Painkillers in the NFL:Keith McCants on the war within
- Thread starter Roll Tide 00
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please, he was a 21 year old kid who was told "take these pills and play and we'll give you 7+ Million dollars". It left him broken and addicted. Does he have some responsibility here, of course, but what about the medical professionals hired by the Bucs that were supposed to be looking out for his health and well being? Or the league that should have been (and frankly still isnt) over seeing the amount of drugs getting pumped into these kids bodies? It's easy to judge him for the choices he made but how many of us would have made different ones.
While I think basic decency and compassion can feel for McCants somewhat, I think there's also a reality check necessary.
1) People lose their jobs every day. And they are cut off immediately. I had the safest job security in the world: I was in the USAF while we were fighting TWO WARS. On April 9, 2004, I was called into an office after a 12.5 year career (over halfway to retirement) and told my services were no longer needed, and that my last day in the military would be September 9. Yes, I got a VA disability out of it, but the flip side is that I didn't get a $2.5 million CASH signing bonus that I blew, either. I didn't even approach HALF of that in military salary over 12 years. And I lost everything, too. I got six months medical the other side and had to hunker down and figure out what I was going to do.
MANY people don't even get my situation - they walk in and are told the company is moving overseas and here's your severance pay. Or sometimes not even that. My situation could have been worse and so could McCants's.
2) McCants was like any other 21-year old kid, he thought he was immortal and invincible. He did what he was told. This to me is something the players union needs to address. This is the sad thing in life: people who EXCEL to a high rate in one particular field rarely have any other talents to market. And make no mistake, McCants as a college player was from another world. In 1989, it was often said by the TV guys that McCants was better than Cornelius Bennett, better than Derrick Thomas. THINK about that!!! That's how good he looked on the field that year.
3) Compartmentalizing behavior is a difficult task, but everyone has to do this.
I mean, does Navy SEAL translate into any civilian job, for example? I've known SEALs who were so calm and quiet you'd never know they were SEALs. But all of us have to hit the off switch when we leave work. Soldiers, football players, lawyers, doctors, everyone.
4) I would have less problem with this if McCants at least seemed to accept SOME responsibility for some of it. It may be unintentional, but he comes across as "this is all somebody else's fault." To be fair - we didn't see the whole interview but merely excerpts.
I hope he gets it gets it together without a suicide - I truly do.
1) People lose their jobs every day. And they are cut off immediately. I had the safest job security in the world: I was in the USAF while we were fighting TWO WARS. On April 9, 2004, I was called into an office after a 12.5 year career (over halfway to retirement) and told my services were no longer needed, and that my last day in the military would be September 9. Yes, I got a VA disability out of it, but the flip side is that I didn't get a $2.5 million CASH signing bonus that I blew, either. I didn't even approach HALF of that in military salary over 12 years. And I lost everything, too. I got six months medical the other side and had to hunker down and figure out what I was going to do.
MANY people don't even get my situation - they walk in and are told the company is moving overseas and here's your severance pay. Or sometimes not even that. My situation could have been worse and so could McCants's.
2) McCants was like any other 21-year old kid, he thought he was immortal and invincible. He did what he was told. This to me is something the players union needs to address. This is the sad thing in life: people who EXCEL to a high rate in one particular field rarely have any other talents to market. And make no mistake, McCants as a college player was from another world. In 1989, it was often said by the TV guys that McCants was better than Cornelius Bennett, better than Derrick Thomas. THINK about that!!! That's how good he looked on the field that year.
3) Compartmentalizing behavior is a difficult task, but everyone has to do this.
I mean, does Navy SEAL translate into any civilian job, for example? I've known SEALs who were so calm and quiet you'd never know they were SEALs. But all of us have to hit the off switch when we leave work. Soldiers, football players, lawyers, doctors, everyone.
4) I would have less problem with this if McCants at least seemed to accept SOME responsibility for some of it. It may be unintentional, but he comes across as "this is all somebody else's fault." To be fair - we didn't see the whole interview but merely excerpts.
I hope he gets it gets it together without a suicide - I truly do.
As someone who has gone through drug addition, you do have to at some point realize that you are the problem and not the drugs. Addicts make excuses all the time so they don't have to take responsibility. I did drugs for 12 years of my life. I've pretty much done them all. Trust me you know when you are addicted, it doesn't creep up on you.
I'm one of the blessed persons who by the grace of God and a supportive family, kicked my habit. I do very much feel sympathy for Keith. My hope is that he can learn it wasn't the NFL it was him. Maybe they do hand out pain pills too easily but again it's up to you to get yourself well. God bless you Keith McCants.
I'm one of the blessed persons who by the grace of God and a supportive family, kicked my habit. I do very much feel sympathy for Keith. My hope is that he can learn it wasn't the NFL it was him. Maybe they do hand out pain pills too easily but again it's up to you to get yourself well. God bless you Keith McCants.
This issue hits home with me and I realize the situation McCants is in. After a bone fusion on my spine I was having steady unbearable pain going down my left leg, the surgeon said that nothing could be done about it. I was the 20% that the operation wasn't successful on. 9 years ago I took 1- 5 mg lortab, 2 years later I took1-10mg lortab to stop the pain. For 3 years I have been taking 2- 10mg. to stop the pain and it has now gotten to the point that 2-10mg lortabs don't stop the pain. Where is this going to end up? I've seen addicts throw 6-10mg lortabs in their mouth and chew them and swallow them with coffee. Am I going to end up like that? God please, I hope not. When you can't lay in bed because of the pain and sleeping pills make you stumble around the house all night and you can't drive because of falling asleep and running off the road and wrecking, some thing has to give. I feel sorry for the Keith McCants of the world. Suicide is the easy way out but that hurts too many people besides yourself.
I have a relative that has been one of the thought leaders on the subject of addiction for more than thirty years. He would disagree with you that addicts are the ones solely responsible for their issues. Certainly poor choices put them into their situation and they are ultimately responsible for the consequences of their choices and behavior ("a stinkin" way of thinkin"). But he will also tell you that irresponsibly of many in his own profession have exacerbated the problem with over prescribing.
The NFL and I hate to say, some universities, with the use of things like toradol have stepped too close or over the line in use of prescription painkillers. And they, like the addict, are responsible for that part of their behavior.
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How are you going to "think your way out of it" when every part of your brain tells you "If I don't use, I'll die. I do use, I'll die.'?
That is the reason treatment exists. Once someone like McCants' has suffered through years of chronic substance abuse and chemical dysregulation of the brain has occurred, thinking your way out of it doesn't happen. A cognitive decision to seek and accept help can, but the addict, in of themselves, very rarely can just "walk away from it".
Below is an abstract from 2002 and since it has been backed dozens of peer review studies in leading medical journals.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2851054/
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I have had most of mine spine fused for twenty years now. I have been we're you are, and it does suck. If you ever feel like you want to go a different route, send me a pm. I stopped taking pills when I fell asleep at a red light in Montgomery. Thank God no one was hurt.
It's plain to see that you don't have a clue what you are talking about. Not trying to be a smart arse but if you've never been there you don't have a clue.
Sometimes, if you don't know what you're talking about it's best to say nothing. Before I became disabled I spent many hours going to Narcotics anonymous to support friends that had an addiction, I spent lots of money on taxicab rides when they gave the excuse that they couldn't afford a taxi. I went to N/A meetings in Birmingham, Nashville, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and several more cities along the rivers, I never thought one day I would be in the same shape and if something doesn'tchange I see me headed that way, full speed ahead. When you would do most anything to stop the pain you have the first hint that you are in trouble, then it will finally gets to the point where even if there is no pain you want the pain pills because of the addiction.
I appreciate Alabama people taking up for Keith. The time he was here in Tampa, I had a very close relationship with the Bucs.
all I'm gonna say is Keith's issues had more to do with the crowd he hung around & the places he went than anything else. A lot of good people tried to help Keith but he was not wanting help.
all I'm gonna say is Keith's issues had more to do with the crowd he hung around & the places he went than anything else. A lot of good people tried to help Keith but he was not wanting help.
That's sad, I've always heard that when you hit bottom you will start seeking help. Eating out of garbage cans, in my opinion, is hitting bottom. Apparently not so for Keith McCants if he still doesn't want help. I don't really know his situation but maybe he doesn't know how to get help or is afraid of being ridiculed by his so called friends. First thing for Keith McCants to do is get far away from the crowd he was hanging with.
Some statements here seem to treat drug use for fun with drug use to stop chronic pain. They're hardly the same. I did a lot of recreational drugs back in the late 60's and 70's. For business reasons I had to make a choice of continuing my fling with feel good, or progress in my business and personal life. When I quit, I just went back to a healthy, more productive life. I didn't have pain kicking my butt and mind to depths that I couldn't manage without painkilling drugs. Everyone should be able to understand and appreciate the immense differences. I had a callous opinion of McCants for years. As for his behavior or who/where he hung out, isn't it quite possible that those choices were a result of the pain killer addiction and not the person. I've quit many bad habits in my life simply by decision, but I don't pretend to think that I could handle a debilitating pain issue in the same way, if at all. I pray for the best results for Keith, Capnfrog, and all who face this issue. God Bless you all.
You got it right. Most people don't understand the difference. Taking the drugs for pain eventually leads to addiction.
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