The Rise and Fall of Pitcher Matt Bush

This is truly a sad story showing the dangers of alcohol abuse.  Matt Bush had all the breaks and a chance for a good life, sadly alcohol got the best of him.

Today, Matt Bush is in jail. He is going to be there for a long time. A Florida judge Monday set his bail at more than $1 million after Bush allegedly stole his spring roommate’s SUV Thursday night, got drunk, climbed on stage at a strip club before bouncers booted him, headed back on the road and hit a 72-year-old motorcyclist named Tony Tufano. Bush reportedly ran over Tufano’s head while peeling away. He drove from the carnage with a .18 blood alcohol level and a septuagenarian lying in the street in critical condition.

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Heavy Drinking Linked to Depression

Most of us who have done heavy drinking know that depressive episodes tend to follow so this study does not tell us anything new but it is good to see it researched.  I would like to see studies on the long term depressive nature of alcohol.

 This study suggests that heavy drinking occasions are risk factors for depressive symptoms independently of the total alcohol consumption. This result indicates that greater emphasis should be placed on the drinking pattern when counselling individuals on alcohol and its health-related consequences. The alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT) includes a question of frequency of heavy drinking occasions and that can be used in screening people with unfavourable drinking habits.

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Alcoholism Documentary

A series of videos documenting deadly alcohol addiction.

Kindling in Alcohol Withdrawal Howard C. Becker, Ph.D.

In many alcoholics, the severity of withdrawal symptoms increases after repeated withdrawal
episodes. This exacerbation may be attributable to a kindling process. Kindling is a
phenomenon in which a weak electrical or chemical stimulus, which initially causes no overt
behavioral responses, results in the appearance of behavioral effects, such as seizures, when
it is administered repeatedly. Both clinical and experimental evidence support the existence
of a kindling mechanism during alcohol withdrawal. Withdrawal symptoms, such as seizures,
result from neurochemical imbalances in the brain of alcoholics who suddenly reduce or
cease alcohol consumption. These imbalances may be exacerbated after repeated withdrawal
experiences. The existence of kindling during withdrawal suggests that even patients
experiencing mild withdrawal should be treated aggressively to prevent the increase in
severity of subsequent withdrawal episodes. Kindling also may contribute to a patient’s
relapse risk and to alcohol-related brain damage and cognitive impairment. KEY WORDS: AOD
withdrawal syndrome;

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You Know You Have Drinking Problem When?

You start crap with a table full of guys with Cauliflower Ear.  Ryan Hall handles a drunk guy nicely.

Learn more about it here.

During the brief moments of action that occurred, Hall took the belligerent man down with a double leg take down and mounted him until the man was momentarily pacified. Later, when the man returned to instigate more against Hall and his friends, Hall ended up safely putting the man to sleep to prevent him from doing harm to himself or others in the restaurant. At that point the police arrived and took control of the situation.

Mike Ness Sobriety

Mike Ness lead singer for Social Distortion spent years in addiction and was able to get clean and stay clean.  I have not been able to track down any in depth discussion detailing his process of getting and staying sober. He briefly touches on it in this interview a more complete picture of his addiction and struggle can best be found in his music both as a solo musician and his years with Social Distortion.

JAM: Do you ever really know what the bottom is? Well, it's not really a situational thing, it's an emotional thing. It all came down to me being sick and tired of being sick and tired living with the pain. There is an intense emotional struggle with pain that comes with heroin addiction. Your craving for the next fix becomes so intense, you'll do anything to get rid of it. Instead of falling deeper into drug addiction to battle the hurt, I was willing to submit myself to rehab. As a result of that decision, I'm alive and talking to you today.

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Craig Ferguson Talks About His Alcoholism

Sober Is My New Drunk

Just finished reading Sober Is My New Drunk by Paul Carr.  I was not familiar with Paul Carr or any of his other works before seeing this book start showing up on various blogs.  Sober Is My New Drunk is a quick 20-30 minute read, Paul covers most of the issues we will run into when quitting alcohol, questioning if we truly have a problem, STD's, learning to date again and making sober life interesting.  I think this book could help anyone who is trying to quit drinking without AA.

This book would probably not be a good resource if you are using AA to quit drinking.

Updated 3/18 - The Wall Street Journal has a complete write up on the book.

$100 reward for reporting drunk drivers

Sen. Robert Calderon has proposed a bill that would give people who report Drunk Drivers $100 dollars if a conviction is reached.


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Alcohol The Bitter Truth

These videos cover a lecture done discussing how alcohol is metabolized and the consequences of heavy drinking.  A good video that touches on the good and the bad of alcohol.