Not so unusual — when dealing with public health clinics. The prognosis is usually poor. An addict won’t cooperate with treatment unless forced by the courts in most cases.
Here is what I said to one mental health center patient to convince him to go into rehab. Read more on The Speech That Made An Unwilling Addict Go To Rehab…
Filed under abuse, Addictions, Substance Abuse by on Oct 18th, 2013. Comment. 
“Old Marley was as dead as a doornail.”
— A Christmas Carol (1843)
Thank you, Charles Dickens, for creating such a wonderful, enduring story, and such an apt simile. If you hadn’t heard it before, that’s probably because it is usually omitted from the children’s versions of the oft-told (and filmed and broadcast) tale. With everyone from Michael Caine to (my favorite) Mr. Magoo starring as the wickedest man who ever snorted “Bah Humbug!” and was converted to the most ardent celebrant of Christmas by the end of the story.
A wonderful, happy story — and it deserves to live forever. But death is not terribly suitable material with which to start a children’s story.
Young women (and men) — some no older than children and many who could be termed “recent children” — were ardent fans of singer Amy Winehouse — who is now “dead as a doornail.” Read more on Amy Winehouse Proved Drugs Aren’t Glamorous…
Filed under abuse, Addictions, End Of Life, Substance Abuse by on Aug 18th, 2011. Comment.
Amazingly enough, I have avoided writing about Charlie Sheen so far.
I do not believe his story to be that unusual — just different from others in a matter of degrees.
No, he is not my patient and I have not officially examined him. I have figured out that the writers of his show seem to have done a lot of basing the character he plays on — well, him.
His creative and limit-pushing exploits seem to be a little more over the edge than most. My guess — and it is a guess at this point — is that he, like other actors (seems to me David Arquette has complained of “racing thoughts” in the not too distant past), is probably what we call a “dual diagnosis;” that is, underlying bipolar illness with some substance abuse associated.
Filed under Celebrities by on Mar 4th, 2011. Comment.