From Grief To Action

links

Drug and addiction information

• Addictions among girls and women--what the research is saying
  

  A dedicated Canadian community of decision-makers, direct service providers, educators, NGO leaders, policy analysts, and researchers is ever engaged in preventing and mitigating addiction harm. To these individuals we are indebted for our National Framework for Action to Reduce the Harms Associated with Alcohol and other Drugs and Substances in Canada.

  In 2009 a national virtual Community of Practice (vCoP) provided the opportunity for a "virtual discussion" of issues, research, and programming related to girls' and women's substance use in the country. The aim of the discussion was to "gender" the national framework. Within the vCoP site, you can find the poster-style summaries of the online discussion and the slides that participants were shown. At your leisure, you can also download the information sheets from each of the six topic sections. Find the info sheet link on these introduction pages:

  Section 1 Trauma-informed Approaches in Addictions Treatment

  Section 2 Mothering and Substance Use

  Section 3 Young Women, Alcohol and Other Substance Abuse

  Section 4 Women-centred Harm Reduction

  Section 5 Holistic Treatment: First Nations/Inuit

  Section 6 Current Work and Emerging Issues

  The Community of Practice project was sponsored by the British Columbia Centre of Excellence for Women's Health (BCCEWH) in partnership with the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (CCSA) and the Universities of Saskatchewan and South Australia.

   

• Addiction defined as disease in 2011
  

  The American Society for Addiction Medicine, of which many Canadian specialists and researchers are members, has agreed on a definition of addiction as a medical condition.

• Best Advice for People Taking Opioid Medication
  

  If you haven't yet seen the outstanding YouTube videos recorded by Dr. Mike Evans, you should be impressed by the knowledge and humanity of this Ontario physician who accompanies his talks with the "live" work (speeded up 2,500 times) of a graphic illustrator. The combination of a relaxed, informal voice and simple imagery makes Dr. Evans's points easy to remember.

• Does Addiction Treatment Work? Bill Moyers Hears "Yes" from Top Medical Researcher
  

  Lengthy but well worth reading, this is the edited transcript of an interview by Bill Moyers with A. Thomas McLellan, Ph.D., on addiction and recovery.

  McLellan is a professor at the Center for Studies of Addiction at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia.

  Portions of this interview appear in the CLOSE TO HOME television series.

  Moyers: What is research telling us about how people recover? How they do unlearn harmful behaviors or severe addictions? Click the link for more.....

   

• Drug Alert
  

  A consumer website alerting people about dangerous prescription drugs.

• DrugCocktails.ca helps youth "get the facts" about the risks of mixing medicine, booze & drugs
  

  There is life-saving information on this site for anyone whose friends might casually suggest that they reinforce the "high" of a drug with alcohol or another drug.

• Drug Dangers
  

  This site, operated by a U.S. legal firm,"is committed to providing information on a range of medications and medical devices that have serious complications."

• Drugfree.org
  

  A highly informative site that looks at prevention, intervention, recovery and post-recovery around teens and drugs.

  From the About Us page: "The Partnership at Drugfree.org works with corporations, foundations, associations and other nonprofits to develop educational programs, including Time To Talk®, Time To Act and Time To Get Help...

  The partnership puts forward these reasons for corporations to contribute to its programs:

  • According to an MTV survey, almost half of all kids name a parent as their hero.
  • Adults rank drug use as the most important problem facing teens today.
  • Drug abuse costs businesses $78 billion every year in lost productivity.
  • The impact of drugs on many social issues - crime, violence, domestic and sexual abuse, educational failure, healthcare costs, HIV & AIDS, accidents and injuries - make drug use the single greatest preventable health problem facing [the U.S.A.]

• Drug info from a popular U.S. site
  

  StreetDrugs has pages for youth, teachers, and parents.

• Drug info resource tips from CCSA
  

  Matched against common questions about drugs is a set of reliable links kept current by the Centre for Addictions Research of BC. A sampling:

  • Where can I find general information on alcohol and other drugs?
  • How can I start my own self-help/support group?
  • Where can I find videos on substance abuse?

• Drug resources -- BC Teen Challenge
  

  There is an unusually thorough collection of information about all street drugs on this site, which is run by the Christian not-for-profit organization that also operates youth treatment centres in British Columbia.

• DrugWatch
  

  Some of the latest research shows that prescription drug abuse has become even more common than illegal narcotics. Says Alan Marrero of DrugWatch, "Our site is dedicated to providing balanced and unbiased information on drugs and medications that are currently on the market, or were previously available worldwide. We feature a comprehensive list of prescription and over-the-counter medications, as well as their associated side effects. Our goal is not only warn about potentially harmful side effects but to help consumers determine whether a medication has addictive qualities as well."

• How Parents Can Help Prevent Prescription Drug Abuse
  

  "Epidemic" applies to the recent rise in prescription drug abuse among youth. Many families are unwittingly a part of the problem. Read these practical ways of assuring that yours is not one of them.

• Is that Ecstasy you're taking?
  

  A California organization, Erowid, maintains this site to post the results when its affiliated independent laboratory analyzes a pill sold or given to someone as Ecstasy (MDMA). The results suggest how risky any street drug is likely to be.

  Erowid's mission is to promote the respectful use of psychoactive substances.

• Marijuana research for school use from CBC
  

  This page in the For Teachers section of the CBC Radio and Television Archives Web site provides information suitable for grades 6 through 12 from programming about marijuana. At no charge, teachers are offered ideas for incorporating CBC's Radio and TV archives into classes, with downloadable lesson plans and activity sheets.

• Meth slang
  

  This website defines two terms not explained in The Coping Kit. Below are the complete quotations, but refer to the site if you wish.

  
  "Tweaking" or "Geeking" meaning to do something for hours. For example: a girl fixing her hair for 7.5 hours; or walking around Wal-Mart for 9 hours.

  The most dangerous stage of meth abuse for abusers, medical personnel, and law enforcement officers is called "tweaking." A tweaker is an abuser who probably has not slept in 3-15 days and is irritable and paranoid. Tweakers often behave or react violently
  and if a tweaker is using alcohol or another depressant, his negative feelings and associated dangers intensify. The tweaker craves more meth, but no dosage will help re-create the euphoric high, which causes frustration, and leads to unpredictably and potential for violence.

  A tweaker can appear normal: eyes can be clear, speech concise, and movements brisk. But a closer look will reveal the person's eyes are moving many times faster than normal, the voice has a slight quiver, and movements are quick and jerky. These physical signs are more difficult to identify if the tweaker is using a depressant. Tweakers are often involved in domestic disputes and motor vehicle
  accidents. They may also be present at "raves" or parties and they may participate in spur-of-the-moment crimes, such as purse snatchings or assaults, to support their habit

  Sketched out: Agitated, nervous, moody, irritable, aggressive behavior.

   

• Quitting the tobacco habit
  

  Nicotine is a "legal" drug but an expensive one to which young people become addicted quickly, especially in the social settings where drug experimentation goes on. This website offers good advice to people who are ready to put their money towards more meaningful things while doing their health a favour.

• Prescription Drug Abuse
  

  This article comes recommended by B.C. parents who look for well researched information on the Web. The site serves citizens of the U.S. whose physicians have prescribed drugs they cannot afford to buy without a subsidy program. The information on this page is appropriate for all North Americans, however, since drug abuse patterns are similar on the two sides of the Canada-U.S. border.

• The Road Ahead
  

  The Road Ahead - A Guidebook For Parents of Young Teens about Alcohol and Other Drugs (CARBC)

  CARBC is The Centre for Addictions Research of BC. The contents of this guidebook are:

  • Getting familiar with teen territory
  • Understanding why teens use drugs
  • Tips for staying close to your growing child
  • Communicating effectively with your child about drugs
  • How to act if you think your teen is using drugs
  • The ABCs of drugs used by young people

• Treatment questions from CCSA
  

  The Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse maintains a data base of more than a thousand treatment programs. To help Canadians frame interviews with treatment providers and discover which would meet their needs, the Centre provides these nine key questions.

• What Canadian Youth Think about Cannabis
  

  This September 2013 publication reports the thoughts of 76 youth interviewed by researchers for the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse. Contents include:

  • Parental Relationships and the Impact on Decisions to Use Weed
  • How Weed Changes a Person
  • Driving and Weed
  • Comparing Weed to Other Drugs
  • Legal Understanding of Weed
    

• What Is Recovery?
  

  This paper captures the thinking of a respected panel that defined recovery through discussions sponsored by the Betty Ford Institute. Theirs is a three-part definition:

  Sobriety
  Sobriety refers to abstinence from alcohol and all other nonprescribed drugs. This criterion is considered to be primary and necessary for a recovery lifestyle. Evidence indicates that for formerly dependent individuals, sobriety is most reliably achieved through the practice of abstinence from alcohol and all other drugs of abuse. Early sobriety = 1-11 months; sustained sobriety = 1-5 years; stable sobriety = 5 years or more.

  Personal health
  Personal health refers to improved quality of personal life as defined and measured by validated instruments such as the physical health, psychological health, independence, and spirituality scales of the World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument (WHO-QOL).

  Citizenship
  Citizenship refers to living with regard and respect for those around you as defined and measured by validated instruments such as the WHO-QOL social function and environment scales.

• YouthNet UK site
  

  Information about drugs from a group of youth-oriented UK charitable organizations whose aims include recruiting new generations into the rewarding world of volunteer work.

For teens out on their own

• Dental services at reduced cost--BC Dental Association
  

  For every regional urban hub in BC, there is a clinic--possibly more than one--offering dental services at reduced cost. 

  This site holds details about Community Dental Day, an annual province-wide program in April to provide free, urgent dental treatment to low-income working adults and seniors who don't have a private dental plan.

  The rest of the year, this link helps you find the clinic closest to your addicted family member so you can direct your son or daughter to help in a dental emergency. Ideally, this information can encourage your whole family to stay in a routine of preventive care. There will be a time for bright smiles!

• Harm reduction in Kelowna
  

• Needle exchanges in the Kootenays
  

  The ANKORS organization has five fixed needle exchanges (in Castlegar and New Denver, for example) as well as mobile services.

• Shelters 2009
  

  One page of this online document is devoted to shelters specifically for youth.

• Support for young gays and lesbians
  

  Qmunity
  BC's Queer Resource Centre. Prideline, information,
  referral and peer support.
  1170 Bute Street, Vancouver

  1-800-566-1170
  In the Vancouver local toll area, call 604-684-5307

   

• Victoria soup kitchens/hot meals
  

  Includes a Sidney, B.C. location

• Vancouver mobile needle exchange
  

  Raincity Housing and Support Society is now operating two mobile harm reduction services, principally for Vancouver areas other than the Downtown East Side. The services are too new to be on the organization's website, but more information is available from Manny Cu at 604.376.6067, e-mail mcu@raincityhousing.org.

  Needle Exchange
  This mobile service provides clean needles and other harm reduction supplies with the aim of preventing the transmission of HIV, Hepatitis C and other infections that can result from unsafe practices. While giving out clean needles staff take the opportunity to teach our clients safer harm reduction practices.
  Needle Recovery/Pick-up
  If you find a discarded syringe in your neighbourhood call the Needle Pick-up hotline and the Community Pick-up Van will be there to recover and dispose of it safely. The hotline offers rapid needle recovery service 7 days a week, 19 hours a day, and the hours are from 7a.m. until 2 a.m.
  The Needle Pick-up Hotline is: 604.657.6561