Thread by @PainPtFightBack

@lisaling

For the most part, I love your show, but there are some issues with the way that you cover the opioid crisis that I would like to bring to your attention

I’m proud to be part of #ChangingTheNarrative is an effort organized by @maisz, a journalist, @LeoBeletsky, an attorney, and @DrSarahWakeman, an addiction medicine physician.

changingthenarrative.news

The goal is bring attention to stigmatizing language in media coverage of both opioids and addiction.

In listening to your most recent coverage, “When Heroin Hits Home,” you used the terms “addicted babies” and “born addicted.” I recognize that these are commonly used & you meant no harm by them BUT nonetheless they are both harmful and incorrect.

Babies are born with physical dependence. This is different from addiction. If you will review the DSM V criteria for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD), you will see that that an infant exhibiting neonatal abstinence syndrome doesn’t fulfill the diagnostic criteria for OUD.

The second issue. Using the descriptors of clean and dirty is incredibly common, but nonetheless stigmatizing. @lisaling you are an incredible journalist, why not set an example for other when it comes to this?

The @AP recommends the use of “person-first language. With person first language, you would say, people with addiction (or better yet opioid use disorder or ppl who use drugs).

Lastly, there’s an entire aspect of this issue that you really need to cover.

Opioids can be life-changing for patients like me who have chronic pain. Efforts to prevent addiction have resulted in sharp cuts in opioid prescribing.

Even patients on low doses face huge obstacles to continue care that has proven effective for them as an individual. I’m a long term high dose patient & have been on a stable dose for over a decade. The improvement for me is night and day.

My story:

washingtonpost.com/outlook/the-ot…

Aside from COVID, I’ve had to fly across the country to see my doctor every 3 months for the past 5 years even though I live in a city with some of the best healthcare facilities in the country.

Each month I wonder if this is the last month I’ll have the meds that all me to have a life I can enjoy and the ability to be productive.

For the past 6 years I have maintained a private registry of patients with chronic pain who have died from suicide or the physiologic effects of uncontrolled pain. Some examples would be heart attacks or strokes occurring during w/d or severe pain.

Meredith Lawrence held her husband’s hand as put a gun to his chest to end his suffering.

google.com/amp/s/amp.usat…

David Lackey suffered a fatal heat attack after 34 days of withdrawal and uncontrolled pain.

google.com/amp/s/amp.usat…

@StefanKertesz & @AllysonVarley are doing a pilot study on suicide in patients with chronic pain who experienced a change in opioid dose. I’m honored to be part of their study team.

uab.edu/news/research/…

At present, I have over 600 reports of suicides in the private registry I maintain. Some are very well documented & for others the only documentation is brief social media posting like this.