Comments on: Buffy the Lifeguard

By: SeaSpray

SeaSpray — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 04:35:00 +0000

SAD.

By: Anony

Anony — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 23:14:24 +0000

No matter how fictional it is or non-fictional, I can bet that the incident described here has already happened.

By: FormerTeach

FormerTeach — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 05:24:47 +0000

The suburbs are full of drugs. As a former teacher, I have learned the richer the school population the harder the drug. The wealthiest suburban streets are like polk-a-dotted sheets of papers, when a cop shows me his drug maps. High-income parents living in gated communities, rarely know their child. The nannies might know the kids, but mom or dad is just in the once a year family picture.

By: hellzfireice

hellzfireice — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 18:18:00 +0000

Problem is that it’s also a lifelong disease, much like diabetes.
Treatment does not stop once someone is done with the formal inpatient/outpatient programs. Families also sometimes struggle with understanding or coping with the fact that their loved ones need lots of support for the rest of their lives, very much like diabetics and family members checking in, helping with diet issues etc.

By: davidhowardojai

davidhowardojai — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 21:17:48 +0000

Typical. If you’d been around persciption opiate addicts as long as I have, however, you’d have known why all the cars were outside the house without even asking.

By: girlvet

girlvet — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 03:47:18 +0000

After a lot of years in ER, it never ceases to amaze me what people come up with in regard to drugs – how they use them, the goofy way they use them.

By: SeaSpray

SeaSpray — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 00:52:22 +0000

I’m just so happy she did finally get past all of that. There were times my friend was sure her daughter would die. It was that bad. She did end up with hepatitis C though. But, like previously stated …she is doing so well now and is living a very full, happy, healthy life now …thank God.

Having worked in ED registration/Pt Access for 20 years …I am not unfamiliar with gallows humor. It’s a coping mechanism. I loved that job and often joked I’d pay to do it. I worked with a terrific group of physicians, nurses and ancillary staff. Fortunately – not all gallows humor. My joke was …when it’s busy – they work like crazy and when it’s not ..it’s like they’re crazy …like on M*A*S*H…with all exquisite humor and pranks.

“Life is a tragedy for those who feel, and a comedy for those who think.”
― Jean de La Bruyère (1645-1696)”

I really like that quote! True too.

By: Dr. Mongo Lloyd

Dr. Mongo Lloyd — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 19:07:41 +0000

The problem is the “treatment” seems to be one-size-fits-all, and doesn’t seem to work for the vast majority of addicts.

By: Birdstrike

Birdstrike — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 18:23:25 +0000

As said by Ann Onymous: “Addiction is insane. Lots of paradoxes but after a while you tend to see the same formulas repeat (and repeat and repeat). And none of it is truly quantifiable, which makes it a bad candidate for any med school curriculum. Hard to fault doctors for not intuitively understanding….”

Like many, I didn’t always think addiction was a disease, until it was explained to me what you mention, “the same formulas repeat (and repeat and repeat).” The course is as predictable as any other true disease, with onset, symptoms, prevalence, etiology, pathophysiology, treatments with various success rates, morbidity and mortality. This actually is exactly what DOES makes it perfect for medical curriculum. Where it gets off track is when people say that the “disease” takes responsibility for the behavior, not the person with the disease. A diabetic isn’t to blame for his disease, yet still must take responsibility for his disease and its treatment, administering his own insulin and so on. The same applies to those with the disease of addiction. They may not be “at fault” for having the disease, but still must take responsibility for it, its treatment, going to meetings, rehabilitation, and so on.

At certain teachable moments, educating someone that, “It is not your ‘fault’ that you have this disease (addiction), but it is yours, and getting better means giving up on fighting it and blaming yourself and instead focusing on getting treated for the disease just like you would any other potentially terminal disease like breast cancer, diabetes, or COPD.”

Addiction is a disease. It is treatable, but you have to accept the treatment. Of course, this is the hardest part.

By: Birdstrike

Birdstrike — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 18:01:04 +0000

(This reply to SeaSpray)