January 2009



Welcome to 2009 - New Year, New Look! 

Our first e-newsletter was sent out in January of '08 and we're excited to still be sharing information with you a full year later.  We've seen some exciting changes within our project and we look forward to keeping you in the loop with any other updates and if you're new to us (or just want a refresher of the last year), do check out our archive page on the City of Portland's Substance Abuse Prevention website.


Happy 2009!
Amanda, Nancy & Ronni
Portland's Overdose Prevention Project
Read Alex's StoryAlex's Story: A Look into Life on Methadone
This is Alex's story of living life in recovery with methadone. Alex generously shared his story to reveal how (despite wide-ranging public opinion) methadone treatment can positively impact people's lives.

"I started treatment in August 2007 where i was such a mess. I wasn't working, spending time with family or anything constructive for that matter. I was using daily 5-6 times everyday, walking around in another world. I was putting a strain on my girlfriend and our relationship along with my parents and brother too. My girl told me that she couldn't live like this anymore, all the lying, and stuff that goes on in the life of an addict..." Keep Reading
Blog Heaven: Navigating the Blogosphere
RSS logo"When I first contemplated entering the blogosphere I was worried about 'information overload' but now that I have my fancy (Real Simple Syndication) RSS reader, I get categorized updates whenever I want - and the best part is that it doesn't flood my email inbox!  I have been searching around and have listed a bunch of great blogs - as well as some free RSS reader links - for you. Happy blogging!"~Amanda

*You do NOT need a subscription to view these blogs.
Addiction Blog: "A" is for Addiction
America Anonymous: Eight Addicts in Search of a Life
ARM-ME: Advocates for Recovery through Medicine (Maine)
Crossroads for Women: Women & Substance Abuse
Learn to Cope: There is Hope...You Are Not Alone
Life After: Celebrating Stories of Hope
Mother Warriors: Fighting for the Prevention & Treatment of Adolescent Addiction
OxyContin & Opiate Addiction: A Mother's Story
Pushing Back: Making the Drug Problem Smaller
Suboxone Talk Zone: Q & A About Opiate Addiction & Suboxone
Substance Abuse Prevention: Working to Prevent Substance Abuse in Portland, ME
Technology in Prevention: Technology Solutions for Prevention & Social Change
The Second Road: Where Life Intersects with Recovery
 
Subscribe to any of these free RSS readers to get your customized updates: Bloglines, GoogleReader, NewsGator, Technorati, or Pageflakes.
When browsing websites look for icons - aka "chicklets" - like these to subscribe to your favorite feeds with just a click!
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OPP Member Highlights
CAP Quality Care

CAP Quality Care is now "part of the 4th cohort group for COSII, The Co-Occurring State Integration Initiative.  At the end of CAP's 18 months with this grant, there will have been a total of 30 pilot sites in Maine. The Co-occurring State Infrastructure Grant is a federal project funded by SAMHSA through the Maine Office of Substance Abuse.  Its goal is to help the state to develop infrastructure that will make it possible for providers to offer integrated, co-occurring treatment services. The new substance abuse regulations, which came out the beginning of March 2008, were written in co-occurring language.  Co-occurring treatment is our future and CAP is trying to be proactive by being involved with the grant."  FMI about COSII, email Susan @ CAP in Westbrook.
Minority Health Program
Portland's Overdose Prevention Project will begin the new year with a renewed partnership with the City of Portland's Minority Health Program. In the near future you will be able to find resources for minority populations on both our OPP site as well as the MHP's website.  We will provide information regarding statistics, research, resources, local contacts and more as we learn the needs of the specific communities.  If you would like any more information regarding our partnership, please email Ronni.
Advocacy Partnership Exchange
On February 5, 2009 the OPP's Advocacy Partnership Exchange (APEx) will be holding its second panel discussion at the Preble Street Resource Center's day shelter.  Our May 2008 Q & A session ("Addressing Addiction & Talking Recovery") was lead by staff from Crossroads for Women, City of Portland and PROP/The Women's Project who spoke about their services while interacting with an audience of 30 or so folks at PSRC.  This year, based on feedback from our outreach work, staff from Merrimack River Medical Services, Discovery House and CAP Quality have graciously committed to facilitate a discussion "Dispelling the Myths of Methadone & Medication Assisted Treatment" in the hopes of reducing stigma and bringing the truths about methadone to light.  View (and please feel free to distribute) the flyer or contact Amanda FMI.
News You Can Use: Headlines from Portland & Beyond

Overdose Prevention Project
In This Issue
Alex's Story
Blog Heaven
Member Highlights
News You Can Use
Next Meeting
NGC: Explorer Series
Reports & Publications
Our Partners
3 dots
Next Meeting:

MARCH 4, 2009
2:00-3:30

Joining us at our next meeting is Dr. Marcella Sorg, Research Associate from the Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center and the  Rural Drug & Alcohol Research Program. Dr. Sorg will elaborate on Maine drug-death trends and answer questions we have regarding her research. We have invited additional key community members and look forward to a great discussion.
Portland City Hall, Rm 209
RSVP Ronni

AIDS Ribbon
National Geographic: Explorer Series

Heroin Crisis
"Stronger, purer and easier than ever to get, heroin is attracting millions of new mainstream users, and a new source -- Afghanistan -- is flooding the global market with heroin in greater than ever quantities."
Heroin Addicts Speak About Addiction
The World's Most Dangerous Drug
"Methamphetamine is one of the hardest drugs to quit. Its abuse is ravaging rural communities and cities alike...[go] inside this global epidemic to find out what makes meth so addictive and destructive."
Lisa Ling's In-Depth Report
Marijuana Nation
"Reporting from secret farms and not-so-secret grow houses of marijuana cultivators...where marijuana is not just a drug but a way of life." Video from NGC
3 dots
Reports & Publications

Cumberland County Health Indicators (Public Health Division)

National Drug Threat Assessment (USDOJ)

Maine Youth Drug and Alcohol Use Survey (OSA)

Comorbidity: Addiction & Other Mental Illnesses (NIDA)

View our Blog
Our Partners
:

CAP Quality Care, Maine Office of Substance Abuse, Preble Street Resource Center, Discovery House, Portland Fire Department, Merrimack River Medical Services, Maine Alliance for Addiction Recovery, Maine General Medical Center and Portland Public Health Division's Behavioral Health Team, India Street Clinic and Minority Health Program.

FMI About Our Programs Visit:

Our Website
Our Blog



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Portland's Overdose Prevention Project
City of Portland | Health & Human Services Department | Public Health Division
389 Congress Street | Portland | Maine | 04101
(207) 756-8116

Portland's Overdose Prevention Project is supported by the Maine Office of Substance Abuse and the
City
of Portland, Health & Human Services Department, Public Health Division.
City of PortlandClick Here for OSA's Website