Following are our most recent Facebook posts. Please go to our Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/shatterthestigma) to read additional posts.
Live and work in Maryland? Key job opening!
Friends, here is a much needed job position to support the work needed to be done with the opioid crisis. The successful candidate will be working in the Howard County Health Department. Please share across your domains - closing date July 5th. Your helping sharing the opportunity is greatly appreciated! Opioid Project Administrator, Contingent II Grant-Funded Center for Drug Policy and Enforcement www.ubalt.edu/about-ub/offices-and-services/human-resources/jobs-at-ub.cfm?type=staff&posting=1245
Fabulous!
For many of us we can only say "its about time!" In time when news coverage feels so dramatic rather than educational and informative, this is fresh air! "Language is complicated and often slow to change — and for a group that has been criminalized, fighting stigma and misinformation is a constant struggle. But when the media start treating people with addiction with the same respect that they use for other patients, perhaps the rest of America will start to accept that addiction is a medical problem and that moralizing and punishment have failed." undark.org/article/associated-press-stylebook-addiction/?utm_content=buffer58b38&utm_medium=socia...
How do we shatter ignorance by elected officials?
We've been doing it successfully for years; seems we have one more BIG nut to crack....
Seriously? Just when we were seeing hope peeking out of the clouds .... Here's praying we can write, call and press to keep millions alive rather than slip back to the dark ages. www.politico.com/story/2017/05/05/donald-trump-opioids-drug-control-funding-reaction-238047?cid=apn
The turmoil of hope meets the need to merge to integrate efforts to save lives....
With respect to those who remain in denial, beware! There is no place to hide. With respect for what is evolving, take hope! During this time of what I now consider to be the "turmoil of hope", much is being done and on grand scales. However, within the turmoil is a scramble of confusion as to who is doing what... where is there overlap... duplication of effort and therefore missed opportunities especially using taxpayer dollars. As we merge to unite and integrate, I'm proud to be on the collaborative bandwagon. Together we ARE better! www.aol.com/article/news/2017/04/19/drug-overdose-deaths-surpass-war/22045058/
BITTERSWEET: HOPE BEYOND SUBSTANCE RELATED LOSS
Join us for a webinar on Feb 13, 2017 at 4:00 PM PST.
Register now!
attendee.gotowebinar.com/regist…/8082205791605374210
Are you concerned about the epidemic of overdoses in the United States? If so you are not alone! Join Dr’s. Gloria and Heidi Horsley and Alan Pedersen, Executive Director of the Compassionate Friends as they explore with bereaved parent and addiction advocate/expert, Barbara Allen, the cause and treatment of the disease of addiction. Be part of the discussion by texting in your questions and comments. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
As we learn and grow in this effort to shatter the stigma of the disease of addiction, there is much to discover. Nothing is as simple as it seems. Being human is complex yet it is easy to simply dismiss those who appear "obnoxious" and/or disagree with our viewpoint.
Here's an interesting article for your consideration. Why is this interesting? In advocacy work we need original thinkers, advocates who have a clear point of view and a plan to move forward.
When we come upon those who are "loud", seem self promoting and lack any clear definition of a POV, we might wish to look deeper before throwing in with their agenda. Is there substance or an attractive shell of a being?
www.farnamstreetblog.com/2017/01/kristin-dombek-selfishness-others/
Kristin Dombek: The Selfishness of Others
farnamstreetblog.com
In The Selfishness of Others, Kristin Dombek offers a thought-provoking look at how narcissism became a cultural phenomenon and repository for our fears.
Final report from the Federal Parity Task Force - October 27, 2016. Parity has been missing for SUD and mental health insurance coverage. Check it out!
Our Report to the President on Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity
whitehouse.gov
Federal Parity Task Force Takes Steps to Strengthen Insurance Coverage for Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders
In case you missed it....ending America's Opioid Crisis
We’re LIVE with the premier of Prescription For Change: Ending America’s Opioid Crisis. MTV has teamed up with Macklemore to go inside America’s opioid epidemic.
www.facingaddiction.org/tunein#ConcertDates
WETA October 1st at 11 PM to see this awesome concert filmed on The Mall last year. Tom and I were there! But you can watch from the comfort of your favorite couch - if not in the DC Metro area, check here for viewings in other cities!
Concert to Face Addiction - Now Airing - Facing Addiction
facingaddiction.org
On October 4, 2015, tens of thousands of people came to the Nation’s Capital for a remarkable concert to raise awareness for addiction and recovery. It was the first time major musicians, politicians, athletes, journalists and authors came together in support of the 45 million Americans and their fa...
Consider this fact....
Awareness is key: 20.8 million Americans reported a substance use disorder in 2015. Get the facts: www.samhsa.gov/disorders/substance-use #OpioidAwareness
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release September 16, 2016
PRESCRIPTION OPIOID AND HEROIN EPIDEMIC AWARENESS WEEK, 2016
- - - - - - -
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
Each year, more Americans die from drug overdoses than in traffic accidents, and more than three out of five of these deaths involved an opioid. Since 1999, the number of overdose deaths involving opioids, including prescription opioid pain relievers, heroin, and fentanyl, has nearly quadrupled. Many people who die from an overdose struggle with an opioid use disorder or other substance use disorder, and unfortunately misconceptions surrounding these disorders have contributed to harmful stigmas that prevent individuals from seeking evidence-based treatment. During Prescription Opioid and Heroin Epidemic Awareness Week, we pause to remember all those we have lost to opioid use disorder, we stand with the courageous individuals in recovery, and we recognize the importance of raising awareness of this epidemic.
Opioid use disorder, or addiction to prescription opioids or heroin, is a disease that touches too many of our communities -- big and small, urban and rural -- and devastates families, all while straining the capacity of law enforcement and the health care system. States and localities across our country, in collaboration with Federal and national partners, are working together to address this issue through innovative partnerships between public safety and public health professionals. The Federal Government is bolstering efforts to expand treatment and opioid abuse prevention activities, and we are working alongside law enforcement to help get more people into treatment instead of jail.
My Administration is steadfast in its commitment to reduce overdose deaths and get more Americans the help they need. That is why I continue to call on the Congress to provide $1.1 billion to expand access to treatment services for opioid use disorder. These new investments would build on the steps we have already taken to expand overdose prevention strategies, and increase access to naloxone -- the overdose reversal drug that first responders and community members are using to save lives. We are also working to improve opioid prescribing practices and support targeted enforcement activities. Although Federal agencies will continue using all available tools to address opioid use disorder and overdose, the Congress must act quickly to help more individuals get the treatment they need -- because the longer we go without congressional action on this funding, the more opportunities we miss to save lives.
Too often, we expect people struggling with substance use disorders to self-diagnose and seek treatment. And although we
2
have made great strides in helping more Americans access care, far too many still lack appropriate, evidence-based treatment. This week, we reaffirm our commitment to raising awareness about this disease and supporting prevention and treatment programs. Let us ensure everyone with an opioid use disorder can embark on the road to recovery, and together, let us begin to turn the tide of this epidemic.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 18 through September 24, 2016, as Prescription Opioid and Heroin Epidemic Awareness Week. I call upon all Americans to observe this week with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that raise awareness about the prescription opioid and heroin epidemic.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
sixteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand sixteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-first.
BARACK OBAMA
# # #
It would be very difficult for anyone alive to miss the fact that we have an opioid epidemic in this country today. But it's easy to not understand what it means, how to deal with this disease if it shows up in family or friends.
Here's a special event for residents in the Maryland counties of Howard, Anne Arundel and Harford: October 4th, 9 - 1 pm.
Free but must register.
Do you know about the life saving medication known as naloxone (NARCAN)? This easily administered medication (usually nasal spray) can reverse an overdose. It is likely my son could have been saved if someone had carried it.
At this event,the first 50 registered can be trained - also without fee including two doses of medication. Tom and I will renew our training.
Please share this information to educate and maybe save a life.
Better yet register: www.eventbrite.com/e/tri-county-opioids-addiction-summit-registration-27414464401
Do you have unused opioids in your medicine cabinet? Especially if you have grandchildren, lock them up or turn them in next drug take back day in your area.
It's that time again, folks - the FED Up! Rally in DC is this coming weekend. Saturday reception at the Historic Press Club - always cool to be there.
Sunday's rally begins at 1 pm, Sylvan Theater with fabulous speakers followed by march to the Capitol. We finish with a brief memorial at the nearby John Marshall Park in honor of those who have died from this disease.
Speakers:
Director Michael Bottecilli, ONDCP (Recovery Czar)
Dr. Andrew Kolodny, ED of PROP
Leonard Campanello, Chief of Police, Gloucester, MA
Justin Luke Riley, President,Young People in Recovery
Gary Mendell, Shatterproof
Tom and I will be there as always. Check out this years updated platform...getting more and more specific as we go:
o FUNDING, FUNDING, FUNDING,
o MANDATORY PDMP
See you there!
feduprally.org/2016-fed-up-rally-info/
