Overhauling Opioids, the Leading Cause of Injury Death in the U.S.

The following entry Overhauling Opioids, the Leading Cause of Injury Death in the U.S. was published to Our Master's Camp

There is a crisis in the U.S., and the cause of that crisis is opioid addiction in its many forms. Opioids are medications that diminish pain in the area of the brain that controls emotion, and because of technological evolutions, they have become even more powerful in the last few years. The results have been devastating, and by committing to overhauling their previously established stance, the FDA is taking positive steps to correcting bad policy. In response to this crisis, the agency has developed a comprehensive action plan to take concrete steps toward reducing the impact of opioid abuse on American families and communities. As part of this plan, the agency is committing to work more closely with its advisory committees before making critical product and labeling decisions; enhancing safety labeling; requiring new data; and seeking to improve treatment of both addiction and pain. At the same time, the FDA will fundamentally re-examine the risk-benefit paradigm for opioids and ensure that the agency considers the wider public health effects.

Drug overdose deaths, driven largely by overdose from prescription opioids and illicit drugs like heroin and illegally-made fentanyl, are now the leading cause of injury death in the United States – surpassing motor vehicle crashes. Read more...

Our Need to Avoid Pain

Part of the problem is our basic but powerful drive to avoid pain at all costs, and not just the physical type. Haunting emotional pain that goes untreated can result in a cycle of self-medication with opiates, and what may have started as a small storm can escalate into a hurricane. Licensed counselor and writer for Goodtherapy Cindy Ricardo says in her article "A Healing Response to Pain: Mindfulness and Self-Compassion":

Whether it’s physical, emotional, or mental, staying open and present to pain is challenging. What makes it so isn’t the actual sensation of pain; it’s the way we react to it. We catastrophize, worry, or ruminate about what happened, what it means, and how it will affect our future. Sometimes we go into mental gymnastics, trying to figure out how to make it go away. We use our energy in ways that are exhausting and don’t help. This only fuels the pain, morphing what might have been a temporary period of pain into a longer one.  Read more...

Treating Emotional Pain

There are many ways to deal with emotional pain, but ultimately there is only one underlying provider of healing, and that is God. Many are familiar with His ability to heal us in the physical, but Jesus works in all ailments. This includes the emotional. "By His stripes you were healed." 1 Peter 2:24. Sid Roth, of the Healing Scriptures Website explains how you can be healed:

The scientific community has recently changed its view on the brain. They agree the brain can change. Neural passageways that are fed a lie can addict you to alcoholism. But you can place the greater truth in your brain by meditation on the Word of God. This forms new passageways that will trump the addiction. God will form this truth in your spirit that will set you free!

• Step one: Reject and repent of the lie.
• Step two: Meditate on the truth (God’s Word). Step three: Walk in your freedom.

Stand, with undivided faith, upon God’s healing promises from the Bible. Do this whether you are believing for a healing from a physical problem or an addiction/emotional disorder. Read more...

Preparing for the Worst

It seems that with medicine and science, we often take two steps forward and one step back, taking into account the true costs of innovation only in hindsite. This is irresponsible and detrimental to our society, and these new opioid related FDA policies take into account what should have been acounted for from the beginning. If you're going to approve a highly addictive (and highly profitable) substance, you also need to have an action plan to treat the millions of cases of addiction this will inevitably cause. It's just very unfortunate that the catalyst for this reform had to be the blood, misery, and deaths of lives cut far too short. Related Article: 100 Americans die of drug overdoses each day. How do we stop that? For Info on