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Tim Ryan, Founder of A Man in Recovery Foundation

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Tim Ryan is a recovering addict of heroin, cocaine, alcohol, and other drugs. He survived multiple overdoses, rehabilitations, and jail time, and he finally became sober when he was sentenced to seven years due to drug-related convictions. He was released early and was inspired to start his recovery, but soon after he got out of jail his son died from a heroin overdose. Now, Tim runs his A Man in Recovery Foundation and speaks out against the dangers of opiate addiction. He also runs opiate recovery groups for addicts and families; a "sober coach" who speaks at schools and events.
key insights
  • You have three choices as an addict: 1. Get into recovery 2. Go to jail 3. Die
  • He doesn’t mean to glamourize heroin at all, but says the minute you take it all your worries disappear and you don’t feel pain anymore. Afterwards, you just want seek that high, again and again. • At first people use heroin to get high, then they use it to feel normal (or else they’ll feel ‘dope sick.’ • Addiction has no boundaries. It can grab any person, any race, at any age. • Nowadays, it’s easier for high school students to get their hands on heroin than alcohol. • Only 5% of opiate addicts are able to recover. It’s difficult to get clean and sober, because you have to change every aspect of your life. • Gateway steps. Weed → Pills → Heroin • Some good, well-balanced people with a family end up becoming addicts by getting prescribed pain killers from the doctors or dentist and then get hooked. • People wait until their addiction gets bad before they seek treatment. Sometimes it takes them becoming homeless, losing their job, failing in all their relationships, going to prison, etc. • Treatment is not the answer. It’s actually easy to go through a 30-day treatment program yielding quick positive outcomes, such as weight gain, taking medication, and feeling better. However, the average heroin addict goes to rehab six times. Relapse constantly happens, mostly when the person just wants to feel that high one more time. • Most opiate deaths come from first time users, people just released from jail, or right after coming out of treatment. • No need to shoot up heroin anymore, you can snort or smoke it too. Our preconceived image of a heroin addicts is no longer profiled as a homeless junky lying on the sidewalk with a syringe sticking out of his arm. During the Vietnam War heroin was only 10%-14% pure, meaning people needed to inject it in order to feel the high. Nowadays, it’s 50%-75% pure, so the affect will hit just as powerfully if snorted or smoked. • Another barrier to treatment are the insurance companies. An HMO insurance plan creates steep barriers by requesting referral from a primary care physician followed by a 8-12 week wait for a bed at a treatment center. Sometimes that wait is deadly for addicts who need help ASAP. • Tim recommends a holistic approach to recovery. The first step to treatment most likely at a rehab center. Then it’s important to continue going to meetings (12 step ones such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotic’s Anonymous), meet with your sponsor, get to support groups, and most importantly, help other recovering addicts. Ideally, incorporating other health lifestyle activities are a plus, such as, acupuncture, yoga, group therapy, one-on-one therapy, and religion, etc. • He believes the HeroX challenge for preventing relapse would indeed be another tool in the toolbox. It would hold addicts on the road to recovery accountable.
  • People wait until their addiction gets bad before they seek treatment. Sometimes it takes them becoming homeless, losing their job, failing in all their relationships, going to prison, etc. • Treatment is not the answer. It’s actually easy to go through a 30-day treatment program yielding quick positive outcomes, such as weight gain, taking medication, and feeling better. However, the average heroin addict goes to rehab six times. Relapse constantly happens, mostly when the person just wants to feel that high one more time. • Most opiate deaths come from first time users, people just released from jail, or right after coming out of treatment. • No need to shoot up heroin anymore, you can snort or smoke it too. Our preconceived image of a heroin addicts is no longer profiled as a homeless junky lying on the sidewalk with a syringe sticking out of his arm. During the Vietnam War heroin was only 10%-14% pure, meaning people needed to inject it in order to feel the high. Nowadays, it’s 50%-75% pure, so the affect will hit just as powerfully if snorted or smoked.
  • Another barrier to treatment are the insurance companies. An HMO insurance plan creates steep barriers by requesting referral from a primary care physician followed by a 8-12 week wait for a bed at a treatment center. Sometimes that wait is deadly for addicts who need help ASAP. • Tim recommends a holistic approach to recovery. The first step to treatment most likely at a rehab center. Then it’s important to continue going to meetings (12 step ones such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotic’s Anonymous), meet with your sponsor, get to support groups, and most importantly, help other recovering addicts. Ideally, incorporating other health lifestyle activities are a plus, such as, acupuncture, yoga, group therapy, one-on-one therapy, and religion, etc.
  • IDEAS FOR THE CHALLENGE: He believes the HeroX challenge for preventing relapse would indeed be another tool in the toolbox. It would hold addicts on the road to recovery accountable. Not only should it detect vital signs, it should also have something for the person to do everyday and then two buttons that says, I did it or didn’t do it. Then you can use an algorithm to detect potential relapse. Mostly, because it’s important for addicts to constantly be in communication with people. The device could be connected to your iPhone and icloud where you would initially insert data about yourself, answer questions, and a recovery plan would be created. Treatment centers would definitely come onboard as would doctors and loved ones monitoring progress.

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