Category: Testing
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The Truth About CDL Alcohol and Other Drug Testing
Holders of Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDLs) are arguably the most important drivers on our roads. They are the ones who help us get any item we want, short of raising it ourselves, and they are the ones driving the largest and therefore the most dangerous vehicles on our roadways. You may be surprised by the…
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Understanding Drug Testing: A Tool for Informed Decisions
Drug testing has gotten a bad rap, but it’s not the TESTS that are bad. It’s how the results are being used. And we – the people who work in the field of substance use disorders – are the reason they are used inappropriately and why the message isn’t getting out. A Google search explains…
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How Drug Testing Can Uncover Hidden Addictions
I’ve written several times about the Marty Mann Test for Addiction, and I’m a firm believer that it works. (You can find a link in the references below.) But how do we get people to try it? And, when they won’t, how do they realize that they really do have addiction? I had a colleague…
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Embracing Moderation: A Path to Healthier Lifestyles
“We are a society of ‘If one piece of cake is good, two are better.’” A judge in Kenosha County (Wisconsin) made this statement to me…and she’s absolutely correct. We know that we shouldn’t actually eat two pieces of cake in one sitting, but we want to, and society says that’s better. Just like everything…
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Understanding Addiction: The Disease vs Connection Debate
Is addiction a disease, or, is it, as Johann Hari asserts, a lack of connection? Johann Hari is an award-winning journalist and writer. From his own bio, his education is that “He studied Social and Political Science at King’s College, Cambridge, and graduated with a Double First.” Admirable, but does that make him an expert…
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How the Let Them Theory Helps in Addiction Recovery
The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins is all the rage these days, and I jumped on the bandwagon. It’s a book that would have been a great article, but it provides two solid takeaways when it comes to the field of addiction: “People only change when they feel like changing.” “People need to feel…
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Understanding Addiction: Insights from Dr. DuPont
Robert DuPont, MD, was the first director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, appointed in 1973, and he spent his career addressing substance use disorders. I first became acquainted with him while watching The Anonymous People, a feature documentary film produced in 2013 about the 23.5 million Americans living in long-term recovery from alcohol…
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Universal Testing for Neonates: A Crucial Need
We know the government is here to help, but the unintended consequences of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) may make it one of the lousiest pieces of legislation ever passed – and amended and amended again. It’s like we’re trying to polish a turd. We know that drug testing is rife with…
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When Medication Becomes a Hammer
I learned something new today…sort of. In part, CAPTA, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, “provides federal funding and guidance to States in support of prevention, assessment, investigation, prosecution, and treatment activities and also provides grants to public agencies and nonprofit organizations, including Indian Tribes and Tribal organizations, for demonstration programs and projects” (childwelfare…
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PEth Screening: Essential Tool for Prenatal Alcohol Exposure Recognition
Look! The Finnish results are in, and it is clear that asking about alcohol consumption during pregnancy doesn’t yield accurate results. In fact, of the 3,000 samples tested, positive Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) results during pregnancy were 8.4% or 253 individuals, despite self-reporting alcohol consumption being as low as 1.9% in 2020 but as high as 14% in 2017.…
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