive relationships are rampant. 1 in 4 American women experience physical violence by an intimate partner.
Culturally we have become pretty open and aware of what domestic violence looks like. Obvious signs of physical abuse are bruising, scratches, and individuals wanting to remain covered up. Emotional and verbal abuse are far more common and are just as damaging. It’s crucial to understand what emotional and verbal abuse looks and sounds like.
It’s even more crucial on how to learn to prevent it, stop it, and heal from it. Another fact we are quick to gloss over is that it affects both men and women. Let’s get educated.
Recognizing Abuse
I had a client, “Sophie”, who was lying in bed one night when she heard the neighbors arguing through the walls. Though the neighbors often fought in the middle of the night, this time she awoke to the husband making chanting like noises. The woman, now and then, would scream but then it would dissipate. Sophie turned to her husband and asked him what the noise was, and what the man was doing. The husband said he knew, the man was taunting his wife. In that moment Sophie realized that she was also a victim of this abuse. Her husband taunted her in berating and condescending tones.
The next day, Sophie talked to her doorman, generally asking why the neighbors fight so much and why the husband is so abusive. The doorman’s simple, yet profound response was “Well why does she choose to stay?”
When you are captive of an abusive relationship the idea that you could leave doesn’t even cross your mind. It’s too scary to think of the ramifications, especially if there are children involved.
Abuse Indicators
You are being abused if you find yourself:
Making excuses for your partners behavior
Never doing anything right
Wanting to go and hide
If your children start to ask, “Why did daddy call you a name? Or “Why did Mommy just yell so loudly?”, these are also signs of abuse.
I always ask my clients, “Why does it have to take being beaten with a baseball bat for you to recognize you are being abused? It’s very important for these victims to have a strong, and secure support system so they know that they, themselves, and their feelings are just.
How To Talk To A Loved One About Abuse
If you have a strong feeling that someone you care about is in one of these abusive relationships there are very specific ways to approach the person. You can start talking to them about abuse, but not by talking about the abuse you think they are experiencing directly.
Let’s say “Catie” loves singing and music. You know it’s something she’s given up completely as a result of the influence of an unsupportive partner. You may want to ask her if she’s been able to do some singing events, go to a concert or listen to her favorite artist.
Non-threatening Talking Points
It’s a non-threatening way to make the person realize that they have a lot to offer that might be getting neglected and dismissed in their relationship. It may also allow her to think about something she’d like to do that is being taken away from her.
It’s always helpful to talk about abuse in a non-threatening way. Maybe one way is to talk about the abuse you see someone else suffering from to open up the door to that conversation. Or if you’ve had abuse in your own life talking about it openly can make others feels they are talking to someone who understands, without judgment. It is imperative if someone shares with you that they don’t feel judged.
If it’s clear someone you love is in a dangerous domestic violent situation, or even dangerous emotionally distressing relationship to take more immediate steps, you can always offer your place for a friend to stay. But that’s a very hard conversation to have in the beginning unless it’s an extraordinary circumstance.
One of my clients ‘Nancy’ knew her daughter was in a dangerous emotionally abusive relationship. She saw her daughter go from a healthy weight to a very scary low weight. Nancy knew her daughter’s partner had eating issues of his own. Now, he was pushing his non-fat, low calorie diet on her daughter. When she tried to talk to her daughter about it, her daughter was defensive and angry. The talk pushed her daughter closer to the abusive partner.
If this happens, let the person you’re concerned about know you are there. Offer to listen if they want to talk to someone about what’s going on.
How To Remove Yourself From An Abusive Relationship
If you know you’re in an abusive relationship and you want to get out, you need to build your support system. Then develop your own personal exit strategy.
Start by connecting with close, trustworthy friends and family. They can help by:
Encourage you to leave in a non-threatening way
Provide you with a place to stay
Keeping eyes open for a job
Make connections as volunteer in the community or your child’s school.
Maybe you always have a small bag packed in your closet? Maybe you distinguish your own close friend your “go to” call where you know she’ll always pick up?
Have a plan and be willing to stick to it when you know the time is right. Taking your power back, knowing your worthy, and always putting you and your safety and health first is the #1 priority.
For More Information, Contact:
The National Domestic Violence Hotline
Safe Horizon: Victim’s Services Agency
Visit International Directory of Domestic Violence Agencies for a global list of helplines, shelters, and crisis centers.
Hidden Hurt: Domestic Abuse Information
To find counseling and other therapies near you, visit Recovery Guidance.
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