“Relief-oriented use of marijuana by teens”

That is the title of an article in last April’s Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention and Policy.

While this study in has a very small sample size, it nonetheless presents an interesting point, and one that needs to be taken into account when attempting to limit the use of illicit drugs (and the illicit use of licit drugs) by teens.

…these teens differentiated themselves from recreational users and positioned their use of marijuana for relief by emphasizing their inability to find other ways to deal with their health problems, the sophisticated ways in which they titrated their intake, and the benefits that they experienced…Marijuana is perceived by some teens to be the only available alternative for teens experiencing difficult health problems when medical treatments have failed or when they lack access to appropriate health care.

One of the common reasons for use of illicit drugs is self-medication. Certainly a completely different approach would be needed in these individuals than in recreational users. Likely these folks present a different set of challenges.

Driven to Distraction

Subject: Driven to Distraction video goes live; please share!

Good morning task force supporters,

Please take a few moments to watch our fantastic new YouTube video featuring Dr. Brian Johnston of Harborview.

Call to action: Watch this video and share it with as many friends, colleagues and groups as possible. To watch, please click on the front page of our web site, nodistractions.org" or go directly to the YouTube link which can be copied and pasted into your own e-mails:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjj2dLfeERE


Many wonderful people helped make this video possible, and we will be acknowledging each of them on our web site soon.


Thanks for spreading the word!

Lindsay Pease
Driven to Distraction Task Force of Washington State

Teen abuse of OTC and Rx meds

In the rush to worry about teen use of illicit drugs (not to belittle that action) we often lose sight of the fact that OTC and prescription drugs are used “nonmedically” more often than cocaine, heroin, ecstasy, and methamphetamines combined (SAMHSA data). Why?

Many teens think that these drugs are safe because they have legitimate uses and are often found at home in the medicine cabinet… Teenagers generally lack a sense that OTC and prescription medications can be dangerous or addictive… Some teenagers who abuse prescription medications and OTC preparations are sensation seekers, they "use" to get high, or are seeking to self-medicate. [from an article on Medscape, sorry no link]

Remember “Parents are the anti-drug”, but:

Parents may simply not be aware of the consequences of this type of abuse. Despite the increase in parent-teen discussions about the risks for drugs, many parents may not be discussing the risks of abusing prescription and OTC medicines with their children. Only 24% of teens have reported that their parents had talked with them about the dangers of abusing prescription drugs or the use of medications outside of a clinician's supervision, and just 18% of teens have indicated that their parents had discussed the risks of abusing OTC cough medicine [from an article on Medscape, sorry no link]

The key for parents:

The Partnership for a Drug-Free America recommends a 3-step approach: (1) educate [themselves about these and other teen “dangers”]; (2) communicate [with your preteen and teen, factually and repeatedly]; and (3) safeguard [limit access to what you must have in your home and get rid of the rest].

Shine a light on mental health needs

A while back I ran across an "article" by Glenn Close (sorry, lost the link) in which she wrote:

Even as the medicine and therapy for mental health disorders have made remarkable progress, the ancient social stigma of psychological illness remains largely intact. Families are loath to talk about it and, in movies and the media, stereotypes about the mentally ill still reign.

And

What mental health needs is more sunlight, more candor, more unashamed conversation about illnesses that affect not only individuals, but their families as well…

She wrote this in support of a new website: BringChange2Mind.org. Every effort in this regard deserves support.

Mental illness does indeed not only affect the individual, but in so many ways affects all those around them. It is not something to be feared or ignored, but something to be treated and cared for.

Survivors of Suicide

We helped sponsor/host an event last Saturday giving folks whose loved ones have died by suicide an opportunity to view a program put together by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). This is the third year we have done that. It is a great program (it will be available online, the AFSP website, through the year), well worth looking at. The program as always was thought provoking and emotion provoking, as well as filled with great information and support for folks who have had loved ones die by suicide.

One item that jumped out for me this year was a recommendation on how to help with someone who is grieving. It was summed up as: Hug, Hush, and Hangout. Be there for the person you want to help through their grief, listen instead of offering your thoughts, and give them a hug. What an excellent way to really help them.

Someone else on the broadcast mentioned doing the dishes for them as well. Not a bad idea either.

More on the health food that tastes good

A study out of the Nestle Research Center in Switzerland (no chance of conflict of interest there) demonstrated that 1.4 ounces of dark chocolate a day lowered the amount of stress hormones in folks’ blood streams, presumably reflecting reduced body reaction to life stress. A good thing.

Previous studies have demonstrated that dark chocolate is cardioprotective and I have mentioned that research in previous blogs. So, finally a health food that tastes good and appeals to the masses. Eat (remember, all things in moderation) live long and be healthy.

Just saw this and thought I'd add it: How to pick healthy chocolate

Coroner Hauntings?

In case you missed it in the Tribune:

"Eerie events rattle those in the coroner's office"