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A stunning memoir about one woman’s accidental addiction to benzodiazepines, Blood Orange Night is a raw story of resilience and strength. With unflinching candor, his book tells of Bond’s self-advocacy and perseverance through insomnia, dependence and the slow tapering off of the pills. “The writing here is propulsive and vivid; you’re with the author through some truly nightmarish events, most especially the blood orange night of the title.” — Sallye L, Our Biography and Memoir Buyer
In 2020, the FDA began requiring benzodiazepines to be labeled with a warning that physical dependence can occur within days or weeks and that stopping them abruptly can lead to life-threatening seizures. Celebrities such as Chance the Rapper and Justin Bieber have spoken openly about their addiction to another benzo, Xanax. Benzo-related deaths have increased 10-fold in the US in the past 20 years and medical professionals still overprescribe these kinds of drugs.
Writing her book, “Blood Orange Night: My Journey to the Edge of Madness,, was a way, she said, of informing a larger audience of people about the side effects of benzodiazepines — which Bond called the next big drug epidemic of which people are not aware.
Radio
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Television
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Melissa Bond shares her amazing new Book Blood Orange Night, My journey to the edge of madness. Brain on Fire meets High Achiever in this visceral, propulsive memoir detailing a woman’s accidental descent into prescription benzodiazepine dependence and the life-threatening impacts of the drugs’ long-term use.
Podcasts
Moms Don't Have Time to Read Books
Poet, journalist, and artist Melissa Bond joins Zibby to talk about her debut memoir, Blood Orange Night. The two talk about Melissa's pathological insomnia which spiraled into a dangerous addiction to her sleeping pills, how this experience affected her as a creator, a wife, and a mother, and what she wishes more people would know about the side effects of certain prescription drugs.
Benzodiazepine Awareness with Geraldine Burns
Melissa Bond is a narrative journalist and poet. In the years of her dependence on benzodiazepines, Melissa blogged and became a regular contributor for Mad in America. ABC World News Tonight interviewed her for a piece in January 2014. Melissa is a respected writer on the perils of over-prescribing benzodiazepines and has been featured on PBS Story in the Public Square, Radio West, the podcasts Risk!, IGNTD, and Psychology Unplugged.
Make Some Noise with Andrea Owen
Melissa Bond joins me to discuss her story of addiction and recovery from benzodiazepines, more specifically, Ativan. Melissa is a narrative journalist and poet. In the years of her dependence on benzodiazepines, she has blogged and became a regular contributor for Mad in America. She is also the author of the memoir Blood Orange Night where she writes about becoming dependent upon and then withdrawing from benzodiazepines.