Guest MINDSETTER™ John Tassoni Jr: Recovery Radio Brings Help to Those Struggling With Addiction

Thursday, September 24, 2015

Guest MINDSETTER ™ John J. Tassoni Jr.

 

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We have all heard the staggering statistics from the Centers for Disease Control that Rhode Island tops the list of highest in the nation for drug and alcohol use. So far this year, there have been 126 confirmed accidental overdose deaths in the state, and more than 1,000 EMS administered doses of Naloxone (Narcan), reported by the R.I. Dept. of Health.  

We must remember that addiction is a mental illness, a disease of the mind, and a horrible, complex and confusing disease at that. 

It is not a crime. We cannot treat addicts as criminals.

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Furthermore, addiction is totally treatable. There are many people in the recovery community who are ready to help - health care professionals, recovering addicts and alcoholics, their friends and family. There is also Recovery Radio.

Recovery Radio is the first radio show in the state to offer useful information to those suffering from alcohol, drug, and other addictions. It also features live interviews with people in recovery, who share their stories of hope and triumph over substance abuse. These are people who have reclaimed their lives and want to help others do the same.

The dialogue is real. 

They talk about the serious physical, psychological, social and financial problems of addiction, and the process that is recovery, its rewards, its benefits, and its victories.

Recovery Radio’s guest speakers discuss the critical issues that lie beneath the surface of addiction, while it encourages people to add their voices.

Some of the issues are basic while others are extremely complex.

About 90 percent of addictions begin in the teenage years. Cigarette smoking, binge drinking, and marijuana are just launching pads for this often-inviting disease.

In a downward economy, drug dealing is an easy way to make money and a fast way to mask problems. 

Most people understand the characteristics of addiction, but here are some facts provided by The Foundations Recovery Network that may surprise you:

* Addiction is unpredictable—it can happen to anyone at any time. It does not discriminate among the rich, middle class, or lower class. 

The misconception is that addiction only occurs to people who frequently abuse substances, are weak-willed, or if there is a family history of addiction. Many also think that engaging in occasional substance use is a safe way to avoid addiction. 

Not true.

The reality is that anyone can develop an addiction, no matter how many times he or she has used the substance, and whether or not there is a family history of addiction. Many illegal substances like heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine, can cause people to develop an addiction after just one use. Some legal substances, such as cigarettes and alcohol, have the potential for addiction after only a few uses.

* Many addicts suffer from co-occuring disorders, which means that they may have an addiction along with at least one other mental health condition.

Co-occuring disorders happen when a person has two or more health conditions, particularly mental health conditions, at the same time. These disorders often involve substance abuse along with such mental health disorders as anxiety disorders (post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder), mood disorders (depression and bipolar disorder), personality disorders (antisocial and paranoia), and psychotic disorders; schizophrenia.

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that more than 8.4 million American adults (about 40 percent of the population) suffer from substance abuse along with another mental health condition. The study also showed that people who reported having at least one mental illness were twice as likely to also use illegal drugs. These numbers show the correlation between drug use and mental illness, whether the mental illness develops from drug use or if the drug use is a form of self-medication.

*Relapse can happen during recovery.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) reports that relapse is common in addiction recovery. Addiction relapse is similar to relapse in other chronic diseases, like asthma, hypertension and type I diabetes. The NIDA clarifies that addiction relapse does not mean the person has failed in rehab, but rather that the person’s individual treatment plan needs to be monitored, revised or reinstated.

I invite you to join the over 2,000 listeners each week and the more than 6,000 monthly visitors to our website, and let us help you and your loved ones on the road to recovery, or allow us to share the information that you have to help others.

Recovery Radio is an hour-long program that airs Mondays from 3-4 p.m. on AM790, sponsored by Phoenix Houses of New England, The Providence Center, and The Journey: Hope, Health & Healing, Inc. Recovery Radio’s presenter, John J. Tassoni, Jr., is a business leader, social activist, recovery advocate, and former member of the Rhode Island State Senate, who sponsored legislation creating a high school program for teens in recovery.

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John J. Tassoni Jr. is a former senator (D-Smithfield) and publisher of Common Ground a monthly newspaper that provides relevant information to the working families and businesses of Rhode Island, and host of Common Ground Talk Radio, Mondays from 4-5 p.m. on AM Talk Radio 790, which features interactive discussion of business and union issues.

 

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