Obama Blows His Presidency — Top Ten Health Care Reforms He Won’t Do
For the first time in memory, Bill O’Reilly, arch Fox conservative, and Chris Matthews, arch MSNBC liberal, reacted the same to an event — both found that Barack Obama failed entirely to explain his plans for health care reform in his televised press conference.
And virtually all commentators noted the same flaw in the Obama presentation and explanation — he’s afraid to tell Americans that — well, remember that old sign: "You can have it cheaper, better, and more of it — but not all at the same time"?
I watched the sacrificial Democrat (you know, the one labeled "Democratic strategist" sandwiched between two nuts like the host himself on one of those Hannity panels) who intoned: "Health care reform will maintain current coverages, give access to everyone, and save money." You can see why Hannity selected her — to make the nuts look reasonable!
But Obama, David Axelrod, Rahm Emanuel — and the entire Republican leadership — are just as bad. Ask them what will have to be sacrificed, and they (the Dems) indicate "Nothing — just a few millionaires will pay more taxes." And, oh, there is one health care player Obama is willing to punish — insurers (even pharmaceutical manufacturers escape his opprobrium).
Republicans, as usual, are living in some other time and place. Their claim? "American health care is the best in the world. We’ll reduce the costs with tort reform, and give everyone greater access by incentivizing (a popular Obama term) private coverage."
Oh, and both sides will eliminate waste, duplication, and fraud. That should save a trillion or two right there!
Here are the top ten health care reforms neither side will propose:
- Means test Social Security and Medicare
- Pay only for effective treatments
Channel patients to providers who accept a prix-fixe pay schedule- "Incentivize" individual care choices (i.e., make people pay for more of what they use)
- Tax employer health care benefits as income
- Make managed care de rigeur
- Mandate that every American must have health care coverage
- Favor treatment for the young and fixable over the old and incurable
- Eliminate private insurance
- Put Obama’s birth certificate on the back of the one dollar bill (oops, wrong post!)
Failing to do these things will not produce better care for more people at lower prices. Rather, it will mean a diminishing group will receive unlimited (but but not necessarily effective) treatment costing everyone more.
And Barack Obama is just too nice a guy, too good a politician, and too reluctant to give people bad news to blow the whistle on this three-card monte — or, better, Ponzi — scheme. You know, the kind of deal where you collect more and more money for an unsustainable and unproductive enterprise until the entire house of cards collapses?
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The Cycle of Addiction
No one intends to become a drug addict or alcoholic. Our experiences show that the drug addict or alcoholic was usually an intelligent and often creative person with much hope for the future.
However, they were unable to deal effectively with life’s problems and turned to drugs or alcohol as a means of dealing with unwanted situations.
The person usually takes drugs because they attempt to compensate for some personal deficiency or life situation. They may be depressed, in pain or incapable of dealing with a loss of a loved one or extreme circumstance. It could also be as simple as a need to fit in and make friends, or a way to lose weight. Regardless of the reason, the person begins to seek "help" in the form of drugs or alcohol.
Drugs are essentially a pain-killer. They lessen emotional and physical pain and provide the user with a temporary escape from problems. When a person is unable to cope with something in life and take drugs as a result, they feel they have found a way to deal with the problem.
The more a person uses drugs or excessive alcohol, the worse the problem becomes. So they continue the “solution” for their problems, more drugs. Soon new problems are created by drug use. The person feels the need to use consistently, and will do anything to get high.
They are now addicted. They become difficult to communicate with, withdrawn and begin to exhibit the strange behavior associated with being on drugs. The more the person uses to try to counter this effect, the more desperate he becomes.
Their use begins to affect their personal relationships, their job, their bank account, and anything of previous value to the addict. Now the person’s entire focus becomes centered on using drugs and getting more drugs, regardless of the cost. They sacrifice everything to avoid the pain of withdrawal, the guilt of what they have done and the problems they have been running from.
At this point, the average drug user does one of three things:
- Continues using drugs and becomes more and more lost, unhealthy and degraded until he eventually becomes homeless or dead.
- Gets arrested for some drug-related activity and goes to jail or prison.
- Attempt to quit drugs in any one of a variety of ways. He may try to stop on his own, or go to a drug addiction treatment center or program. Sadly, the success rate of traditional treatment is not high and most addicts continue to relapse. This destroys the addict’s confidence and leads him to feel he will remain a slave to drugs forever.
HOWEVER, there is a way out…..
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In medical terminology, an addiction is a chronic neurobiologic disorder that has genetic, psychosocial, and environmental dimensions and is characterized by one of the following: the continued use of a substance despite its detrimental effects, impaired control over the use of a drug (compulsive behavior), and preocupation with a drug’s use for non-therapeutic purposes (i.e. craving the drug). Addiction is often accompanied the presence of deviant behaviors (for instance stealing money and forging prescriptions) that are used to obtain a drug.
Tolerance to a drug and physical dependence are not defining characteristics of addiction, although they typically accompany addiction to certain drugs. Tolerance is a pharmacologic phenomenon where the dose of a medication needs to be continually increase in order to 
maintain its desired effects. For instance, individuals with severe chronic pain taking opiate medications (like morphine) will need to continually increase the dose in order to maintain the drug’s analgesic (pain-relieving) effects. Physical dependence is also a pharmacologic property and means that if a certain drug is abruptly discontinued, an individual will experience certain characteristic withdrawal signs and symptoms. Many drugs used for therapeutic purposes produce withdrawal symptoms when abruptly stopped, for instance oral steroids, certain antidepressants, benzodiazepines, and opiates.
However, common usage of the term addiction has spread to include psychological dependence. In this context, the term is used in drug addiction and substance abuse problems, but also refers to behaviors that are not generally recognized by the medical community as problems of addiction, such as compulsive overeating.
The term addiction is also sometimes applied to compulsions that are not substance-related, such as problem gambling and computer addiction. In these kinds of common usages, the term addiction is used to describe a recurring compulsion by an individual to engage in some specific activity, despite harmful consequences, as deemed by the user himself to his or her
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by Mathea Falco, J.D.
Drug Treatment for Adolescents
Most American youth try drugs and alcohol when they are teenagers; some will develop serious substance use problems.
But treatment for teens is scarce and often hard to find: although more than one million teens need drug treatment, only one in ten actually receive help. Why is adolescent treatment so scarce? Lack of state and federal funding for treatment programs as well as shrinking insurance benefits for drug treatment are two major reasons. Without adequate insurance, many parents simply cannot afford to get the kind of help their children need.
When parents realize their children have drug problems and must find treatment, they frequently do not know where to turn. The family is often in a crisis situation, when decisions must be made quickly. Yet very little information is available about what parents should look for in choosing a program. Most parents are concerned about cost: do their employee benefits cover drug treatment? If so, for how long? If their coverage is limited, will they be able to pay to get the best possible treatment for their teenager? What kind of treatment will work? Should their teen be sent away to a residential program or can he or she be treated in his or her own community while still living at home? How long will treatment take – a few weeks, months or even years? Parents face bewildering questions they don’t know how to answer, or even how to find answers. They may also feel frightened or ashamed that their teen has substance use problems. And they may also recognize that their own alcohol and drug use problems have contributed to the problems their child is experiencing.
In order to help parents and other concerned adults find help for their teens, Drug Strategies, a nonprofit research institute, developed Treating Teens: A Guide to Adolescent Drug Programs. This guide describes nine key elements that are important in successful teen drug treatment and provides reliable information on 144 adolescent drug programs. Treating Teens gives hotline telephone numbers to find treatment in each state; definitions of frequently used treatment terms, and 10 important questions parents should ask when selecting a program for their teen.
FIVE QUESTIONS PARENTS SHOULD ASK A TREATMENT PROGRAM
1. Is your program specifically designed for teens? If so, how?
Most treatment programs are designed for adults, not teens. Even if programs say they treat teens, they may in fact just be including them in adult programs that have a few activities for younger people. Adolescents have unique challenges, such as relating to their families, dealing with peer groups, getting an education, finding a job. They also are different developmentally than adults. Effective adolescent programs should address not only drug use problems but also the many aspects of a teen’s life.
2. What questions do your staff members ask to determine the seriousness of the teen’s substance use problem and whether the teen will benefit from this particular program?
Good programs usually ask a brief set of initial questions to explore the severity of the youth’s drug use. How long has the teen been using? Is he or she addicted? What other kinds of problems does the teen have? Is he or she involved in delinquent behavior? Answers to these questions will help a program decide if they can provide the kind of help needed. Once the teen is admitted to the program, the teen’s problems will be examined in much greater depth. This kind of assessment should include a physical exam to determine if there are any medical conditions related to the substance use problem; a psychiatric exam to determine if there are mental health problems, such as depression, that must also be treated; a review of the teen’s educational progress, and a review of the teen’s relationships with his peers. Does he have friends? Are they involved in drugs? The program may also ask in-depth questions of the family about how well family members communicate, whether there are discipline problems, whether there is a history of substance use within the family. The program will develop as complete as possible a picture of the adolescent’s problems so that the counselors can design a treatment plan to address them successfully.
3. How does the program involve the family in the teen’s treatment?
Family involvement in the teen’s treatment is critically important. Regardless of how well or badly the teen and the family relate to each other, parents are the dominant reality in the lives of most teens. Parents are also the major source of financial support, including medical insurance, if any. Most teens live at home, and their recovery will depend on how supportive the home environment will be in helping them build new lives free of alcohol and drug use.
Recent studies of adolescents who stop using drugs report that parental involvement, new friends and motivation are keys to success. Programs should encourage parents (or other caregivers) to participate in counseling, group meetings, drug education and other activities offered by the program. Occasional telephone calls between the parents and the program counselors are not enough. Families should also be asked to examine their own alcohol and drug use and to get treatment themselves when necessary. Programs should teach the family how to be more effective parents, including how to discipline children reasonably. The more the family is involved in the treatment process, the more likely the teen will succeed in treatment.
4. How does the program provide continuing care after treatment is completed?
The period after treatment is vitally important: most adolescents relapse in the first three months after treatment. However, continuing care services can greatly increase the likelihood of sustained recovery. Developing follow-up plans while the teen is still in treatment is important in providing a structure for the teen and his family, so that treatment gains continue. These plans may include relapse prevention training, referrals to community resources and periodic check-ups by the program with the adolescent and his family. Twelve-step meetings can also be helpful for some teens in recovery, although finding 12-step meetings specifically for teens can be difficult in some communities. Unfortunately, many programs do not provide continuing care, and parents must try to support the teen’s recovery as fully as possible. Parents can identify services within their community that will help the teen live without drugs, including well supervised recreational programs, counseling, and community service. Parents should stay in close touch with their children every step of the way. Parents who believe that their children can overcome their problems and be successful in school make a powerful difference even when faced with difficult circumstances. (In Treating Teens: A Guide to Adolescent Drug Treatment the help hotline numbers can provide referrals to resources in each state.)
5. What evidence do you have that your program is effective?
Very few programs have formal, scientific evaluations that m
easure their treatment success. However, even without such evaluations, other information can be helpful. For example, completing the entire course of treatment is closely related to success. Retention rate is an important indicator of whether a program is effective. How many teens drop out? How long do they stay in treatment? How many actually complete treatment? Other useful things to ask about are whether teens in the program show improvements in school performance (better attendance and grades) and family relationships (better communications, less aggressive behavior). How does the program monitor drug use among teens in treatment? Do they conduct drug tests? If so, how often do they test? What are the results? Good programs should have test results that show that teens in treatment are staying clean.
- Odor of substance in breath and clothes – persons who uses illegal drugs tends to smell bad or unusual if he or she is smoking marijuana, cocaine, or other illegal drugs.
- Poor physical appearance – major changes in physical appearance if suddenly you find your son or daughter change in his physical appearance, forget to comb his hair, forgets to bathe and takes the fashion sense of other drug abusers.
- Suddenly covering of his arms and legs – drug users who uses needles always wear clothes that can cover there body wear the needles are been use. they wear clothes like this even if its inappropriate.
- Sunglasses is his/her best friend – Bloodshot eyes can be seen in drug abusers because of methamphetamine found in drugs.
- Mood swings – Something might be wrong if a bubbly personality starts to become withdrawn and humorless or a normally reserved person becomes loud and boisterous. Watch out for self-destructive tendencies.
- Unexplained loss of valuables at home – A dug abuser needs money to support his habit. His school allowance will not be enough.
- Recent adverse life event – He is going through problems he cant handle like parents separating, losing a girlfriend, or sexual physical abuse.
- School performance is getting worst – He is good student now getting failing marks. Discipline problems cause school authorities to call him in.
- Out in school – He is always absent from class and gives false excuses.
- Drug using group of friends – If his friends have a history of drugs or still using drugs then you should be very concerned. Look into the kinds of social gatherings he attends.
- Decrease communication with other family members – He stops communicating with a favorite sibling, and he doesn’t consult parents when making important decision.
- Repeated overt intoxication – Family members and friends actually witness him in high or exhibiting unusual behavior.
If you think your kid is doing drugs, don’t panic, talk to him. Be gentle and non-violent or confrontational. Discuss the problem and how you can help. Make it clear that you are there to support and not to condemn.
A teen’s prefrontal cortex – the piece of brain right behind the forehead that is involved in complex decision making – is not capable of the kind of reasoning that allows most grown-ups to make rational decisions. Silvia Bunge, assistant professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, wants to use what she knows about the teenage brain to help society deal with young risk takers.
Calif. Rep. Mary Bono Mack talks to Maggie Rodriguez about her son’s plea for help with prescription drug addiction.
As we all walk this road called life, there will be different challenges that will confront us. And one such challenge or obstacle may be of a physical nature. Because of the complexity of our bodies, there could be several people with some sort of a physical aliment, yet, each situation completely different from the other. Each individual could relate to their own situation, and at the same time, know nothing at all about another person’s physical condition.
However, I have discovered that there is a common condition, situation that most of us at one time or another have suffered from, some individuals have on a daily basis, and it is called stress! Now, I have been in the ministry for over half my life, along with being a pastor for nearly ten years. Also, I have been a chaplain at a maximum security prison. So, I qualify to know what it is to deal with stress. Anytime you have to deal with the public, people in general, it will always involve encountering stress. I remember once telling my doctor, during my annual physical, that I was wanting to reduce the stress in my life. He knows that I pastor a church and asked, how was I going to that-retire?
Therefore, I have come to the conclusion, unlike a physical condition that could be a temporary situation, stress is here to stay. Since I am not going to change what I do in life as far as work is concerned, I one day determined in my heart to learn how to reduce the stress level in my world.
Now, one good motivator to learn how to reduce stress is this thought: Reducing stress will lengthen your life! All kinds of things can develop due to stress, such as for example, your heart, blood pressure, and even your cholesterol level to name a few, can be effected due to not learning how to reduce the stress in your life.
There are numerous ways that are very effective in reducing stress, and in this article I want to share with someone what helps relieve the stress level in my life. First of all, I am married to a wonderful woman, who is my best friend, who is always in my corner. She is on my side, and is there for me when I need moral support when things get rough. However, I have found that it is good to have a friend that you can relate to besides your spouse. I have been blessed with a older pastor,who is a father figure to me, a mentor, who I can call and talk to, which helps me to deal with stressful issues. Also, going to church, participating in the services has helped me to deal or reduce my stress level. The idea of just being with other people has a way of relieving stress in a person’s life. Many times I have gone to a church service with a heavy load on my mind, but was helped, able to better cope with what was going on in my world, the stress for a short time had gone away. I must include, that what greatly reduces my stress level is my daily prayer and Bible reading.
The next two techniques that have always worked for me, which I enjoy very much, is a great stress reducer for me. I love being around children. They have a way of helping you to forget everything that may be going wrong in your life. Perhaps a phone call to one of my children or the children in my church will come and give me a hug, and tell me that they love me. This has never failed to help me deal better with the current stress in my life. Then, there is my extended family, my dogs and cats. My pets, these friends of mine have always been able to reduce the stress in my life. I do have a indoor cat named Aaron or I should say Sir Aaron. He is not your typical independent cat. But, he needs my attention, and I must say that I need his attention as well. On any given day, Aaron will jump on my lap and purr himself asleep. Once in a while he will pat me with his paw as though he is telling me, it’s going to be alright.
Here are a couple of other ways I have found useful in helping to reduce stress in my world. I have discovered that playing a game on the computer, such as solitaire, helps reduce stress. Now, this next technique is going to seem hard to believe. I have three acres of grass that I mow, and cutting the lawn has become a great stress reducer for me. When I am on my riding lawn mower, this has become my outlet of getting away or occupying mind on something else other than the stress related issues in my life.
I know that we are all different individuals who deal with stress on an on going basis. Also, I acknowledge the fact that what may help reduce stress in one person may not work in another. But, the important thing to remember is this, find something that does help you to reduce your stress. Your life depends on it.
Hello, my name is M. Lee Miller. I am married to a beautiful woman named Elizabeth. We have four wonderful children and three fantastic grandchildren. I have a Doctorate in Theology and a Ph.D in Religion. I have been in the ministry for 30 years and a pastor for over nine years. I really enjoy life and the opportunities that I have had in trying to help others during difficult periods in their lives.
Author Link: Personal Website:
http://www.millerdoctorofphilosophy.com
Article Source: Tips On How To Reduce Stress
The major factor that distracts an alcohol rehabilitation procedure is the environment. If the alcoholic does not feel comfortable or neglected, he will search out escape routes. If the people carrying out the rehabilitation procedures are not caring or the alcoholic feels uncomfortable, he or she may act as if they have rehabilitated just to end the procedure. Alternatively, they may react violently towards the people carrying out the rehabilitation procedures.
An alcoholic has reached this state definitely because of some reason. The only way to rehabilitate him or her is by making them desire for rehabilitation. The rehabilitation cannot be forced. Either alcoholics will require rehabilitation because they may lose their lives if they are not rehabilitated, or they are suffering from a health problem caused by consuming too much alcohol.
However, whatever may be the case it’s the alcoholic’s own will power that will do the trick. An alcoholic must have the will to live and to stop drinking. This is what a rehabilitation procedure is supposed to do. If the recovering alcoholic cannot get on with the psychiatrist or psychologist, how is he going to recover? If he feels that he is devoted with insufficient time, he’s not going to recover.
If after rehabilitation, he has to go back to the same environment. Facing the same set of social and family problems, he will return to drinking. Therefore, a number of factors matter in a rehabilitation procedure. First is the attitude of the staff of the rehabilitation center. They must recognise that an alcoholic is a disease like any other disease, and requires proper nursing and care.
They must not be treated with disdain or like social outcasts. They should not be made to feel rebellious. In fact, they must be treated as normal human beings. Alcoholics are human beings who are suffering from an acute problem! Secondly, the atmosphere of the rehabilitation center must be serene and soothing. However, most important is getting the alcoholic to speak about what drives them to alcohol, and how can this urge be removed.
The family plays a major role in this. Family support, acceptance, and spending time in good company are what an alcoholic needs. The alcoholic may be deeply disturbed and may feel a sense of loneliness. Having no responsibilities, an ample income and nothing to do can drive a person to alcohol. There are no wonder cures for this ailment and even the best rehabilitation procedures can fail.
The doctors can be the best, the atmosphere friendly and serene. Yet the rehabilitation procedure can fail. Until the alcoholic is not ready to change and has the will to change, the procedure is doomed to fail.
Rehabilitation requires building a one on one relationship with an alcoholic. Getting them first to speak about what drives them to drink, then building their will power to leave drinking and making them mentally strong. This is what will work. An alcoholic must genuinely believe in change. Only when they develop this attitude, the rehabilitation procedure will work. One on one session group therapy and other procedures can fail if the alcoholic refuses to budge mentally.
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Article Source: Factors Distracting Alcohol Rehabilitation Procedure
Everybody has experienced nightmares at some point in their lives. They are experiences that can be very frightening and incredibly disturbing. The feeling when awoken is of relief and the thought that it was only a bad dream nothing more. However, the feelings and images of these nightmares can frighten some people for the whole day or even for years.
What causes nightmares has been studied and discussed for thousands of years and unfortunately even with the most modern technology the scientists haven’t been able to come up with a precise answer for this question.
Nightmares can be caused by physical conditions that affect health. Stress is one of the causes for nightmares. If someone is under extreme stress, nightmares are a way that Mother Nature finds to release all the pressure suffered by the dreamer.
Post-traumatic stress disorders can also cause the individual to have nightmares. This is where someone has been through some kind of event that caused emotional or physical trauma. The memories and feelings about that specific event can cause sleeping disorders, especially nightmares.
Worries are also a big trigger for nightmares. If someone is worried about something at a particular time then it is very likely they will have a nightmare around that time. Some people are classed as ‘worriers’. With constant worrying about something they are the most affected ones as they are likely to have regular nightmares.
Nightmares can also be genetic; studies showed that individuals with frequent nightmares have a family history of similar sleeping disturbances.
Childhood is when nightmares are the most common because this is a time of our emotional development when we all have to come to terms with, well, raw, primitive emotions such as aggression and rage.
The imbalance of our emotions can also cause us to have frequent nightmares. Primitive emotions such as rage and aggression, profound resentment, excessive fear and an over competitive character may trigger frequent nightmares.
There are some techniques you can use to ease frequent nightmares. You must try this every night until the problem is resolved.
- Write down your nightmare in as much detail as you can remember. Tell the whole story even if it is extremely scary.
- Try to end the story of your nightmare with a happy ending. Do not include violence of any sort when writing the story. Keep it as peaceful and compassionate as you can. Don’t forget that you are working with raw emotions and trying to turn them into more refined emotions.
- After you finish writing the new story, go through it in your head over and over again. You must do this every night straight after you go to bed. Don’t do anything in between as it will weaken this powerful technique. Do it when you go to bed so you are not tempted to do things in between.
- Then do some relaxation exercises. You can choose anyone that you are comfortable with such a yoga, meditation, or breathing exercises.
If you suffer from nightmares you may want to try a magnificent book that takes you step-by-step in the most advanced techniques on how to stop nightmares for good. I was a terrible sufferer of nightmares before I read this book and although they have not stopped from happening every single night, I can now say that I sleep peacefully at least 90% of the time more, than before I read it.
For more tips and resources on how to stop nightmares visit the website at the bottom of this page.
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Article Source: What Causes Nightmares: And How To Stop Them
