David Blistein's guest appearances

David Blistein

The Addicted Mind Podcast

Story in the Public Square

John Halpern

Judson Brewer

James Martin

Paul Williams

Mo Rocca

Jonathan Haidt

Mark Blyth

Curt Widhalm

Andrew Hill

Benjamin Hardy

Michael Anthony

Margalit Fox

Paul Tremblay

Jamie Metzl

William James

OwlTail

Opium has been around but what many people don't realize is how much it has shaped society and culture. The United States has spent over $1 trillion on drug enforcement since President Nixon declared a war on drugs. And by any measure, that crisis has become worse. Could we ever imagine a time where humanity is finally free of these substances? On today's episode, Duane talks with John Halpern and David Blistein, co-authors of the book, Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned Our World, where they talk about the history of opium and the reasons they wrote this book. It’s a call for compassion and care for people who are struggling with addiction.Unfortunately, our current system is not providing proper treatment. Worse, we punish people for not accepting treatment or seeking it out in the United States. The person who gets blamed is the one who's suffering. Whatever people need to do politically or as a society about these issues of drug abuse should not be legislated onto the backs of our patients' suffering and pain. And yet, that's still is happening.The Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration admits that over 90% of people in the United States who would like to get serviced have no ability to get treatment. There’s a confusing message we’re sending out to people that there’s no safe way to use it. We're not talking about what these drugs do. We're not accepting how they are medicines and that they have these horrible side effects, and extreme versions of those side effects when we see somebody addicted. Instead, we punish them as if they had a full volitional choice when it’s causing changes to their brain over time. At the end of the day, we need to welcome people with substance abuse issues for being the human beings that they are and with the problems they have because we all have problems. And we need to treat them with respect and love and understanding and learn from them.In this episode, you will hear: When the use of opium began What does the term chasing the dragon mean  The potential of peptides to replace opiates The current justice system as it relates to drug courts How the interdiction of drugs corrupts the governments at all levels The lack of proper treatment How the opioid epidemic started with Purdue Pharma Possible strategies and solutions to solve this problem The confusing message we’re sending out to people that there’s no safe way to use it Key Quotes:[08:26] - "For 5000 years, virtually the only antidepressant we had was opium."[10:03] - "A drug is not a drug is not a drug, how people get addicted to a drug is different and understanding some of the impact they have on us also can be different." [12:59] - "We are tethered much more tightly to the opium plant, a plant that does not even exist in the wild today more than ever."[14:10] - "The person who gets blamed is the one who's suffering."[17:19] - "I consider drug court a human rights crime because we have prosecutors and judges pretending that they can practice medicine when they have no training in it."[20:25] - "We turn around without providing proper treatment, and then we punish people for not accepting treatment or seeking it out in the United States."[28:15] - "There are more people dying each year now from opioid-related overdoses than those that died in the Vietnam War. That's 70,000 people a year dying now."[35:23] - "Labeling heroin and other opiates as drugs of abuse doesn't erase the fact that they are medicines in the United States."Supporting Resources:https://www.facebook.com/addictedmindpodcast/Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned Our World by John Halpern and David Blisteinhttps://www.booksamillion.com/p/Opium/John-H-Halpern/9780316417679?id=8111534007531Episode CreditsIf you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Danny Ozment.Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Opium has been around but what many people don't realize is how much it has shaped society and culture. The United States has spent over $1 trillion on drug enforcement since President Nixon declared a war on drugs. And by any measure, that crisis has become worse. Could we ever imagine a time where humanity is finally free of these substances? On today's episode, Duane talks with John Halpern and David Blistein, co-authors of the book, Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned Our World, where they talk about the history of opium and the reasons they wrote this book. It’s a call for compassion and care for people who are struggling with addiction.Unfortunately, our current system is not providing proper treatment. Worse, we punish people for not accepting treatment or seeking it out in the United States. The person who gets blamed is the one who's suffering. Whatever people need to do politically or as a society about these issues of drug abuse should not be legislated onto the backs of our patients' suffering and pain. And yet, that's still is happening.The Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration admits that over 90% of people in the United States who would like to get serviced have no ability to get treatment. There’s a confusing message we’re sending out to people that there’s no safe way to use it. We're not talking about what these drugs do. We're not accepting how they are medicines and that they have these horrible side effects, and extreme versions of those side effects when we see somebody addicted. Instead, we punish them as if they had a full volitional choice when it’s causing changes to their brain over time. At the end of the day, we need to welcome people with substance abuse issues for being the human beings that they are and with the problems they have because we all have problems. And we need to treat them with respect and love and understanding and learn from them.In this episode, you will hear:<ul> <li>When the use of opium began</li> <li>What does the term chasing the dragon mean </li> <li>The potential of peptides to replace opiates</li> <li>The current justice system as it relates to drug courts</li> <li>How the interdiction of drugs corrupts the governments at all levels</li> <li>The lack of proper treatment</li> <li>How the opioid epidemic started with Purdue Pharma</li> <li>Possible strategies and solutions to solve this problem</li> <li>The confusing message we’re sending out to people that there’s no safe way to use it</li> </ul>Key Quotes:[08:26] - "For 5000 years, virtually the only antidepressant we had was opium."[10:03] - "A drug is not a drug is not a drug, how people get addicted to a drug is different and understanding some of the impact they have on us also can be different." [12:59] - "We are tethered much more tightly to the opium plant, a plant that does not even exist in the wild today more than ever."[14:10] - "The person who gets blamed is the one who's suffering."[17:19] - "I consider drug court a human rights crime because we have prosecutors and judges pretending that they can practice medicine when they have no training in it."[20:25] - "We turn around without providing proper treatment, and then we punish people for not accepting treatment or seeking it out in the United States."[28:15] - "There are more people dying each year now from opioid-related overdoses than those that died in the Vietnam War. That's 70,000 people a year dying now."[35:23] - "Labeling heroin and other opiates as drugs of abuse doesn't erase the fact that they are medicines in the United States."Supporting Resources:<a href="https://www.facebook.com/addictedmindpodcast/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/addictedmindpodcast/</a>Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned Our World by John Halpern and David Blistein<a href="https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Opium/John-H-Halpern/9780316417679?id=8111534007531" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Opium/John-H-Halpern/9780316417679?id=8111534007531</a>Episode CreditsIf you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Danny Ozment.Find out more at <a href="https://emeraldcitypro.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://emeraldcitypro.com</a> Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

114: The History of Opium with John Halpern & David Blistein

In 2017, opioid addiction claimed nearly 50,000 American lives—that’s as many Americans as were lost in the entire Vietnam War, and more than were lost to gun-shots and automobile accidents combined.  Dr. John Halpern and David Blistein explore the history of opium—from antiquity to the modern world—and describe a solution to the opioid crisis that blends an understanding of what works and what has failed, previously.  Halpern and Blistein are the coauthors of “Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned Our World,” which details the history of opium and its evolution to the opioid crisis that ravages our nation today.  Halpern is a private-practice psychiatrist who previously served as medical director of the Boston Center for Addiction Treatment, the largest substance-use disorder hospital in New England.  He completed his residency and fellowship in addiction research at Harvard Medical School programs and taught at Harvard Medical School for over 20 years. Blistein is the author of the award-winning PBS documentary “The Mayo Clinic: Faith–Hope–Science” and is currently writing a comprehensive, three-part series on brain disorders and mental health.  He co-wrote “Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies” and “The Gene” for PBS and authored “David’s Inferno,” which combines personal anecdotes with insights into the diagnosis and treatment of manic-depression.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2017, opioid addiction claimed nearly 50,000 American lives—that’s as many Americans as were lost in the entire Vietnam War, and more than were lost to gun-shots and automobile accidents combined.  Dr. John Halpern and David Blistein explore the history of opium—from antiquity to the modern world—and describe a solution to the opioid crisis that blends an understanding of what works and what has failed, previously.  Halpern and Blistein are the coauthors of “Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned Our World,” which details the history of opium and its evolution to the opioid crisis that ravages our nation today.  Halpern is a private-practice psychiatrist who previously served as medical director of the Boston Center for Addiction Treatment, the largest substance-use disorder hospital in New England.  He completed his residency and fellowship in addiction research at Harvard Medical School programs and taught at Harvard Medical School for over 20 years. Blistein is the author of the award-winning PBS documentary “The Mayo Clinic: Faith–Hope–Science” and is currently writing a comprehensive, three-part series on brain disorders and mental health.  He co-wrote “Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies” and “The Gene” for PBS and authored “David’s Inferno,” which combines personal anecdotes with insights into the diagnosis and treatment of manic-depression.See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.

Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned our World with Dr. John Halpern and David Blistein