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re: Serious business: The opioid epidemic - it's on the rise in the United States
Posted on 3/17/16 at 7:20 am to JohnnyQuid
Posted on 3/17/16 at 7:20 am to JohnnyQuid
they are not as severe, but some physical withdrawals certainly exist.
Just to throw some other things out there, you can't die from opiate withdrawal but you can from alcohol and a couple other things.
Just to throw some other things out there, you can't die from opiate withdrawal but you can from alcohol and a couple other things.
This post was edited on 3/17/16 at 7:22 am
Posted on 3/17/16 at 7:49 am to PJinAtl
quote:
I think the biggest issue, and this was mentioned in the ABC report, is that doctors are prescribing super strong opioid pain medications as a first choice these days and these lead to addiction, and then lead to heroin because it is cheaper/easer to get.
That's all there is to it really. Doctors passed these things out like candy and then expected people to just put them down after a two week bender. Pills are more socially acceptable than heroin and easy to steal from the medicine cabinet, so it makes its way through every walk of life. Why is the better question. I'm not a conspiracy nut, but big pharma certainly doesn't seem mad that millions of people are hooked on a product they will steal, stab, or shoot for.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 7:59 am to TheDrunkenTigah
Can we all just admit the war on drugs has been an epic failure, that's led to a significant problems in our country.
We should be looking at what other industrialized countries have done to reduce addiction.
We should be looking at what other industrialized countries have done to reduce addiction.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:00 am to Sneaky__Sally
benzos are on of the most dangerous in terms of physical withdrawal along with alcohol.
if you consider physical withdrawal tired/grumpy/depressed I guess it has some. I mostly consider it psychological along with the intense craving which is same.
if you consider physical withdrawal tired/grumpy/depressed I guess it has some. I mostly consider it psychological along with the intense craving which is same.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:01 am to PowerTool
quote:
He said less addictive
Sure as far as certain dependencies.
quote:
. Meaning you're more likely to know an occasional coke user than an occasional heroin user.
According the the justice department there are more cocaine addicts than heroin addicts, by about 4 times.
Just saying...
However, cocaine was brought up not for this point. Just merely an example of contra/afghan scenario. Cocaine was present prior to 80's and has had its ups and downs as far as usage, but due to government support, it skyrocketed at that point.
I dont fully believe it, but some guy went all off on me the other week with his conspiracies and this was part of it. Knowing the past, this might be some explanation as to the recent heroin proliferation. The trafficking is being somewhat protected by our own government, so its spiking in availability.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:03 am to JohnnyQuid
I only know one person who was as addicted to coke (doing it daily for an extended period of time) like heroin addicts are addicted - and it completely wrecked him coming off of it, maybe it was more due to the body recovering from the damage done during addiction, but I can't speak to all of that.
This post was edited on 3/17/16 at 8:04 am
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:03 am to JohnnyQuid
quote:
benzos are on of the most dangerous in terms of physical withdrawal along with alcohol.
My brother died 10 years ago from benzo withdraw coupled with a heart issue he had from birth
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:05 am to scrooster
Those of us that work in healthcare have suspected this for quite a while. My dad works in triage at an ER in east B'ham and the number of ODs he has seen has absolutely ballooned over the past few years.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:08 am to Bigbens42
That is due to the rise in heroin use secondary to the hard scheduling of pain meds that happened 2 years ago. We created addicts then ripped the carpet out from under them. frick the war on drugs
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:09 am to TheDrunkenTigah
quote:
Why is the better question. I'm not a conspiracy nut, but big pharma certainly doesn't seem mad that millions of people are hooked on a product they will steal, stab, or shoot for.
As someone that dealt with chronic pain(back related) and was prescribed painkillers, I will say they did help me cope and make it through some tough days. I don't know if I would have been given the amount I was given had I went through it 20 years ago, but I'm guessing not. At the height, I was getting 120 lortab 10's per month. I did not need that many, and I told the pain clinic that but they gave them to me anyway. That is troublesome. This was almost 4 years ago, and I still have a huge bottle of them with probably close to 100 pills.
I don't know if it's a conspiracy, but I think it just gradually became more and more acceptable for primary care doctors to prescribe them, and it spun out of control. I'm not sure what role big pharma plays either, as most of the prescribed painkillers have generics available. I was only paying like $5 for the 120 pill prescription through my insurance, though I don't know what the pharmacy billed the insurance company.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:15 am to Gradual_Stroke
absolutely. doctors giving out 80 mg oxycontin for almost anything. then after people started dying things started changing - how the pills were made / absorbed / break down and not sure about prescribing. but that's what started alot of this.
have a friend who's struggled with opiate addiction for the better part of 20 yrs but it hit a whole other level when he could get oxy prescribed for little reason.
have a friend who's struggled with opiate addiction for the better part of 20 yrs but it hit a whole other level when he could get oxy prescribed for little reason.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:18 am to Gradual_Stroke
It was a lot longer than 2 years ago. The original Oxycontin formula was banned probably 5 or so years ago, and that was the main culprit which really kicked everything off.
If you want to see what the problem was, just watch this documentary. At that time, something like 75% of pain medication was prescribed in Florida as they had no prescription tracking system. They have such a system now.
Oxycontin Express
If you want to see what the problem was, just watch this documentary. At that time, something like 75% of pain medication was prescribed in Florida as they had no prescription tracking system. They have such a system now.
Oxycontin Express
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:20 am to JohnnyQuid
Now we're locking them in cages when the turn to their only alternative to avoid withdrawal and severe pain. Really disgusting that our government turned their backs on millions of pain patients
Posted on 3/17/16 at 8:21 am to Sneaky__Sally
>90% of the nation's opiates were taken in Fla
Posted on 3/17/16 at 9:11 am to The Spleen
quote:
I don't know if it's a conspiracy, but I think it just gradually became more and more acceptable for primary care doctors to prescribe them, and it spun out of control. I'm not sure what role big pharma plays either, as most of the prescribed painkillers have generics available.
This is the part I'm more interested in actually seeing some hard numbers on. What doctors prescribe can be influenced by the OT 10 sales reps that market drugs to them. That's another topic but I think it contributes. Also I'm curious to see what financial effect generics have had on opiates vs other drugs. The typical business model for a drug is to spend massive amounts on R&D and trials getting it to market, charge a premium for 7 years to make a profit on all that sunk cost before the patent expires. Generics hit as soon as it does, demand for the name brand drug plummets, on to the next drug.
Opiates seem different. Cheap to produce, and almost no R&D since they've been around so long. Even with the ultimate generic on the street, heroin, prices for painkillers remain high. Demand is almost limitless, it increases the more it's sold. I've seen oxy go for more than a $1/mg, that can be $80 for a single pill. Addictive drugs break the rules from an economic standpoint, flood the market and demand can actually grow.
quote:
I was only paying like $5 for the 120 pill prescription through my insurance, though I don't know what the pharmacy billed the insurance company.
The recent pain cream scandal showed that doctors aren't immune to the things I'm describing above. Sales rep greases the doc's palm in some way, doc prescribes more of the drug, drug company charges anything they want to the insurance company. Again, I'm not a conspiracy nut, but I would not be shocked at all to learn this was happening in some capacity. Maybe not even enough for those involved to realize it, but still happening nonetheless.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 12:27 pm to CCTider
quote:
Can we all just admit the war on drugs has been an epic failure, that's led to a significant problems in our country.
We should be looking at what other industrialized countries have done to reduce addiction.
Like what? What have other countries done ... and let's ask the other question in advance, what is the racial makeup of their population and how do other things play into the equation? For instance, including racial makeup, what about unemployment numbers, average incomes, ages, things like that. Because comparing the U.S. to Sweden or Finland doesn't work for most of us.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 12:38 pm to scrooster
Go to school in Plano, I always heard about the epidemic that hit us in the 90s. Now it's back, I guess, and stronger than ever.
https://www.texasmonthly.com/articles/teenage-wasteland/
There were 9 teenage overdoses and fifteen overall in two years. It was a big deal, for a city of 200,000. I have a good buddy that was out in L.A. and got in to some bad crowds and ended up in rehab for heroin. Every time I see him, he still talks about how much he misses it every time he thinks about it, which is every single day. Supposedly the dopamine levels produced from heroin are 10-20 greater than anything else we can do. It's so overwhelming for people that the reward system of their brain is completely broken the first time they shoot up.
https://www.texasmonthly.com/articles/teenage-wasteland/
There were 9 teenage overdoses and fifteen overall in two years. It was a big deal, for a city of 200,000. I have a good buddy that was out in L.A. and got in to some bad crowds and ended up in rehab for heroin. Every time I see him, he still talks about how much he misses it every time he thinks about it, which is every single day. Supposedly the dopamine levels produced from heroin are 10-20 greater than anything else we can do. It's so overwhelming for people that the reward system of their brain is completely broken the first time they shoot up.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 4:08 pm to scrooster
Bet his first illegal drug was mary jane.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 5:52 pm to roadGator
Bet he tried alcohol first. What's your point?
Posted on 3/17/16 at 6:53 pm to Gradual_Stroke
I was given an opiod yesterday and it upsets my stomach and makes me feel dizzy. I hate taking it but right now have to.
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