The OPIOID EPIDEMIC -- Seeking Your Thoughts.

a reply to: FredT

Absolutely agree. We are talking about people; alot of people; people who matter in this world who could potentially be viable citizens-they arn't just trash to throw away.

Government is to blame for this epidemic-and greed especially doctors. I lived in Florida and was shocked with the "pain clinic" lines with people from a thousand miles away-glad that's gone but heroin is up and easy to score in Florida.

Past time our government takes medicine and addiction seriously-they never have-silly slogans and pamphlets and 30 days
in ridiculous drying out facilities don't work.

I don't have any addictions except chocolate but I do have a heart and this blame game is not going to help those in need. We need to get serious-we are losing precious lives.

The problem starts with the pharmaceutical companies who manufacture opioid drugs. They've been found to be illegally bribing doctors to unnecessarily prescribe very addictive drugs, and they've been found to be dumping money into the government to keep alternative, safer drugs away from people (pharmaceutical companies are the biggest backers of anti-marijuana legislation). Pharmaceutical companies are legalized drug cartels. What often happens is that people with legitimate medical conditions go to a doctor for help dealing with pain, and the doctor, being paid by big pharma, pushes opioid drugs on them. Then the patient gets addicted, and when the meds run out, they turn to illegal drugs, eventually realizing that heroin is relatively cheap and powerful. The average Joe back-pain-sufferer is now a heroin addict.
Stop allowing pharmaceutical companies to aggressively push addictive opioid drugs on the population, and the opioid addiction problem will drastically decrease. It's pretty straightforward.

a reply to: trollz

How did it get this bad without the states noticing it? I read where in TN, there were more prescriptions than people. Why in the southern states is it so bad?

originally posted by: MOMof3
a reply to: trollz

How did it get this bad without the states noticing it? I read where in TN, there were more prescriptions than people. Why in the southern states is it so bad?

Money in government, it's that simple.

Big Pharma’s financial muscle, the report claimed, allowed it to spend millions every year on political lobbying: “Pharmaceutical companies can unduly influence national political systems through their large spending power. [They] often fund candidates that support their position on key issues.”

In the US alone, the report said, “The pharmaceutical industry spends an estimated $42bn [a year] on promotional activities that target doctors, which is equal to $61,000 per doctor on average.”
LI NK

haha I thought this was funny -

Should we feel sympathy for ADULTS who are addicted?

- CareWeMust

originally posted by: carewemust
June 29, 2017

Maybe it's due to the current push to reform America's Medical Insurance system, but I'm hearing more and more on the news about an OPIOID addiction problem in America. In fact, some media and politicians are calling it an Opioid EPIDEMIC and even a CRISIS.

Out of curiosity, I Googled to see what Opioids are. Here's what I found at the Government Drug Abuse website: www.drugabuse.gov...

""Every day, more than 90 Americans die after overdosing on opioids. The misuse of, and addiction to opioids—including prescription pain relievers, heroin, and synthetic opioids such as fentanyl—is a serious national crisis that affects public health as well as social and economic welfare.""

It must be really bad in some states, because Congress is preparing to add an additional $45 Billion...yes, BILLION dollars to the revised GOP healthcare bill for fighting this epidemic: nypost.com...

SEEKING YOUR THOUGHTS...

1. It appears that this isn't an addiction that affects only the poor, or only inner-city people.

2. When a Senator, like Susan Collins (R-Maine), says that she needs hundreds of millions of dollars to "fight" this epidemic in her state, what would she use the money for? How do you fight something that's comprised of both legal and illegal drugs?

3. Should we feel sympathy for ADULTS who are addicted? I have a hard time being empathetic for adults who hurt themselves, by smoking, being too fat, taking too many legal drugs, drinking too much, etc.. (fyi..I'm a smoker. The addiction, and potential cancer, are 100% my fault.)

4. Is this particular "mass addiction" to Opioids simply part of the natural decline and deterioration of humankind in general, and America specifically? ("End times" religious verses speak of this deterioration.)

-CareWeMust

People are more than their addiction. Their addiction isn't them. It would be wrong to lable you an adult smoker because you are more than that. There is more to you than that.

Another thing to consider is why people are taking so many pain killers. If we use those words to describe opioids we can begin to open the door to empathy on the pain killer epidemic. It is then we realize people are attempting to kill their pain. They are in pain. No one enjoys being in pain.

Then we ask ourselves the question why are there so many people in pain? What in tarnation is going on here? That alone should keep the door open to empathy regarding this epidemic.

Then we can look at what happens to people when they take pain killers. How do they feel initially? The common effects for many are no physical pain or pain that is bearable AND energy to perform tasks around the house, farm or the ability to complete a days work outside their home.

What is happening here is working people are taking pain killers to continue to work. Technology/industrialization, all the various charged currents in the atmosphere add to this crisis as our bodies/genetics attempt to adapt to an extremely different environment. Compare this to a fibromyalgia effect.

Two things that have occurred at the same time are:

Tech boom and opioid boom.

The teccnological atmosphere goes hand in hand with people feeling physically sick and dragging their asses and physical labor when done takes a lot away from the body that results in even more pain. Way outside of the spectrum of what the physical body can handle in a "clean" atmosphere.

The technologically charged atmosphere cannot be seen. But if it could be seen everyone would see that it is as dirty as the smoke coming from a coal powered locomotive while the person is strapped to the exhaust.

There was a rocket launched a few days ago from Wallops that shot colored canisters into the atmosphere to study it. What would be beneficial would be to have something done similar to that where color would reveal what the cell phone towers emit, the digital t.v.'s, the radio towers, the cloud storage facilities, the laptops, computers and so on.

I think to not have empathy for those in pain trying to kill it is the wrong path to take. What seems to be the best way to deal with this is to understand that just how we can't see the wifi flowing, it doesn't mean it doesn't exist, because we know it does. At the same time, we also cannot see other people's pain and their level of it. Could be subjective, but is wifi? So maybe a good compromise to make everyone happy would be to put color into the technological atmosphere in order to measure it and come up with a way to put color on the pain people feel. This way both can be clearly identified and we can work together as a team to help progress our physical life forms for the well being of everyone.

originally posted by: MOMof3
a reply to: trollz

How did it get this bad without the states noticing it? I read where in TN, there were more prescriptions than people. Why in the southern states is it so bad?

One thing we must consider is where the news flows and reasons to direct the focus on certain areas.

There are likely more pain killer addicts who are working and functional, closet addicts, and not poor, then there are those who are poor or not working. If the statistics are truly factual showing overdose is more likely in poorer areas which the news is promoting, factors need to be consider such as lack of cleaner street drugs and doctors cutting off clean pain killers from patients, hopelessness from lack of work in the area or being in an environment where people lack "drive" now generationally manifested, due to industrialization/technology combined with job hoarding and driving down sustainable living wages. Now emotional pain is combined with physical pain as they too have a technological atmosphere and they are unable to verbalize how the grand brain God created them to have has become lacking not excercising what God created them to be due to "supression" from others that basically boils down to society needing a scapegoat class to sustain the corrupt system that most bitch about but feel compelled to participate in anyway.

A Drug Dealer is usually just your neighborly convience store, except it usually done on a shoulder of that corner. Sure he can sell crap, knock off #, but they'd be hoping and even say, # thanks you an come back tomm.

There is direct correspondence between the US war in Afghanistan and the rise in Opiate use and deaths. I suspect much of it had to do with returning vets who were injured then unable to pay their bills began selling them to keep a roof over their heads.
Adding to the issue is Fentanyl which is primarily responsible for the majority of overdose deaths. Some Heroin dealers will cut their product with cheap Chinese Fentanyl which varies widely in strength due to poor quality control.

The end of this year will mark a decade of me being on prescription pain medications for a swollen spinal cord. I can tell you that withdrawl is the one of the worst experiences any human can suffer short of physical injury. Addiction is a disease, nobody starts using with the plan on becoming addicted but it can happen fast. Given the lack of love and hope in this world it's small wonder people turn to drugs to ease their mental anguish. Other people take out their frustrations on others through violence so remember that next time you want to mock someone who is addicted.

The cure? A better society, a saner world where morals are important, where we have love and support of family and friends, where corporations and the CIA don't profit from drug sales and the issues arising from their use and abuse. A world that invites us instead of making us want to curl up in a corner and feel nothing for a while.

This opioid epidemic has been induced by the United States federal government for one purpose only - population control. It is a known fact since we, the United Stated of America, have occupied Afghanistan our country has been flying in on-site processed heroin by the metric ton from Afghanistan's world famous poppy fields. It is also a little known fact that our ports are >90% foreign owned. Happenstance? No.

One way to reduce your country's population of a certain problematic and dependent demographic is by attrition via desire. Simply put... give them what they want. Make it cheap, affordable, and potent to the point of being deadly then kick back and watch them drop like flies. This is the reason for the lacing of carfentanil(elephant tranquilizer/kills humans @ the low microgram level) to the already highly potent/near pure heroin readily available on the streets across America. Physiologically speaking, an opioid addict's tolerance can reach a level to where receptors no longer respond leaving them upping their dose for the same or lesser high, but not to L.D.(lethal dosage). Hence carfentanil which is pharmaceutically loaded to the point a human has no tolerance. First try you die. Now there are even reports of marijuana being laced with this ultra potent poison. This is a tell all to itself as to how many high tolerance opioid addicts are here in America. The numbers must be staggering.

Governments categorize their people in either one of two categories - assets(gainfully working, taxable entities) or liabilities(resource draining dependents). People with chemical/drug dependencies are liabilities which are exorbitantly expensive to maintain on budget since they siphon financial resources through a variety of medical and social services paid for by the state. These state programs and services are directly funded by the insolvent United States federal government. Culling your number of dependents will enable funding for infrastructural projects and pocket lining, then it is back to business as usual... robbing Peter(American citizens,other nations) to pay Paul(China,Japan,Belgium,Caribbean banks,Arab oil exporters) via a global game of hook and crook.

a reply to: carewemust

I was a junky for 5 years, in L.A. and San Francisco. I know the game inside and out, so I feel I'm qualified to speak on it.

What people don't understand is that at first, it is a choice. Then once your body changes and you become physically dependent, it's a medical problem. I see people constantly arguing about whether it's a choice or a medical problem when the reality is that it's both. It just depends how deep you are into it.

Why are prescription drugs so popular? Because first off, they're completely clean lab made drugs with a known dosage, and are safer to use than street drugs. And there are tons of money in it.

I'm talking tons. When a poor person can spend $300 on an MRI and get a prescription for something they can make $20,000 a month selling, what do you think is going to happen?

And when those prescription drugs run out thanks to law enforcement shutting down pain clinics, where do you think those sick addicts are going to turn? To what they can buy on the streets, heroin.

Which brings me to the overdose factor. Opiates are a type of drug that are as dangerous as they are precisely because they are illegal. People overdose on heroin because it isn't standardized, and they're shooting an unknown amount every time they shoot up. So play out the odds, eventually you will overdose.

If everyone really cared about helping people, they would legalize opiates, offer education amd treatment to users and allow users to purchase a safe, standardized version. But before we can help people, we as a society need to get over the idea that we are helping people by punishing them.

Punishing drug users and dealers only makes the environment surrounding the use of the drug more dangerous, for the user and society. All this hard on drugs talk by Sessions and others like him only serve to make the problem worse.

Then again, with the private prison industry starting back up thanks to Sessions, maybe that's what he wants..

I spent 7 years as an addict. Ive been clean for the past 8 years now. I could ramble for days on stories of the misery I brought upon myself and others, so ill just get to the point.

The last time America had an addiction epidemic like this was immediately after Veitnam.
In the 60's & 70's, Laos, Veitnam, and Cambodia produced more poppies (poppies are the source of heroin, opium, morphine, etc.) than any other area in the world. This region was dubbed, "The Golden Triangle" on account of the massive amounts of money made by poppy farmers.

According to the government, we currently have an addiction epidemic greater than the one that sprang up after Veitnam. Now ever since the late 80's, Afghanistan has surpassed the golden triangle in poppy growth and production. This was a known fact at the time of the US invasion in 2001.
Im sure we all remember G.W.B. saying how the US is going to teach these poor Afghani farmers how to farm crops instead of poppies, and how we will cut down poppy growth and production to basically zero, and there will be no more drugs, and we'll all hold hands and sing koom-by-ya.

So far, we have a war in the 70's in the no.1 poppy producing area in the world, war ends, addiction runs rampant.
Then we have a war in the 2000's in the no.1 poppy producing area of the world, war ends, addiction runs rampant.
Starting to see any similarities?
Lets go one step further. Remember G.W.B. was goin to be teaching these farmers how to grow corn and peas, and such?? And that we will get rid of all the opium, and poppies and such?
At this very moment, Afghanistan produces 6 TIMES the amount of poppies, as they did in 2001.
Here's the stats if you want to see for yourself.
How can that could be? We were going to teach them other things to farm? Poppies grow in crappy soil, or good soil. They do have ideal temperature and humidity, and Afghanistan climate is one of the best in the world for growing poppies, however NOTHING else grows as easy as them. It would take 10 times the effort, and 10 times the cost to grow corn or soybeans instead of poppies. Let alone, that if you took 1 acre of land and grew corn, your profit margin might reach 8-9%. If you grew poppies on that same acre of land, your profit margin would be above 500%!

I can throw facts and numbers about farming poppies all day, but im sure you get the point.
In November of 2001 my brother was deployed with the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit to Afghanistan. The 15th and 26th Expeditionary Units were the first US troops to hit the ground in Afghanistan. When they arrived, there were fires everywhere. Not structure fires, but crop fires. Hundreds of acres burning everywhere. He was told by his C.O. that those are poppy fields on fire and that they need to get them under control and secure the area and such.
After the fire was out, another squad arrived and kept what wasn't burned secured, and my brothers group was taken about 10 miles away to an extremely large poppy field that was not burning. He figured they were there to burn the field, but they were there for the exact opposite reason.
They were there to secure ALL poppy fields so the Taliban could not burn any more of them.
Our soldiers weren't there to get rid of the drugs, but rather protect them. My brother spent the next 8 months securing poppy fields and Opium refineries in the name of Democracy.

So 2 wars, 2 addiction epidemics, and a 5 time increase in poppy production, instead of a decline. Anything seem funny yet???
Going even 1 step further now all Americans are forced to have health insurance now, and on top of that, a law was passed that the insurance companies can not refuse addiction treatment as a previous condition, or current condition. Add in the fact that the number of Methadone clinics have increased, along with prescriptions for Suboxone (for those who dont know, Methadone & Suboxone are used as an opioid substitute) and Tramadol.
I believe this enire crisis was initiated in 1995 with the introduction of Oxycontin. In the late 90's, Dr.'s used to hand it out like candy. The Dr.'s in retun, would get kickbacks from the drug manufacturer for writing a certain amount of prescriptions. Think of it like sales commision. In Tampa Florida for instance, there was a 2 mile long strip of pain management clinics with lines around the building DAILY. You would have thought these were nightclubs by the volume of people waiting to get in. They even had armed guards watching the line. I know this, because ive stood in those lines. It worked like this, walk in, pay your $150 to see the Dr. (Cash only, no insurance accepted), get your scripts, leave the clinic, drive down 1 block, get in line at different clinic, repeat.
Ive got tons of articles that reinforce my opinion that this entire "epidemic" has been choreographed from the start. Ill list them at the end

I subscribe to some somewhat wacky CT's, but this is no theory. This is simple cause, problem, reaction, solution, and in the end its all about money. Nothing more, nothing less.
DEA in Afghanistan
Dr. Payoffs
Oxycontin goes global
Creating addicts for profit

originally posted by: nOraKat
haha I thought this was funny -

Should we feel sympathy for ADULTS who are addicted?

- CareWeMust

WHY?

a reply to: underwerks


On the surface, I like the idea of legalizing some substances. This generates additional income that can be used for constructive purposes.. like gambling does for certain localities.

On the negative side, what if someone we love is killed by a "high" person driving over the yellow line?

a reply to: Blindmancc

I agree with your perspective and feel for you.
I have had chronic pain and been on meds for 15 years after 2 spinal surgeries I regret having. I didn't have a spinal cord disease before the surgery.
I have researched medications and been to so many doctors. If you take these properly, they are the safest that is available.
I have a friend that is a MD who works for a pharma. They are working hard on developing an effective med for pain that does not cause dependency, and are close but not quite there yet. Hey says there are billions to be made by the company that gets there first. The big issue I see is the price will be too high.
But then, it is not just the opiates, gabapentin, duloxetine, losartin, cause dependency.
There is no easy answer.

a reply to: carewemust

I wonder what it was like in the usa before these drugs were made illegal, or regulated. I don't know if ODs were a problem. The Harrison Narcotics Tax Act in 1914 was made a law due to concerns that coc aine was believed to cause black men to rape white women, and opium was a problem in the Philippines.

CareWeMust -

1. Opoid addiction on the street has flucuated wldly over the past 50 years, but the current epidemc is from the prescription side of things where as long as your insurance pays, the drugs will be prescribed. High end thrill seekers comprise another smaller component of "street user".

2. To escalate the drug war, these morons will propose anything that keeps the big drug (pharma) in business. Fight against laws that restrict treatment choices for patients depending upon their state of resdence.

3. Have compassion for those addicted, my wife the classic example of pain management addiction fentanyl/dilaudid, she's not addicted because she gets off on pain meds, she's strictly "taken as written". In other states there are more treatment options available, in some other countries, far fewer options (like no fentanyl!).

4. End Times? Really? The general decline in quality of life for the masses is more likely due to restrictions imposed by the ruling class - and preserving their continued profit/power/control as the masses are slowly granted more options.

ganjoa

a reply to: FamCore

Congrats on being clean for so long. You should be very proud.

originally posted by: carewemust

originally posted by: vonclod
a reply to: iWontGiveUP

Um no..fentanyl, I know about carfentanyl..it has been found a few times here but the vast majority of OD's here are from fentanyl..at least here.

knowyoursource.ca...

globalnews.ca...

I threw out 6 boxes of Fentanyl patches last month after my Father died. I wonder if he was hooked on them? They sure helped with his cancer pain.

That's *exactly* what and who they're for.

My Dad also had Fentanyl patches as he was dying from pancreatic cancer. Whether or not he was addicted was the most irrelevant thing in the world.

They helped ease his pain. That's all I and my family cared about.

I will happily contribute my experiences with OPIOID medications - I'm based in the UK, and in the past year or two we've also had some noise regarding changes to drug classification, processes for ordering, prescribing & reviewing the use of opioids for pain relief purposes. I personally have a serious disability caused by a neurological disorder; basically there's an element of chaos between my brain & central/ peripheral nervous systems, giving rise to frequently unbearable pain, indeed with some measure of strong & deeply unpleasant pain incapacitating me at all times during waking hours (also screwing with my sleep & appetite).

As a result, I have a complex prescription including three opioids: Tramadol, Morphine (liquid solution) & Codeine. These are combined with Amitryptiline, and Gabapentin - all at the highest permissible doses, and utilised in a complicated 'leapfrog' routine, taking different medications at different doses, and at alternating intervals, carefully executed so as to avoid over-dependence on any one substance.

This has just about worked to retain some measure of mobility (but really not much), over the past four years since a major degeneration in my condition in 2013 necessitated hospitalisation for nine weeks. I've had the condition since 2005, and it progressively worsened until the point at which, at the start of 2010, I was signed off as permanently unfit for work. This was devastating, as I'd been doing an apprenticeship in a huge chemical engineering firm, and had a clear route laid out to climb that ladder to commercial success. The years since have only brought trouble unfortunately, with several sudden changes for the worse, despite MRI scans not showing any operable pathology. It's now at the stage where I'm being sent for a brain scan, to determine whether a tumour, or other as yet undefined problem within the brain itself is driving the manifestation of these symptoms.

As regards opioids themselves, if they are used carefully and with restraint, they can be a successful complementary part of ongoing prescriptions/plans for the management of chronic pain - but certainly they are most helpful in the short-term, as long as the usage is carefully managed, and tapered off once the injury causing a need for them has healed sufficiently to withdraw from their use..

When doctors don't understand the true nature of neuropathic pain, in chronic cases, there can be a lazy approach to treatment which is just to throw opioids at people who attend complaining of pain. Certainly in the eighties, many pharmaceutical companies made a huge effort to promote their use in doctor's surgeries across the UK, and doubtless this was the case in other nations too. Finally, the correct knowledge & understanding is filtering through to family doctors, and so action is being taken. Unfortunately, the patients are being blamed for being stuck on opioid painkillers, when in reality the pharmaceutical companies have played the pivotal, monumental role of pusher in this scenario, and doctors are generally willing to go along with 'patient fault - medication abuse' as a convenient way to absolve themselves of any portion of the blame (and of course they don't want to poke the fattened, sleeping bear of Big Pharma - they have ways of ensuring complicity, as you all will know..)

The moral of the tale (apart from 'caution around Big Pharma')..? Simply:

--- Avoid opioids as a pain relieving agent if at all possible.
--- Take them only for a short time (ideally a month or less, maximum two months before requesting a review with your doctor). Pain which lasts for longer than three months is considered chronic, and must be treated as such. Opioids by themselves are only intended for short-term treatment, and with chronic pain situations, a prescription utilising a combination of drugs as per my list will certainly be safer, and more useful in controlling the pain.
--- If you have difficulties when trying to stop taking them, immediately tell your doctor, who will be able to advise on supported means of withdrawal..
--- If you find yourself stuck in a spiral of medication dependency which leads to sneaky actions to ensure you can refill your rescription early, or duplicate it, or whatever - again, go to your doctor and directly ask for support in a reappraisal of your condition, and your use of medication. It's also good to put a brief note in writing in to the administrative manager of the surgery. Ask for a receipt, and keep copies of letters sent (as potential evidence should it come to an awkward conflict of accusations & denials - has happened to me at three surgeries)
--- If the pain becomes chronic, request an assessment with a neurologist, as there may be hidden causes or contributing factors in a manner which family doctors can't easily fathom.
--- If the orthopaedics say there's no way to operate in order to resolve the problem, a neurologist on-side is crucial. Be very wary of anaesthesiologists who may have drunk the Kool-Aid (the premise of the OP - that opioids are bad & evil, and not useful for controlling pain - which is BS; they just necessitate complex & careful insertion into a balanced prescription..) Anaesthesiologists can be deeply unpleasant; ascerbic, sniping, manipulative & duplicitous vipers. I have experience of one such, and I was glad to be rid of him after my neurologist backed me up, in the face of bare-faced (!) lies. They're not all the same though, obviously.
--- ABOVE ALL. No matter how you are fixed, a problem with opioids requires support. Start with a loved one, attend clinics together for moral support & testimony in your favour where needed (very important strategy in my experience). Speak to charities & participate in good quality online forums (ensure they are well-moderated & watch out for spam).
--- And finally, sometimes a change of scenery, an opportunity to relax in nature, a hot bath (with salts, bubbles & candles), & visits to accessible saunas, hot tubs, sandy beaches (etc). Take time to rest, use the necessary medications, but try to mobilise (even just a little) every day. And keep your mind very, very active, if you're unable to get out much. Stay in touch with friends, but avoid talking pain.


God bless anyone dealing with chronic pain - forbearance, fortitude, courage, strength, dignity & love. May you find your moments of Heaven (they do arise). Keep calm & carry on.



FITO.