Answer Addiction

Tag: david konow

  • Ex-Seattle Seahawk Percy Harvin Talks Using Cannabis For Anxiety

    Ex-Seattle Seahawk Percy Harvin Talks Using Cannabis For Anxiety

    Harvin said that marijuana was the only thing that helped him deal with pre-game anxiety. 

    Percy Harvin, former wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks, opened up about having anxiety issues before games and how he became dependent on marijuana to deal with it.

    Harvin says he took “multiple” prescriptions to try and combat his pre-game anxiety, but as he told Bleacher Report, “The only thing that really seemed to work is when I would smoke marijuana. There’s not a game that I played in that I wasn’t high.”

    The Worst Years Of His Life

    Harvin played 75 games during his time in the NFL, from 2009 to 2016. His anxiety heightened when he was traded to Seattle in 2013, which he called “probably the worst years of my life.”

    Harvin’s anxiety wasn’t noticeable or problematic until he was in situations he wasn’t ready for. He was thrown off balance by his trade to the Seahawks, and having to do press conferences.

    He described this period as the worst time of his life “just because it came with so much. My anxiety is at its worst when I go into an unfamiliar situation… I started noticing it when I started speaking or going into different environments. Particularly the press conference with the Seahawks. My shirt was sweatin’ and they had to bring me water a couple times during my press conference.”

    Altercation With Golden Tate

    Harvin’s anxiety also led to a physical altercation in the locker room with his teammate Golden Tate before the Super Bowl. “Thinking about it now, I can’t even believe it I did it,” Harvin says today.

    Harvin eventually had seven prescriptions to deal with his anxiety, yet marijuana was the only thing that could calm him down.

    Harvin explained to Bleacher Report that marijuana use does not make you a bad person.

    “That’s what I want the world to kinda see today is, it’s not a stigma, and you know people doing it and getting in a whole bunch of trouble,” he explains. “It’s people that’s just living a regular life that just got deficiencies or just maybe wanna enjoy themselves. It’s a natural way to do so.”

    Anxiety and mental health awareness has become a big issue in professional sports, and Harvin is one of many professional players who’ve had to deal with it. Over the summer the NFL had a mental health conference where they hoped to create resources for players that are suffering, and address their needs better in the future.

    As Solomon Thomas of the San Francisco 49ers explained, “If our brain’s not working, our bodies aren’t going to work.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • "Joker" Hit With Backlash For Its Depiction Of Mental Illness

    "Joker" Hit With Backlash For Its Depiction Of Mental Illness

    “This plot plays to the unfortunate and false stereotype that people with mental illness are violent,” one mental health expert laments. 

    The box office hit Joker has received a wave of critical backlash for its depiction of violence and mental health issues.

    Dr. Ziv Ezra Cohen, who is a criminal psychiatrist at Weill Cornell Medical School, wrote an article for New York Daily News criticizing the controversial film.

    “Some are wringing their hands over The Joker—concerned that it might glorify violence. I have a very different concern about the message it sends,” he writes.

    Addressing The Stigma

    Cohen mentioned that some reviews of the film have brought up concerns about the stigma surrounding mental illness. The character of Arthur Fleck, who eventually becomes the Joker, starts off in a mental hospital, then becomes more dangerous as he’s treated badly by the outside world.

    “This plot plays to the unfortunate and false stereotype that people with mental illness are violent,” Cohen laments. “As a whole, people with mental illness have no increased rate of violence compared to anybody else, and they are more likely to be victims of crimes.”

    And considering there have been fears of violence at theaters showing Joker, Cohen adds, “On a deeper level, the movie may well make connections in viewers’ minds between mental illness and mass violence… Research shows that people who commit mass shootings in the vast majority of crimes do no have a clear mental illness that would explain their behavior. In addition, 1% of gun violence is attributable to mental illness.”

    In trying to analyze Joker, Cohen notes that “the brilliance of the character defies any psychiatric diagnosis. He does not show symptoms of delusions or a thought disorder that one would see in an illness like schizophrenia. He does not show the impulsiveness that one sees in many personality disorders and in bipolar disorder… A term we use in psychiatry to describe such people is psychopath.”

    Starting A Conversation

    As Julie Rael, chief clinical officer at a mental health facility in Salt Lake City told Fox 13, “I think [this movie] is creating conversations around how trauma can impact somebody’s well being. There is a statistic: 3-6% of people with mental illness commit crimes or are violent. People with mental illness are more likely to be harmed or harmed themselves.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Nikki Sixx Pens New Song About Addiction Stigma, Opioid Abuse

    Nikki Sixx Pens New Song About Addiction Stigma, Opioid Abuse

    The song is part of the National Opioid Action Coalition’s campaign to end the stigma surrounding addiction.

    Motley Crue founder Nikki Sixx has a well-storied history of addiction and recovery, and with his current band, Sixx:A.M., he’s composed a new song, “Talk To Me,” which deals with opioids and the stigma surrounding addiction.

    Earlier this year, Sixx tweeted, “We are very proud of something we just wrote/recorded. It will be part of a campaign helping in the fight against the opioid epidemic worldwide.”

    Ending Stigma

    As Blabbermouth reports, the song is named after a hashtag, #TalktoMe, launched by the National Opioid Action Coalition, which is hoping to eventually eliminate the stigma surrounding addiction.

    As Sixx tweeted, “#TalktoMe is a movement by National Opioid Coalition to use the power of conversation to overcome stigma plaguing opioid use disorder. Join us in conversation.”

    Sixx, the chief lyricist of Motley Crue and SixxA.M., wrote in one verse, “Look at your hands as you’re dripping those pills. You dance with the stigma, then wake up in chills. You’re not alone. Not alone. Don’t be afraid to survive. You know you can. Talk to me. I’ll be right by your side.”

    Sixx Moderated A Conversation About The Opioid Crisis

    In addition to releasing the song, Sixx also moderated a panel organized by Advertising Week, where influencers, government and global business executives have talked openly about what can be done about the opioid crisis, and the stigma surrounding it.

    Having struggled with addiction throughout his life, Sixx has been outspoken about the opioid crisis. Last month, he told MSNBC, “People are talking about it, and they’re not hiding in the shadows anymore. Addiction is horrible, but suffering in silence is even worse. [Awareness] is the number one thing.”

    Sixx has been especially worried about how easily people can access opioids through prescriptions and unethical doctors.

    “It’s the prescription thing that’s really severely scary to me,” he said. “It’s the scariest. I had to go to the street to get it. We were just partying, and then it turned into addiction. But now the kids are just talking, just carrying in their pocket. It is a pill. You can wrap it up in a tissue, stick in their backpack and no one knows. It’s not like a syringe…So there’s a lot of opportunity for really horrible things to happen in secret. A lot of the young kids are getting into it and they’re trading it in the schoolyard.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Artie Lange Expresses His Love For Howard Stern Post-Rehab

    Artie Lange Expresses His Love For Howard Stern Post-Rehab

    “He had no choice but to let me go. I was gonna die and he tried to get me help, he got me into rehab a couple of times and I would leave.”

    Comedian Artie Lange recently emerged from a lengthy rehab stint and he wants to apologize to Howard Stern for his past behavior, Page Six reports.

    Lange went on the YouTube show AftershockXL and explained, “I feel terrible. I’m going to call him one of these days.”

    Lange’s mishaps with drugs were often hilarious fodder for The Howard Stern Show, but Stern became rattled when Lange attempted suicide and backed away from commenting on Artie, even when the comedian trashed him publicly.

    Taking Responsibility For His Actions

    Now Lange says, “There should be no guilt on Howard’s part. Howard did nothing wrong. All Howard did was try to help me. I love him so much. It’s a shame that anyone in my life would feel any guilt. I f—ed up.”

    Lange knew he was putting Stern in a difficult position, and that Howard gave him an incredible gig that any comedian would kill for.

    “All he did was give me the best job ever and I take full responsibility,” the comedian explained to New Jersey 101.5. “He had no choice but to let me go. I was gonna die and he tried to get me help, he got me into rehab a couple of times and I would leave… he was in my crazy life, and I don’t think he knew what to do after a while. When a junkie is in your life and you care about them, they start to rip your heart out.”

    Stern Speaks

    Stern admitted to the New York Times magazine, “I choose my words about Artie carefully, because I love him. It wasn’t a clean break. It was many years of wanting Artie to get help. I know that a lot of fans want me to talk about Artie and feel it’s a cop-out for me not to. I’ll take that. I don’t want to do anything that would rock his boat. I get sad talking about Artie. He was a tremendous contributor. But we had to move on.”

    Earlier this month on Twitter, Lange announced his return from an extensive rehab stay, and he wrote, “Great to be home! 7 months 14 days but one day at a time. Lots of new stories to tell. Will announce some new tour dates on Friday. Thanks for the support. Love you all.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Metallica's James Hetfield Returns To Rehab

    Metallica's James Hetfield Returns To Rehab

    The 56-year-old frontman’s battle with addiction was chronicled in Metallica’s 2004 documentary Some Kind Of Monster.

    Right before a planned tour of Australia and New Zealand, Metallica has announced that the band’s frontman James Hetfield is making a return to rehab.

    As the band explained in a statement on September 27, “We are truly sorry to inform our fans and friend that we must postpone our upcoming tour of Australia and New Zealand. As most of you probably know, our brother James has been struggling with addiction on and off for many years. He has now, unfortunately, had to re-enter a treatment program to work on his recovery again.”

    The band continued that they “fully intend to make our way” down under “as soon as health and schedule permits… We appreciate your understanding and support for James and, as always, thank you for being a part of our Metallica family.”

    Peers, Fans Show Their Support

    Once the news hit, several musicians expressed their support for Hetfield, who first went into rehab in 2001. Former Guns N’ Roses drummer Matt Sorum tweeted, “Sending my best to James Hetfield of @Metallica. Take care of yourself my friend. You are a human being like everyone else that has real struggles. The disease of alcoholism doesn’t discriminate. You are very strong to take the steps needed to be healthy and happy. The rest can wait.”

    Jamey Jasta, lead singer of Hatebreed, revealed on Twitter that he “would not have given up drinking if it wasn’t for James and the example he set…I commend James for seeking help…I hope that all #Metallica fans affected by this understand that this is absolutely the best choice. Health is EVERYTHING. No tour or album or mountain of obligations is worth diving back into the abyss of booze & drugs.”

    James Discusses First Rehab Stint

    After he first got sober, Hetfield told Kerrang! “Going away to rehab taught me about priorities. I’ve been in Metallica since I was 19 years old, which can be a very unusual environment, and it’s very easy to find yourself not knowing how to live outside of that environment, which is what happened to me. I didn’t know anything about life… I didn’t know that I could live my life in a different way to how it was in the band, which was very excessive and very intense.”

    Hetfield called rehab “like college for your head. I really learned some things about myself in there. I was able to reframe my life and not look at everything with a negative connotation. That’s how I was raised. It was like a survival technique for me.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Walmart To Halt E-Cigarette Sales

    Walmart To Halt E-Cigarette Sales

    The American Vaping Association has criticized Walmart for punishing e-cigarette companies but continuing to sell regular cigarettes.

    With so much focus on the dangers of vaping in the news, one of the largest retailers in the world is announcing they’re going to phase out e-cigarettes.

    As Yahoo reports, Walmart has circulated an internal company memo which reads: “Given the growing federal, state and local regulatory complexity and uncertainty regarding e-cigarettes, we plan to discontinue the sale of electronic nicotine delivery products at all Walmart and Sam’s Club U.S. locations.” 

    Retailers React To Pressure

    The memo also stated that once the current inventory of e-cigarettes has sold, Walmart will “complete our exit” from selling them. 

    In the wake of nine deaths that have been linked to vaping, the FDA is launching a criminal investigation and lawmakers have implored the current administration to get rid of e-cigarettes altogether. 

    Back in May, Walmart voluntarily raised the minimum age to buy tobacco products to 21. 

    As CNBC reports, a number of companies don’t want to wait for an FDA crackdown on e-cigarettes, and have been instituting their own bans on them. (CBS, WarnerMedia and Viacom have all decided to stop airing e-cigarette ads as well.)

    At the same time, the American Vaping Association has criticized Walmart for punishing e-cigarette companies but continuing to sell regular cigarettes. In a statement, the association’s president, Gregory Conley, said, “You know you are in the middle of a moral panic when big corporations like Walmart find it is easier to sell deadly combustible tobacco products than to sell harm reduction alternatives.”

    Prior to Walmart’s big move, the Trump administration announced it was moving ahead on banning flavored e-cigarette products. So far, Michigan and New York have banned flavored e-cigarettes just this month. San Francisco became the first U.S. city to ban the sale of e-cigarettes this past June.

    As Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said in a statement, “The Trump administration is making it clear that we intend to clear the market of flavored e-cigarettes to reverse the deeply concerning epidemic of youth e-cigarette use that is impacting children, families, schools and communities.” 

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • "Send Me A Friend" Program Helps Musicians Stay Sober

    "Send Me A Friend" Program Helps Musicians Stay Sober

    The program offers individualized peer support to musicians in need of a sober companion.

    The world of rock and roll is full of vices, and it’s hard for many musicians to stay sober. Send Me A Friend is a network of 3,000 musicians in recovery that help each other. 

    Send Me A Friend was created by singer-songwriter Anders Osborne, a well-known musician in New Orleans who became sober after hitting a personal bottom in 2009. If he didn’t clean up his act, he risked losing his wife, his home and bank account as well.

    With the help of Ivan Neville and Dr. John, Osborne got sober, then founded Send Me A Friend to help other musicians.

    How It Works

    When you contact Send Me A Friend, a volunteer musician in recovery keeps an eye on you as a sober companion. They stay with you, make sure you don’t use, and they help musicians hold it together when performance anxiety starts to creep in.

    Osborne recalled once performing on New Year’s Eve, one of the most dangerous nights for a person in recovery, and he had “friends” from Send Me A Friend to watch over him. While they sat there and kept an eye on Osborne, he recalled, “It was such tremendous help… It just was accountability. I knew people that knew I was trying to be sober and work, [who] sat there.”

    As Osborne told the Deseret News, “There’s a ton of anxiety usually, worry about people’s opinion, if they will enjoy or enjoyed the show. And you certainly need to focus and center your own energy, making sure you’re strong and confident, otherwise you won’t be of much use up there. Then after the show you need a little time to come down and ground yourself.”

    Hazards Of Touring

    One musician who toured with Osborne, Marc Broussard, said, “Being exposed to his protocols definitely opened my eyes about certain things that were going on in our camp… it’s not necessarily a business that makes staying sober very easy.”

    While Broussard admitted he is not totally sober, he’s now learned how to temper his drinking on the road. “There’s the sense now that if I’m buzzed at all when taking the stage, that I’m not being professional.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Are Recovery Hashtags On Social Media A Gateway For Dealers?

    Are Recovery Hashtags On Social Media A Gateway For Dealers?

    A BuzzFeed report highlights how dealers use social media hashtags to prey on people in recovery.

    While social media has opened up a lot of doors for people to be honest about addiction and to look for help, a report on BuzzFeed News says that social media platforms like Instagram may have also created a backdoor for dealers to sneak through.

    As the report observed, quite a few Instagram posts with the hashtags #opioidcrisis and #opioidaddiction contained comments from other Instagram accounts letting people know where they can get access to OxyContin, Percocet, and other opioids.

    Preying On Those In Recovery

    These comments include contact information that can be used to reach these “dealers” on encrypted messaging accounts. One commenter offered “fast deals” for “Oxys, Roxy, Xans, Addy, codeine, perc” underneath a video that addressed the fatal toll of the drug crisis. (This person even promised that these opioids were “available 24.7 for delivery.”)

    A spokesperson for Facebook told BuzzFeed, “We do not allow the sale of illegal drugs on Instagram. It is against our policies to buy, sell or trade medical or pharmaceutical drugs on our platform—including in comments. Inappropriate comments can and should be reported, and will be reviewed like posts or stories.”

    In a Senate hearing that took place on September 18, Monika Bickert, the head of global policy management for Facebook, which owns Instagram, said, “We have seen social media be a tremendous place of support for those thinking of harming themselves or struggling with opioid addiction. We’re exploring and developing ways of linking people up with resources.”

    Selling Drugs In The Comments Section

    BuzzFeed reports that an activist named Eileen Carey, who has been monitoring drug sales on social media, approached Bickert after the hearing and showed her the comments.

    Carey said Bickert “thanked me for flagging,” but the hashtags Carey discovered were still up and running a day later. 

    According to Refinery 29, in April 2018, Instagram went after certain hashtags including #oxycontin, #fentanyl and #opiates.

    Then-commissioner of the FDA, Scott Gottlieb, said at the time, “Internet firms simply aren’t taking practical steps to find and remove these illegal opioid listings. There’s ample evidence of narcotics being advertised and sold online. I know that internet firms are reluctant to cross a threshold; where they could find themselves taking on a broader policing role. But there are insidious threats being propagated on these web platforms.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Morgan Spurlock Reveals He's Sober

    Morgan Spurlock Reveals He's Sober

    Spurlock says he’s trying to make amends to the people he hurt in the past.

    Morgan Spurlock directed the famed documentary Super Size Me, which took on the fast food industry. Then several years ago, he came forward about his past sexual misconduct when the #MeToo movement exploded.

    After being out of the public eye for several years, Spurlock has now resurfaced with his next movie, a sequel to Super Size Me, and the announcement that he is now sober.

    As People reports, Spurlock is trying to make amends to the people he hurt in the past. Spurlock says he’s been sober for over 600 days and as he explains, “It’s been a lot of me looking at the choices I’ve made over my life and it’s been a lot of bad and poor behavioral choices. It was really important for me to own up to that and admit that I could do better and be a better person.”

    Making Amends

    Now that he’s sober, Spurlock says, “It has been amazing, and I feel better than I ever have. I’m just continuing to focus on my family and friends, and making amends to everyone I need to. I think my behavior automatically has shifted… I just reached a moment where I realized I had to change my life, I realized things had to be different and everything just kind of came to a head in that moment. And good and bad all around it, at the end of the day it was exactly what needed to happen for me.”

    Spurlock got sober after making his #MeToo Twitter confession entitled, “I Am Part of the Problem.”

    He wrote about being accused of rape in college, as well as settling an allegation of sexual harassment from a former assistant. “And then there’s the infidelity. I have been unfaithful to every wife and girlfriend I have ever had… I hurt them and I hate it. But it didn’t make me stop.”

    “I’ve Talked Enough In My Life… I’m Finally Ready To Listen”

    Spurlock said he suffered sexual abuse when he was a teenager, and added, “I’ve consistently been drinking since the age of 13… I haven’t been sober for more than a week in 30 years… [It] only served to fill the emotional hole in me and the daily depression I coped with.” 

    At the end of his confession, he concluded, “I’ve talked enough in my life… I’m finally ready to listen.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • John Mulaney Opens Up About Past Addiction: "I Drank For Attention"

    John Mulaney Opens Up About Past Addiction: "I Drank For Attention"

    The Emmy-winning comedian was a blackout drinker but got sober early in his career.

    Celebrated comedian John Mulaney recently opened up to Esquire about how he got sober at a young age and never looked back.

    Like many comedians, Mulaney has battled substance use disorder and even used the disease as material for his routines. Mulaney first started drinking when he was 13, and as he explained to the men’s mag, “I drank for attention. I was really outgoing, then at 12, I wasn’t. I didn’t know how to act. And then I was drinking, and I was hilarious again.” 

    Booze, Cocaine & Vicodin

    Following the pattern of many when they first become addicted, his drinking then transitioned into the use of other substances. Unlike a lot of teens, Mulaney wasn’t a fan of smoking pot, but he liked to mix cocaine and prescription drugs together.

    “I wasn’t a good athlete, so maybe it was some young male thing of ‘This is the physical feat I can do. Three Vicodin and a tequila and I’m still standing. Who’s the athlete now?’”

    Mulaney suffered from blackouts, and at one point he remembers drinking perfume. Then he went through a big bender when he was 23 and the experience served as a major turning point in his young life.

    “I was like, ‘You’re fucking out of control. I said to myself, I don’t like this guy anymore. I’m not rooting for him.’” 

    Helping Pete Davidson

    When Mulaney quit alcohol and cocaine, he didn’t join a 12-step group. He says he quit cold turkey, and is sober to this day. After cleaning up his act, he’s also been trying to help troubled SNL star Pete Davidson. He explained to Davidson, “You can have a life in comedy that is not insane – a sober, domestic life.” 

    Earlier this year, Mulaney appeared on SNL with Davidson, where they joked about mental health during the “Weekend Update” segment of the show. In the segment, Mulaney confirmed that he and Davidson spent time together, “but a lot of the time it looks like I’m Pete’s lawyer.” 

    To which, Davidson retorted, “And after observing John’s life I publicly threatened suicide. I know I shouldn’t make that joke, but it’s funny.” 

    View the original article at thefix.com