The Opioid Problem is not THE Problem

Don't misinterpret my words.  People are grieving the deaths of loved ones.  I want people to rethink where we are going wrong in terms of teaching our children and loved ones how to deal with stress.  

I've read the complaints that the DARE program is ineffective.  People will tell you Just Say No is a frivolous phrase.  

For me the idea of not being in control of myself, my own cognition, as well as the consequences of my own behavior while under the influence of a substance while it is trapped in my body,  is terribly alarming.  

For all the social media hype about women asserting their rights, stop the bullying, and stand up for yourself.....you can't do that if you're under the influence of a substance. 

For me this includes caffeine, and routinely prescribed non-opiate drugs, as well.  And while we're at it, I can't leave out sugar, processed foods and chemicals added to food.  

Any drug or substance problem stems from the basic question: Do I trust my body?

How were you taught about the body God created for you?  Do you fear your own body?  Do you have fears and concerns about your health?  Do you believe you can heal?  Were you sickly as a child?  Did the adults around you also have similar fears?  Do you get nervous when you can't find your Tylenol bottle?  Are you disappointed in your own job performance or school grades because you feel you don't keep up with adequate energy?  Do you feel your efforts are not good enough and somehow blame your lack of talent or inability to learn quickly?  Do you feel like a social reject and have trouble making friends?

Sometimes we feel as if we are stumbling within ourselves mentally and physically.  We feel short changed, unable to ignite our talents because of some kind of invisible barrier holding us back. 

The second question is what is the best way to take care of my health?

We hear about the two most challenging problems with opioid overuse: 
1- mental illness and self medicating
2- pain/injury and a distorted attitude toward the purpose of the pain process accompanied by a developed tolerance to pain medication (and/or a hypersensitive pain response)

This leads to my unique challenge for everyone:
We will not be able to make real change with the opioid problems until we face our own brain impairment.  

We all have brain impairment and it leads us to making bad decisions. And it happens everyday to everyone.  You may not be struggling with a drug dependence problem.  You may not be a victim of the over-prescribing mindset common in health care today.  But we are all at risk of brain impairment due to inflammation from multiple sources of stress.  

We know we live in a stressful world.  Stress is here 24 hours a day.  We need a de-stressing plan so our lives do not snowball into a health crisis.  

You may not be having your own personal opioid crisis but brain impairment may look differently on  you.  It could be an auto-immune condition, pre-diabetes, heart concerns, slow metabolism,  anxiety, asthma, allergies, etc. 

What we call typical health issues that are treated, but not cured, are actually variations of brain impairment.  

We cannot help others if we are ignoring our own brain impairment.  Perhaps you could be ramping up your own self care and upgrading your lifestyle habits.  I believe someone with an opioid problem missed all the other earlier warning signs that could have helped them change course.  But we all can do better with our brain health. 

Chiropractic addresses how the brain is relating to the rest of the body.  Please stick around my blog as I write my follow up postings on how to rethink brain impairment so you can help yourself and your loved ones.