Noah Spence officially out tomorrow; words from parents, spokesman

Submitted by justingoblue on

Spence has what his parents are calling a "medical illness" and say he is seeking treatment. His parents say they don't know how long the suspension will last but are working with OSU and the Big Ten to find a resolution after he apparently tested positive for ecstasy a second time. OSU will only confirm that he will not play against Kent State.

Hope he gets the help he needs.

Link.

Don

September 12th, 2014 at 4:38 PM ^

but since his parents mentioned an alleged medical condition, is MDMA ever used as a self-medication by those suffering from bipolar or other varieties of depression, the way alcohol and other drugs are?

James Burrill Angell

September 12th, 2014 at 5:28 PM ^

X is a party drug and apparently this kid likes to party. He got caught once, pulled some excuse about it being slipped to him to get out of trouble. Then, he wasn't smart enough to get help  if this was truly some kind of "medical" problem. Now he's been caught again and both his program and he need to put some kind of spin on it to minimize the damage to the program and his career. I'm sorry if I sound callous but its very hard for me to feel bad for this guy. 

TIMMMAAY

September 12th, 2014 at 7:01 PM ^

As dude above said, there are very real scientific studies happening with both mdma, and psilocybin to treat depression, ptsd, and some social illnesses. I agree he's likely just ppartying, but dont be so closed minded.

Erik_in_Dayton

September 12th, 2014 at 5:00 PM ^

I don't understand why that's hard to understand.  People self-medicate for anxiety and depression with booze, pot, cocaine, you name it. 

That doesn't mean it's a good idea.  If anything, it shows you why people need to connect with doctors. 

BloomingtonBlue

September 12th, 2014 at 5:06 PM ^

Okay I get that. But cocaine and E are used to party. If party and having a good time means curbing depression I guess so. If people are taking this when they wake up and then going about their normal day. That would be using it to treat depression. I don't know anyone who is doing that.



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Erik_in_Dayton

September 12th, 2014 at 5:19 PM ^

I don't know about cocaine.  But anything that makes you feel good offers an escape from depression, even if it's only for one or two nights per week.  Our hypothetical person might also be drinking on the other nights or smoking pot or whatever.  

Long story short:  I don't think you can expect self-medication to align perfectly with rational, consistent treatment of a mental health issue.  So I don't have trouble imagining someone using E to deal with depression. 

pescadero

September 12th, 2014 at 5:22 PM ^

http://psychcentral.com/news/2014/01/18/brain-scans-hint-at-therapy-use…

"Through the use of magnetic functional imaging (fMRI), researchers can now see what is happening in the brain during the euphoric state produced by the drug MDMA, or “ecstasy.”

The findings, published in the journal Biological Psychiatry, bring more clarity to how the drug might be used clinically for the treatment of anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

...

While inside the scanner, participants were asked to recall their favorite and worst life memories. They rated their favorite memories as more vivid, emotionally intense and positive after MDMA than placebo, and they rated their worst memories less negatively.

...

Under the influence of MDMA, communication between the medial temporal lobe and medial prefrontal cortex (involved in emotional control) was reduced. This effect, and the drop in limbic system activity, is opposite to patterns seen in patients who suffer from anxiety.

...

On the other hand, communication was heightened between the amygdala and the hippocampus—the opposite of what is typically seen in patients with PTSD.

'In healthy volunteers, MDMA seems to lessen the impact of painful memories.'"

BloomingtonBlue

September 12th, 2014 at 5:26 PM ^

Yeah okay ask someone who is drinking, doing drugs, eating, with their friends, with their family, playing sports, performing their favorite hobby, doing whatever it is that makes them happy. They'll a little bit happier in that moment and less sad about things that have happened in the past. It doesn't mean they're doing that thing to be less depressed. They could just be trying to have a good time and enjoy life.



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MGlobules

September 12th, 2014 at 5:36 PM ^

of Ecstasy in treating PTSD and other kinds of depression--this has received a fair amount of attention in the press of late. 

Not really getting everyone's take on this--he's a kid and X is pretty prevalent. It's also one of the more innocuous drugs, taken by middle and upper middle class kids. These kids aren't getting in trouble for drinking (only drunk driving or the results of overdoing the drinking). 

The laws are screwed up, the rules are screwed up, and illogical. And. . . this just isn't much of a thing. Yeah, you can argue that a kid with a scholly and an opportunity shouldn't screw it up. But with the kind of pressure they're sometimes under? When everyone else is drinking their asses off? I can certainly sacrifice a little sympathy for any kid in those circumstances.

BloomingtonBlue

September 12th, 2014 at 8:05 PM ^

Hey man, there's really no reason to be a dick. No one Is being close minded. All were saying is people use Ex and cocaine to party and have a good time. Just because they're now doing studies on these drugs and it happens that they may help doesn't change that fact.



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Maize and Blue…

September 12th, 2014 at 4:47 PM ^

the first time he got his NCAA suspension reduced because somebody supposedly slipped something in his drink.  Fool me once shame on me fool me twice... His parents stood by him and never mentioned anything about any medical condition.  All the sudden after the second incident he has a medical condition.  Not buying it!  I do hope the kid gets whatever help he needs and for his sake gets away from Urban as I picture the Buckeyes headed towards what the Gators were under Meyer.

Yooper Blue

September 13th, 2014 at 11:10 AM ^

Don, MDMA is a Schedule I controlled substance, which means it has no recognized legitimate medical use. That doesn't answer your question, but it isn't like he got some of it from someone's prescription drug bottle that way laying around like you get with those who abuse oxycontin or other painkillers. As you aptly point out with your question, many people attempt to self-medicate with whatever will make them feel better. Spence may just have been rolling on E because he likes to get high, but he may also take it because it allows him to escape for a few hours.

Tuebor

September 12th, 2014 at 4:45 PM ^

I thought the reason McGary got a year was because he tested positive on an NCAA administered test.  I assume Spence tested positive on an OSU administered test so they can suspend him how ever long they want.

Monocle Smile

September 12th, 2014 at 4:57 PM ^

Maybe there was some hidden snark, but the NCAA pulls this shit all the time where they put on a superficial appearance of being hardasses, but then they let schools and conferences handle shit like this "behind closed doors" and act like there's nothing to see here.

EDIT: Never mind. Apparently threatening the NCAA is effective, for some reason.

woodfeld

September 12th, 2014 at 4:56 PM ^

Actually, NCAA busted Spence for a year (like McGary) for that failed drug test (also for ecstasy), but he (and his parents) fought it saying it was slipped in his drink and got it reduced to 3 games.  His dad threatened to sue the Big Ten because of the yearlong suspension.

http://buckeyextra.dispatch.com/content/stories/2014/01/07/noah-spence-suspension.html

Given that he clearly lied about it being slipped in his drink, dude should be suspended that full year (or worse given that he lied).  But the more important matter here is that he gets help for what looks like an addiction.

SanDiegoWolverine

September 12th, 2014 at 5:24 PM ^

WTF are you talking about? I didn't do that shit in college but most who did just wanted to party hard. And I wasn't aware of anyone who was addicted to it. Dude just lacks self discipline. There's certain things you can't do when you're a D-1 college athlete without risking suspension. And if he wants to have leave his mind there is other stuff he can do and likely not get tested for. But I seriously doubt he needs 'help'.

AZBlue

September 12th, 2014 at 6:02 PM ^

A little harsh here imo - though he is a Buckeye so we shouldn't assume too much. Given the past positive on a test and the fact that he had to know he would be retested frequently I would suggest that this is probably more than just wanting to party and not doing it smart enough to avoid testing.

Gulogulo37

September 12th, 2014 at 9:42 PM ^

He should have stuck to the good drugs that don't harm you, like alcohol.

I haven't done E but I know plenty of people who have used it and a good time once in a while. Gets annoying how many people are alcoholics, how prevalent alcohol is in violence, rape, and sexual assault, drunk driving (for which many people give a handwaving dismissal), etc., but then someone does a different drug and it must be that their life is spinning out of control.

If you made alcohol illegal tomorrow, people would still drink. You don't think you'd see a bunch of repeat offender drinkers in college? If you think someone is addicted to E because they did it twice, then this whole country is a bunch of raging alcoholics.

Hell, usually the biggest danger with E is getting dehydrated or the fact that it's usually impure and you could have some other substances in there that you don't want.