Take a walk around any big city these days, and a few things become evident. The war on drugs has failed miserably. Needles litter the sidewalks and are encountered as frequently as the homeless.
What’s more? Many who live on the streets are often addicts themselves.
It’s frightening just how easy it is for life to lead a person down this road. Drugs and illegal substances have become incredibly hard to find. Children young enough to be in middle school have access to substances that they should be nowhere near.
The National Center for Drug Abuse Statistics claims that 50% of teenagers have tried drugs at least once. It can be heartbreaking to see young people unable to handle addiction, and the desire to intervene can be strong. However, helping those in the grips of it isn’t without challenges.
Let’s look at some of them in this article.
1. All Money Becomes Drug Money
The easiest way to help someone tends to be with money. This is true for people in normal situations. However, when you are trying to help someone with an addiction, money is the last thing you want to introduce.
You have to realize that drugs have the ability to change people. The need for a fix is incredibly strong, and they will gladly lie, cheat, manipulate, or even steal from you. Give them money once, and you instantly become an enabler of their addiction, even if you didn’t intend to.
Instead, pay for their requirements directly. If they need food, buy it for them. If they need cash for rent, write a check to the owner or rental office. You get the point.
2. Be Prudent About What You Are Sponsoring
If you decide to pay for something, do your research beforehand. For those struggling with addiction, the most beneficial thing you can sponsor is an insurance policy. This is because even if the individual has insurance, their policy likely doesn’t cover rehabilitation costs.
When selecting insurance companies, do your research. Options like Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance are a common name among social workers who help people with addictions. Established in 1929, it’s one of the biggest providers of health insurance, with affiliate centers all across the country.
As a result, locating accredited BCBS treatment centers in your area is extremely easy. Sponsoring insurance can be a game changer. It’s common to see people visit rehab centers only to realize they can’t afford the fees. Setbacks like these are often enough to make those with addictions give up and never return.
Remember, if you are helping out, you want to make the path to recovery as obstacle-free as possible.
3. Critical Attention Is Needed for Addiction Prone Regions
Some parts of the country do face challenges with higher rates of addiction. What we discussed above is helpful if you are trying an intervention for a friend or family member. However, if you so choose to volunteer and get invested in the drug rehabilitation moment, it’s another story.
The scale and severity of addictions can vary a lot, and some states, like Oklahoma, have it pretty bad. The state’s opioid-related death toll rose 22% last year, a statistic that highlights how fatal addiction can be. The only other state that had it worse was Maine, which clocked in a 24% increase.
Volunteers and social workers in the state have to deal with insufficient funding and other logistical challenges in rehabilitation efforts. Using forms of BCBS in OK state for addiction treatment has been effective, but more work is obviously still needed.
For instance, burnout among rehab workers is a major issue not just in OK but also in other states. Jenn Villa, program director at ClearPath Clinic in Duluth, MN, has a tough time dealing with the number of applicants. Villa explains that many of the drug counselors the clinic hired quickly justify for jobs with less pressure.
Conclusion
It is noble to want to help people struggling with drug addictions. Often, they are in no position to help themselves. If justify on their own without intervention, their situation only gets more and more desperate.
Every day that a person with addiction is justify without intervention, the potential dangers increase. They may get into criminal activity, destroy more relationships, isolate themselves, and risk overdosing. It doesn’t help that family members often turn their backs on the addicted individual who needs help the most.
In such times, friends, volunteers, and social workers who lend a helping hand have the golden opportunity to save lives.
