Showing posts with label opioid. Show all posts
Showing posts with label opioid. Show all posts

Saturday, July 11, 2015

"I raised an addict - what could I have done differently?"

Patricia Byrne writes:
It has been a very interesting month. I have connected with old high school friends who have active or recovering addicts in their families. I have been contacted by people who are living the nightmare of Addiction as parents, spouses, children and friends of addicts as well as addicts themselves. Many have shared powerful stories of recovery. I have written or spoken the words ‘I am sorry for your loss’ too many times to count, though we really do need to keep counting… Every person we lose leaves a gaping hole in the world. That hole will swallow us all if the tide is not turned. 
I did not intend to start a blog, and I am a bit unsure of where to take it from here. I am, after all, just the Mom of an addict who posted a bit of a hissy fit to her Facebook. I don’t think I can keep tossing out hissy fits, it would get old pretty quickly. I have decided that I will post when something is swirling around in my head enough to make me sit down and write about it, since that’s what happened the first time. It may be a few things in a short amount of time, followed by a lull. We’ll just have to see where this blog leads me. 
This is a new journey and I’m glad for the company of all who would like to walk this path with me. We have certainly walked it alone for far too long. 
Today’s thought: What could I have done differently?
image from Heroin. Stop the Silence. Speak the Truth.
image from Heroin. Stop the Silence. Speak the Truth.

Continue reading her thoughtful post "I raised an addict -what could I have done differently?" 
https://stopthesilencespeakthetruth.wordpress.com/2015/07/10/i-raised-an-addict-what-could-i-have-done-differently/

#opioidFranklin

Thursday, July 9, 2015

Franklin Community Coalition on Opioid Abuse (Video)

The video recording from the June 30th meeting to start the Community Coalition addressing opioid epidemic is now available for viewing.





My notes from the meeting can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/07/live-reporting-community-coalition-june.html

The next meeting is scheduled for August 12 location remains to be determined

Franklin Community Coalition on Opioid Abuse Update



The next meeting of the coalition is Tuesday, August 12 at 7 p.m. at a location TBD. For now, please save the date.
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First meeting starts conversation


Last Tuesday night's meeting was a great start to a community conversation on opioid abuse. Over 200 people joined in the conversation. Click here to view the newspaper report about the evening.

We are planning our next coalition meeting for Tuesday, August 12 at a location to be determined. Please save the date and we will let you know as soon as the details are finalized. In the meantime, we will be working on an organizational structure for the coalition, our website and social media resources, establishing a support group in Franklin, and developing other community resources. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please pass them along by replying to this email.

Today we are in the midst of a health crisis in the fight against heroin and opiate addiction. It's taking the lives of our community members. Earlier this month, TIME magazine noted that powerful painkillers are creating the worst addiction crisis America has ever seen.

Massachusetts' opioid addiction problem was declared a public health emergency more than a year ago. Since then it has gotten worse. The state saw more than 1,000 opioid-related deaths in 2014 – three times as many as in 2000. We've seen the devastation of addiction right here in our backyards and neighborhoods.

Last week the Governor's Opioid Task Force released its report and recommendations. It identifies addiction as a public health challenge, not a law enforcement issue. It recognizes Substance Use Disorder as a chronic medical condition, calling on the medical community to treat it as such. And it calls on everyone to reduce the stigma that prevents those suffering from Substance Use Disorder from getting the help they need.

A continued open and frank discussion is what we need to generate new ideas and new approaches. This crisis is not going to be solved in a day with one meeting. We started this coalition because we know that the cost of turning our backs on this problem is simply too high. And a community that can have this type of conversation is a strong one. I'm happy to see that this conversation has begun and humbled to see that so many people showed up to join in.

I'm glad we got together last Tuesday, but the conversation must continue. We have legislators, law enforcement personnel (including our district attorney), firefighters, local officials, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, school officials, counselors, family members, friends and neighbors – all committed to eradicating harmful opiates and saving lives.

Thank you for your commitment to this effort and I look forward to seeing you on Tuesday, August 12 for our next meeting.

Do you have an idea for a coalition name? So far we have received the following:
  • Franklin SAFE (Support for Addicts and Families by Empowerment)
  • Healing Hearts
  • Franklin Against Drugs
  • Franklin Against Opioids
Please continue to pass along any ideas or suggestions.
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Vowing to change the way the Commonwealth treats and even thinks about substance addiction, Governor Charlie Baker released the findings of his Opioid Working Group, a comprehensive report detailing 65 actionable steps to curb the deadly opioid epidemic. You can view the report by clicking here.

The findings by the 18-member Working Group include short and long term action items to be implemented between now and the next three years, some requiring legislative action and funding and some will be achieved through partnerships with private industry and federal leaders.

The announcement comes just days after the launch of a statewide public service campaign to alert parents about the dangers of prescription opioid misuse by their kids. You can link to the campaign by clicking here.
Did you know?
By 2009, drug overdose deaths outnumbered deaths due to motor vehicle crashes for the first time in the U.S. Prescription drugs, especially opioid analgesics, have been increasingly involved in drug overdose deaths. Click here and here for more details.
Karen Courtemanche shared this great information for the coalition:

I wanted to take a minute to thank everyone that spoke at our first of many meetings of the Opioid Abuse Coalition. We have a great team of resources that seems to keep growing. I feel very committed to this coalition and I also feel that our voices were heard last Tuesday night loud and clear. We have a long road ahead of us but we are off to a great start.

Here is a great group to join on Facebook for support TAM Massachusetts State Chapter ~ "The Addicts Mom". It's resourceful and comforting!

Naloxone (Narcan) is available at any pharmacy; you don't need a prescription any more (I personally went to CVS in Franklin and purchased one and had no problem). Get the Nasal one it is covered under insurance, if you don't have insurance it's only $20.00. Here is a video to show you how to use it and when:


Emergency Rooms...if you have a loved one, and you feel they are not safe, that they may go out and use that one more time (which we all know~ that isn't good) bring them to the emergency room (again I have done this many many times) The ER will assess and keep them. Be persistent!

Reinhard Straub, LICSW, LCDCS was one of the speakers I asked to come Tuesday night. He's a recovering addict himself that has turned his life around in order to help people like us. He told me to give his number to you. He is happy to help in anyway he can and can be reached by phone at 401-949-2220 and fax at 401-949-2262. He has 5 - 6 people that he works closely with to find the right treatments and help. Currently, they are putting together packets for us; as soon as I get them I'll post them. Meanwhile please feel free to contact Reinhard, he is a GREAT resource. He helped me immensely.

If you need help reach out! We will make changes for the good, we need to stick together and stay strong.
a quote that I thought very appropriate from Derek Getchell...."I CAN'T WE CAN"..... it takes a village.
Copyright © 2015 Jeffrey.Roy@MAHouse.gov, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you expressed an interest in joining the fight against obioid abuse in our community.

Our mailing address is:
Jeffrey.Roy@MAHouse.gov
State House - Room 527A
Boston, MA 02133

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Click here it read my Storify summary of the meeting

Monday, July 6, 2015

Stop Addiction In It's Tracks - Family Stories TV Spot

Continuing to share the videos from the MA Department of Public Health series on "Stop Addiction in it's Tracks", this is a short summary of the family stories.




MA DPH webpage
MA DPH webpage


You can find additional resources on the "Stop Addiction" page here
http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/departments/dph/stop-addiction/


Sunday, July 5, 2015

Stop Addiction In Its Tracks - Cory's Story

Continuing the MA Department of Public Health series on "Stop Addiction in its Tracks", this is Cory's Story.





MA DPH webpage
MA DPH webpage


You can find additional resources on the "Stop Addiction" page here
http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/departments/dph/stop-addiction/

Friday, July 3, 2015

Stop Addiction In Its Tracks - Zachary's Story

Continuing to share some of the videos from the MA Department of Public Health series on "Stop Addiction in its Tracks". This is Zachary's Story.




MA DPH webpage
MA DPH webpage


You can find additional resources on the "Stop Addiction" page here
http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/departments/dph/stop-addiction/


Thursday, July 2, 2015

Stop Addiction In Its Tracks - Liz's Story

The MA Department of Public Health has a series of videos about the opioid epidemic. This is Liz's Story.




MA DPH webpage
MA DPH webpage


You can find additional resources on the "Stop Addiction" page here
http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/departments/dph/stop-addiction/

Saturday, June 27, 2015

"Opioid addiction is a health care issue that knows no boundaries"

You may have heard that Governor Baker announced several initiatives to address the opioid addiction problem facing the Comonwealth of MA.
“Let me make one thing perfectly clear here. Opioid addiction is a health care issue that knows no boundaries across age, race, class, or demographics,” Baker said. “From the Berkshires to Boston to Cape Cod, too many people have heart-wrenching stories of loved ones and friends that battled with addiction and in some cases lost their lives.” 
Unintentional opioid overdoses claimed an estimated 1,008 lives in Massachusetts in 2014, an increase over the prior year and more than three times the number of lives lost to automobile accidents. 
The report calls for the creation of nearly 200 new treatment beds by July 2016, state funding for school prevention programs to be designed at the local level, a partnership with a chain pharmacy to pilot a drug take-back program, and amendments to the civil commitment statute to include substance abuse disorders.
Continue reading the article in the Commonwealth Magazine here
http://commonwealthmagazine.org/criminal-justice/baker-unveils-plan-on-opioid-addiction/

STOP Addiction in its tracks
STOP Addiction in its tracks

Additional information can be found on the Health and Human Services webpage
http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/departments/dph/stop-addiction/

opioid deaths vs. motor vehicle deaths 200-2013