Just got word that my granddaughter Cadi, age 19, died last night of alcohol and chronic depression. The details don’t matter.
Another one down.
Powerless
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Monthly Archives: May 2009
Question: How long is alcohol detectable in hair?
Hair tests for alcohol consumption actually test for ethyl glucuronide, a metabolite of ethyl alcohol. It is always present in hair when alcohol has been used, and is never present otherwise, hence it is a positive test for consumption of alcohol.
The length of time it can be read in the hair is, theoretically, at least, dependent on the length of the hair. Hair grows at roughly 1/2 inch per month, so hair 12 inches long could be tested back for two years. It is probable that damage to the hair from chemicals such as bleaches and dyeing agents could affect the accuracy of the testing in longer hair, but in shorter hair the test is accurate to acceptable levels for legal use.
ETG testing is normally used to (a) determine if alcohol has been used recently; or (b) establish a pattern of continuous alcohol use for the purpose of diagnosing alcoholism. Short of shaving your entire body, there is no way to avoid the results.
Poor Birth Outcomes Increased By Lower Legal Drinking Age, Study Finds
Poor Birth Outcomes Increased By Lower Legal Drinking Age, Study Finds
“Our findings suggest that a lower drinking age increases risky sexual behavior among young people, and that leads to more unplanned pregnancies that result in premature birth and low birth weight,” said study author Angela Fertig, assistant professor in the UGA College of Public Health. “The take-home message is that when it’s easier for young people to get alcohol, birth outcomes are worse.”
A Person’s High Or Low Response To Alcohol Says Much About Their Risk For Alcoholism
A Person’s High Or Low Response To Alcohol Says Much About Their Risk For Alcoholism
“If a person needs more alcohol to get a certain effect, that person tends to drink more each time they imbibe,” explained Marc A. Schuckit, director of the Alcohol Research Center, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego, and corresponding author for the study.“Other studies we have published have shown that these individuals also choose heavy drinking peers, which helps them believe that what they drink and what they expect to happen in a drinking evening are ‘normal,’” he said. “This low LR, which is perhaps a low sensitivity to alcohol, is genetically influenced.”
The Dangers Of ‘Extreme’ College Drinking And A Sensation-Seeking Disposition
The Dangers Of ‘Extreme’ College Drinking And A Sensation-Seeking Disposition
Drinking on college campuses in the United States is a pervasive problem, leading to numerous problems. One study estimated that more than 500,000 college students suffered alcohol-related injuries in 2001. This study examined the “dose-response” effect of quantities and frequencies, finding that heavy drinkers with a sensation-seeking disposition had the greatest risk of alcohol-related injuries.
A Comment Worth Reading
Dan was kind enough to comment on the Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome article I wrote some time ago. You can read the article here. I so liked the way he expressed himself on the issue of store-front detox docs, that I asked if I could use his comment:
I succumbed to the Madison-Avenue hyperbole spewed by a storefront Suboxone-peddling physician. This doc assured me that my years of opiate abuse/dependency would dissipate in a mere two weeks with this wonder drug. Granted, while on Suboxone I felt wonderfully well; afterwards, however, my spirits crumbled as I began to feel worse than I had during the peak of cold-turkey withdrawal. Of course, he dutifully advised me that I was experiencing PAWS – and for an additional $800 in cash I could enjoy another two to four weeks of Subox. I gallantly and charmingly declined.
My relapse was all but inevitable. Eights months later (after a literal drive-by intervention) I entered a medical detox facility and then was assigned to an intensive outpatient program three times per week, three hours per day for 24 sessions – attached thereafter to a one-year aftercare program. This process has been life-changing for me. And right now we are “working” on the skills and strategies to understand and soberly cope with PAWS. Who woulda thunk? The group’s facilitator is an LADC who focuses a huge amount of therapy time on helping her clients understand PAWS and its propensity for leading to relapse. Not only does she make us dig deeply to uncover our original motives for “using,” she guides us and prompts us to do the work necessary to cope during recovery.
There is hope out there. To all who now suffer, understand the pain – instead of trying to cover it. In so doing, you improve greatly the chances that your tomorrows will be improvements upon your “today.” Indeed, this, too, shall pass.
My Most Positive Thoughts to All –
Dan
Study Aims To Help Preschool Age Children Of Parents With Drinking Problems
Children who grow up with a parent with a drinking problem have been shown to suffer from depression, anxiety, acting out, and academic and social difficulties.
Some of these problems begin as early as age 2 however, the few prevention programs that exist for children of alcoholic parents are typically aimed at students in middle school or older.
Andrea Hussong, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, hopes to change that.
Is the ridiculous “War on Drugs” Nearly Over?
White House Czar Calls for End to “War on Drugs”
http://www.truthout.org/051409S?n
Gary Fields, The Wall Street Journal: “The Obama administration’s new drug czar says he wants to banish the idea that the US is fighting ‘a war on drugs,’ a move that would underscore a shift favoring treatment over incarceration in trying to reduce illicit drug use.”
Question: What do you do for someone who got drunk and passed out?
Don’t say, “Oh, he just had too much to drink.” First of all, he’s unconscious; second, you don’t KNOW what else he might have in his system. Alcohol can be fatal in combination with a whole bunch of other things.
Any loss of consciousness must be checked by professionals. If it is from drinking, you are dealing with alcohol poisoning, which can be fatal — even without the help of other drugs. Remember that alcohol is a neurotoxin (nerve poison) and the human body can tolerate it, but not well.
Anyone who is unconscious should be placed on their side to prevent ingestion of vomitus if they throw up. Stretch their lower arm out in front and put the upper leg forward with the knee bent to keep them from rolling over too far. Monitor their breathing and call for the paramedics.
If they stop breathing, use rescue breathing until help arrives. Yes, this can be nasty, but if you’re going to play the game you have to deal with the results.
Question: When you are an alcoholic are you always an alcoholic?
There is a lot of controversy over this issue. The best information seems to indicate that people do recover from the physical effects of alcoholism if they stop drinking soon enough, but that some of the changes that take place in the brain during the process of alcohol addiction will remain. If that is the case, “recovered” alcoholics who drink are risking a rapid return of the addiction.
We need also to consider the psychological aspects of someone’s wanting to have a drink when they have already seen what can happen. One could argue that such people have to be especially careful, since they are not committed to sobriety to begin with. Of course, denial being what it is, they will be the first to argue the point.
This matter is complicated to some small degree by the variables among individuals. Some few people seem to be able to drink heavily, then stop or cut back with little difficulty. They do exist, but they are rare. The best advice is to stay away from alcohol completely if it has previously caused problems in your life. The possible price of taking it up again is too high to take the chance.
Because it’s pretty…
Drinkers Not Only Zone Out – But Also Are Unaware That They Do So
A new study out of the University of Pittsburgh suggests that a moderate dose of alcohol increases a person’s mind wandering, while at the same time reducing the likelihood of noticing that one’s mind has wandered.
The paper, titled “Lost in the Sauce: The Effects of Alcohol on Mind Wandering,” explores this phenomenon and is published in this month’s issue of Psychological Science. MORE>>
Question: Can alcohol destroy your mind?
Alcohol-induced psychosis is an inevitable result of chronic alcoholism, if the alcoholic lives that long. There are a variety of other mental and emotional problems that show up much earlier.
As to total destruction: we should be so lucky! Alcoholism and addiction are diseases that destroy our families, social standing, self respect and health, but then leave us alive for an indefinite period to enjoy it.
