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When your comedian knows more than your doctor. . . .


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Bill Maher has been outspoken against the pharmaceutical industry for years, but this interview with the so-called addiction specialist, Dr. Drew Pinsky, is very telling of how uniformed these "doctors" really are.

 

Take a look at this:

 

 

Here is what I find notable about this four minute clip:

 

  • Dr. Drew states, "If you were a polydrug [street drugs] user and you did not go to pharmaceuticals, you are still with us today. As soon as they went to pharmaceuticals, they're dead. It's very subtle. It's very pernicious. And the thinking is so disturbed because you're thinking, 'Hey, I'm just doing what my doctor told me.'"
     
     
     
  • Maher states, "A lot of these deaths are about sleep. . . . The one thing you can't command is sleep."
     
     
     
  • Dr. Drew, in his rebuttal to Maher's assertion that you can't command sleep is to say, "We have great substances for that. We have great sleeping medication--"
     
    At this point, Maher stops him and questions, "Sleeping medication? What are you talking about? Like Lunesta? Doc, I'm sorry but that is the problem, not the solution."
     
    Dr. Drew agrees with Maher on this point, however, he goes onto say, "And if you're an addict, you get into a cycle of needing more to get the effect, there's a drive that's there as well."
     
     

 

Yes, for some people there is a "drive". But really, how many people on this website come in with a "drive" to take more?

 

Until our doctors get an education in dependency versus addiction, the real problem isn't pharmaceuticals, it's ignorance. And this "doctor" is a prime example of the problem.

 

 

 

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Yeah. We have the DRIVE to get off this stuff, not get off on it.

 

BIG difference.

 

I'm glad Bill Maher gets this because LOTS of people hear him.

 

Iggy

 

Perhaps Pinsky will reevaluate what he said about his "we have great sleeping medications" gaffe.

Maher called him really well on that. And Maher got really quiet. He knows.

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Maybe Maher has some personal experience - either himself or a family member. It's such an unbelievable perfect storm of doctor ignorance, pharma malfeasance, maybe corruption - who knows how this mess happened. But it's so unbelievable, and inexplicable, that unless you see it up close it's hard to believe. I still shake my head and wonder if I'm crazy sometimes.
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Qui,

we're not crazy. We're bucking the tide and it's hard to be in that position.

Of course we question ourselves while other blithely get prescriptions for these poisons.

It's all SO pervasive.

Iggy

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I agree, Mind, that doctors have to learn to understand the difference between dependence and addiction. This is an interesting Bill Maher segment. Although the audience laughed at a lot of what was said, Dr. Drew and Bill made some good points. But when Dr. Drew mentioned addiction - you're right. There has to be a VERY CLEAR distinction made between dependence and addiction. Otherwise people are just going to keep brushing off "those people" as addicted and won't even identify with them. Even my aunt was telling me that she took Xanax the way it was intended to be taken and didn't have problems getting off of it, so right there, it was difficult to get my point across.

 

My whole concept of "health care" has been blown to smithereens with what I've been through. The state of denial or refusing to see the vast scope of the perniciousness of the pharmaceutical industry is way beyond anything I could have imagined. It continues to baffle me. It's like we're on one side of the fence, and the rest of the world is on the other. We see what's going on, but people continue to make light of the situation and take the pills they're prescribed without questioning or being educated about meditation, exercise, nutrition, etc. None of my doctors has ever asked me anything about my personal habits.

 

I read Keith Richards' biography, and one thing he mentioned was that the reason he's still here today is because he always bought the purest drugs he could find. I don't remember him mentioning anything about pharmaceuticals. I'm betting he saw too much of that in other performers and was smart to stay away from that scene.

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This is great, Mind.  I'm going to post it on my FB page and make my real world friends more uncomfortable than I already have with my occasional reposts of this sort of information/dialogue.

>:D

 

It's paid off, though, because several people who've seen those postings have contacted me via phone or PM for more information and/or tapering advice.

 

If I post a pic of my dog, tons of people 'like' it.  If I post a 'what's in your medicine cabinet' article, crickets chirp… but that's okay, the message is being received even if not acknowledged publicly.

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This is why I am so adamant about not confusing addiction with dependence. A big part of the reason I am in this mess is because my doctor thought that as long as I wasn't displaying "addict" behaviors that I couldn't possibly have any issues with these drugs. Little did she know that herscript could make me very sick for a very long time, even though I only took about half of the prescribed dose.

 

Doctors need to understand that the problem with benzos usually has nothing to do with abuse.

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The abusers are the doctors who write the prescriptions for these powerful poisons without

doing any research.

Iggy

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Thanks for posting this clip, Mind. If it gets people talking, thinking and asking questions about such drugs, then it's a good thing. I'd love to see this whole issue put out in public in a way that makes it very clear about what they do and what the potential dangers are. These guys danced around it a bit. I hope we don't have to have another high-profile celebrity death in order to get the word out, but it might happen that way.

 

 

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I found another one which you might like.

 

Actually, it's a compilation of several videos.

 

 

 

A little after 3:15, the clip starts with Maher's Real Time show discussing the problem with health care being 1/6 of our (US) economy.

 

I like statistics, so I verified this and according to the NY Times, it's true - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/22/business/economy/22leonhardt.html?_r=0

 

That is a really scary statistic, but it's helping me place a narrative around how this could be happening to so many people.

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It's an interesting clip, Mind, but since I'm not on that side of the border, I'm hard-pressed to weigh in on how things work there. I don't understand the system. Good for Maher to bring up some important health care points, but in this clip, he's not talking with people who can play a role in making things better.

 

 

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It's an interesting clip, Mind, but since I'm not on that side of the border, I'm hard-pressed to weigh in on how things work there. I don't understand the system. Good for Maher to bring up some important health care points, but in this clip, he's not talking with people who can play a role in making things better.

 

In the last clip, one of the guests is Governor Martin O'Malley, so I really think Maher's is trying to engage with politicians. And one of the other guests is Chris Matthews, who's a talk show host of a liberal news show.

 

But no one seems to be listening.

 

The audience seemed engaged and agreed with Maher, but then again, it's Maher's show.

 

I'm hoping Maher will keep it up, but that statistic of 1/6 of our economy being in the hands of big pharma really is daunting.

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Health care is a necessary expenditure, but the important question is, how well is the system working? Are people living healthy, productive lives? Is the system serving the people's needs, or do some have more access than others? What are the health care trends over time (e.g. life span, disease rates, maternal health, child health, etc.)? How can more people be served better without increasing costs? Can costs be decreased without sacrificing quality of care?

 

Ah, so many questions!

 

 

 

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[e3...]

Health care is a necessary expenditure, but the important question is, how well is the system working? Are people living healthy, productive lives? Is the system serving the people's needs, or do some have more access than others? What are the health care trends over time (e.g. life span, disease rates, maternal health, child health, etc.)? How can more people be served better without increasing costs? Can costs be decreased without sacrificing quality of care?

 

Ah, so many questions!

 

Sadly, with as much money as the US spends on healthcare, we're not really that healthy:

http://time.com/3025289/chronic-medical-conditions-life-expectancy/

 

But you're right - so many questions!

 

Don't know what the answers are, but I'm hoping we can figure it out - not just in the US, but everywhere.

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In my opinion, prevention should be a key factor in all health care systems. I'd like to see more emphasis and awareness of things like healthy diet and exercise, less medication, education re: other lifestyle issues that contribute to health. Most GPs have limited knowledge in these areas, in my experience.
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[e3...]

In my opinion, prevention should be a key factor in all health care systems. I'd like to see more emphasis and awareness of things like healthy diet and exercise, less medication, education re: other lifestyle issues that contribute to health. Most GPs have limited knowledge in these areas, in my experience.

 

:thumbsup:

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I just read that Maher came off Xanax years ago. No wonder he gets it, and everyone else seems dumbfounded.
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[e3...]

I just read that Maher came off Xanax years ago. No wonder he gets it, and everyone else seems dumbfounded.

 

I wondered about that, but I'd never read it. It does explain his viewpoint.

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If he did come off Xanax, then he could be a high-profile spokesperson. Where did you read that, Qui?
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On the benzo lawsuit facebook page I think. So 3rd party, unconfirmed. But a big spokesperson could help. Unfortunately, like Stevie Nicks, Maher is associated with drug culture by many. Makes us look as if we are on the wrong side of the "abuse" paradigm.
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Hi Qui,

Bill Maher can be one of many spokespersons. Just getting the word out can help,

and if he stops one person from going on these drugs, that's good.

Iggy

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Yes, more voices are better. I'd love to see a health professional speak up about it -- someone with recognized credentials and experience. He/She could clarify the difference between iatrogenic dependence/withdrawal and addictive/drug-seeking behaviour. They're quite different, as we all know.
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On the benzo lawsuit facebook page I think. So 3rd party, unconfirmed. But a big spokesperson could help. Unfortunately, like Stevie Nicks, Maher is associated with drug culture by many. Makes us look as if we are on the wrong side of the "abuse" paradigm.

 

Yea, due to the bias against people who abuse drugs and the misconception that the benzo issue centers around abuse you have to be careful who "represents" this issue.

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