Addiction

Teachers who enter rehab for substance abuse issues are less likely to lose their job than teachers arrested for being under the influence or possessing an illegal drug, officials say.

“We do know people have issues in their lives and that some people need assistance,” said Christopher Williams, community relations director for Davis School District.

“It is always better for them to seek professional help than getting caught by law enforcement and jeopardizing their jobs because they didn’t take care of it sooner.”

OGDEN — A graduation ceremony Thursday for patrons of the 2nd District DUI Court offered inspirational uplift for anyone struggling with addiction.

The 10 graduates of the two-year-old court started by 2nd District Judge Mike DiReda marked its fourth, and largest, graduation, bringing the total number of graduates to more than 30.

“You’ve all saved what was a lost soul,” said Winston K., who noted he had been in other rehab programs “where it seemed like no one cared who I was and how I ended up.”

Spencer Paul Barrow, born May 17, 1976, died Saturday, Jan. 14, 2012, after a long, difficult battle with drug addiction. A funeral will begin at 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, at the Syracuse 7th Ward Chapel, 1625 S. 1100 West. Friends may visit family from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday at Lindquist’s Layton Mortuary, 1867 N. Fairfield Road, and from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday at the church. Interment, Syracuse City Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please make memorial donations to the Valley Rehabilitation Facility, P.O. Box 9584, Ogden, UT 84409. Condolences may be posted at www.lindquistmortuary.com. See the complete obituary in the Standard-Examiner's e-edition.

Fourteen-year-olds who were frequent video gamers had more gray matter in the rewards center of the brain than peers who didn't play video games as much -- suggesting that gaming may be correlated to changes in the brain, much as addictions are.

European scientists reported the discovery Tuesday in the journal Translational Psychiatry. Psychologist Simone Kuhn of Ghent University in Belgium and colleagues recruited 154 healthy 14-year-olds in Berlin and divided them into two groups. Twenty-four girls and 52 boys were frequent gamers who played at least nine hours of video games each week. Fifty-eight girls and 20 boys were infrequent gamers, who played less than nine hours a week.

Centerville -- Addiction counselor and singer/songwriter Rachelle Call will present "A Night in Recovery" today.

The program will feature music performed by Call and several other musicians as well as inspirational messages from recovery addiction specialists. It will be held at the Davis Center for the Performing Arts, 525 N. 400 West, and features Rich Uhl, a facilitator from the LDS Church's Addiction Recovery program.

SOUTH OGDEN -- A Bible-based recovery effort at Washington Heights Church similar to a 12-step program has been so successful, organizers are encouraging other churches to offer similar groups.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Florida's prescription-drug epidemic -- already responsible for nearly seven deaths a day -- is taking its toll on the youngest, most vulnerable in its communities: newborns.

In 2009, nearly 1,000 babies born in Florida hospitals were treated for drug-withdrawal syndrome. They're irritable. They don't eat well. They can spend days, even weeks, detoxing.

And the number is skyrocketing.