Posts by Lynn Webster, M.D.
Black Box Warnings
How Drugs Receive FDA Approval The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) is the watchdog agency that’s responsible for testing new medications before they are approved. Drug manufacturers seek approval from the FDA after they have conducted numerous clinical trials and submitted all of their data to the…
Read MoreLessons Learned from Someone Who Has Struggled With Addiction
In the February 19, 2018 Refinery29 documentary, producer Jacki Huntington shares the stories of Dr. Lipi Roy, Kassandra Frederique of the Drug Policy Alliance, and Cortney Lovell. These women are working to solve the opioid crisis through their work in addiction medicine, drug policy, and recovery services. Courage in Escaping the Grip of Addiction In…
Read MoreOpen Letter to Journalists and Editors About “Addicted Babies”
Babies Cannot Be Born Addicted to Drugs “Babies Born Addicted,” “Addicted Babies,” “Babies with Addiction,” and similar headlines appear nearly daily in the media. This is because babies exhibit horrible withdrawal symptoms if they are born physically dependent on opioids, and it pulls at our heartstrings to see them suffer. But it misleads media consumers,…
Read MoreWhy Is Chronic Lyme Disease Controversial?
Novelist Amy Tan’s Experience With Lyme Disease On her web site, bestselling novelist Amy Tan shares her belief that she has late-stage neuroborreliosis, or Lyme disease. She suspected she might have Lyme disease because of her mysterious symptoms that included migrating aches and neuropathy, a racing heart, hallucinations, getting lost in familiar places, difficulty talking,…
Read MoreBody Pains That May Be an Early Sign of HIV
This is an article by Cara Smith. I offer it with the author’s permission for informational purposes. The author and I have no financial involvement. THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE HER OWN AND DO NOT REPRESENT MY VIEW OR MEDICAL ADVICE. Photo by Kat Love on Unsplash HIV is a disease that scratches out the…
Read MoreMarcus Welby, M.D. Is the Wrong Doctor for These Times
The Marcus Welby Fantasy Lives in the Past Many people fantasize about having a folksy doctor like Marcus Welby, M.D. An idealized physician, Dr. Welby didn’t have to worry about malpractice insurance, co-payments, political agendas, interference by government agencies, or bureaucratic matters of any kind. He could be fully present for his patients. Dr. Welby…
Read MoreSoulmate
Soulmates Unselfishly Connect What is a soulmate? Recently, a United States representative was accused of sexually harassing one of his female staffers after sending her a letter stating he believed they were “soulmates.” Apparently, she did not agree. Many of us understand that soulmates are individuals with a deep connection toward each other. Words alone…
Read MoreWill Tom Petty’s Death Move Funding for Research Forward?
Free Fall Into Opioid Use “And I’m free, free fallin’ (Free fallin’, I’m-a free fallin’) Yeah I’m free, free fallin’ (Free fallin’, I’m-a free fallin’)” When Tom Petty’s song, “Free Fallin’,” was released in 1989, he probably didn’t expect that his death would occur in October 2017 at age 66 as the result of an…
Read MoreIs Your Psoas Causing Your Lower Back Pain?
This is an article by Anne Keiley. I offer it with the author’s permission for informational purposes. The author and I have no financial involvement. THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE HER OWN AND DO NOT REPRESENT MY VIEW OR MEDICAL ADVICE. Photo by Sam Burriss on Unsplash Is Your Psoas Causing Your Lower Back Pain? A…
Read MoreFormer Secretary of State George P. Shultz’s Mea Culpa on the War on Drugs
A Unique Perspective of the War on Drugs George Shultz has fought the war on drugs. He worked as the Secretary of State during the Reagan Administration when First Lady Nancy Reagan failed to significantly decrease drug abuse with her well-intended, yet overly simplistic, “Just Say No” campaign. He has a unique perspective on the…
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