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    Posted April 15, 2012 by
    Nikolahull
    Assignment
    Assignment
    This iReport is part of an assignment:
    Your questions for Dr. Drew

    Why Does the media not cover out of the norm addictions?

     
    I am an addict. I am addicted to diet pills. I was several years sober until a few months ago. Despite the damage it has done, I still continue in my use of diet pills. In 2007, the excessive use of diet pills burnt out my thyroid and in turn became cancerous. I had to have my entire thyroid removed and life has been hell ever since. They don't give you a manual for life after a complete thyroidectomy; nor do the dr's tell you that you will never be "normal" again.

    Before my surgery, I never considered myself and addict. My entire life I was told I had to be thin to be beautiful. even while in the military, I used diet pills in excess. Often going to Mexico to get diet pills because they were illegal in the US.

    I never considered myself and addict because I never heard of diet pill addiction. I had heard of eating disorders, however, I didn't technically fall into either one of the categories.

    Despite the health challenges, which has complicated my underlying mental health issues (self-worth, self-image, acceptance, etc) I have managed to maintain a positive life or at least as positive as possible.

    My question to you is :Why doesn't the media cover addictions outside the norm of addictions (e.g. alcohol, illegal narcotics, pain pills, etc)? I am pretty sure that I am not the only in the entire world who has been addicted to diet pills. Why doesn't the media cover diet pill abuse, the ramifications, and hazards associated with excessive use of the product? Moreover, why have there not been any specials on the lengths people will go to when using diet pills to maintain an image of "beauty"?

    At one time, I was using three illegal diet pills (illegal in the US legal in Mexico), four vitamin supplements, and four diet pills legal in the US. All of these I would take four times a day. I feel if subjects like this are covered more often, through awareness young people will know the dangers behind diet pill use.
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