Meredith Rose Weinstein Baskin, age 34, died peacefully Aug 9, 2018 after a long battle with opioid addiction as reported in her obituary. She was born on December 1, 1983 in Little Rock, AR the daughter of Susan Weinstein and the late Jeffrey Baskin. After graduation from Central High School she began her studies at UALR, ultimately graduating as a registered nurse with honors from UAMS in 2008. She went on to practice as a nurse at UAMS and several private clinics in the Central Arkansas … [Read more...]

I had been seeing a psychiatrist twice a week, but he couldn’t fix me and told me to go to Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). I was at the point that I knew I couldn’t quit drinking by myself, and I couldn’t keep drinking and survive. AA appeared to be my only chance, and I attended my first meeting on December 2, 1978, at a Pearl Street storefront in Boulder, Colorado.It was snowing, and when I walked in, the people seemed to be enjoying themselves. There was no president, no board, no dues to pay … [Read more...]

I have a friend whose son is addicted to drugs. The son, in his twenties and a college graduate, is rebellious, jobless, emotionally unstable and has a mental illness problem which has neither been completely diagnosed nor treated. He has been living partly on the streets and refuses treatment, which his father continues to offer. He fears that his son will kill himself or someone else and one way or another will end up in prison. Regrettably, the son’s behavior is not uncommon among … [Read more...]

                Mary Karr, author and recovering alcoholic,  grew up in a tough Texas town with a neglectful even homicidal alcoholic mother (who found many years of sobriety in her later years and reconciliation with her daughter) and a hardworking but disengaged father about whom she writes “Daddy floated through the house with an increasingly vacant stare, leaving a wake of Camel smoke.” Despite the handicaps of her rough … [Read more...]

              I’m not sure where President Trump stands with creating an organization to address the nation’s escalating drug abuse problem. Like his predecessors he seems to be drifting away from a truly creative response to the problem. Dr. Elinore McCance-Katz, who appeared to be the front runner early this year, has not been mentioned to speak of since March and appears to have dropped off the screen. This may be just as well. Her … [Read more...]