The Ideal Time Frame for Drug Rehab

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, “addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing disorder characterized by compulsive drug seeking, continued use despite harmful consequences, and long-lasting changes in the brain.” In other words, addiction affects both the physical and mental health of an individual. Drug and alcohol abuse and mental illnesses can feed off of each other, which is why a treatment program cannot only address the physical aspects of addiction.

That being said, addiction treatment goes beyond the usual methods of detoxification, the process of removing toxic substances from the body, and abstinence, the practice of restraining oneself from consuming substances. The addicted person needs to be treated for both the physical and mental effects that the addiction has had on them, as well as any mental illnesses they may have. This is important because studies have shown that mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety have a strong relationship with addiction. A holistic approach that heals both the mind and body is needed for a successful recovery.

The reason why a holistic approach is needed is because even people who have gone through treatment for a substance use disorder can be susceptible to relapses if they are not equipped with proper resources during their treatment to return to their daily lives. The relapse rate for substance use disorders is estimated to be between 40% and 60%, which is similar to rates of relapse for other diseases such as hypertension or asthma. This may be because individuals were not given enough resources to deal with triggers once they return to their daily lives, or enough support both during and after the treatment. An important factor in determining the success of an addiction treatment and preventing potential future relapses is the time allocated to addiction treatment programs.

Short Term Drug Rehab vs. Long Term Drug Rehab

A typical and tradition addiction treatment is about 30 days and can last up to no more than 90 days. Although this 30-day treatment can be effective for some people, recent studies have shown that long-term treatment (which lasts for more than 90 days) has a higher success rate, especially for individuals who are suffering from severe addictions and/or have been relapses since their previous treatments. Long-term drug rehab is also especially beneficial for individuals with a dual diagnosis, simultaneously experiencing a mental disorder and a substance use disorder.

Short-term addiction treatment provides intensive support within a short amount of time, allowing individuals to return quickly to their daily lives. However, because time is limited, facilities are only able to focus on detox and the management of withdrawal symptoms, leaving little time to individual and group therapy which can be very influential in an individual’s recovery. On the other hand, long-term addiction treatment provides support and resources that go beyond the usual “detox” into the real work of recovery of helping individuals heal mentally, reducing risks of relapse.

Benefits of Long-Term Drug Rehab

Prolonged substance abuse has a strong effect on one’s decision making process and judgment especially since their brains have been altered from their addiction. Because they have been affected for so long, it is only natural that it will take time to get rid of old habits and develop better ones. As the addicted person learns to break the cycle of relapse and dependence on drugs, they are also gaining self-confidence and allowing their bodies to heal physically through proper nutrition and therapeutic activities. The following are some benefits of long term drug rehab:

Drug and Alcohol-Free Environment

In long-term drug rehab, individuals are placed in a positive environment filled with professionals and peers with like-minded goals. Individuals will be separated from negative influences such as enabling peers or environments that look down on sobriety. There will be no temptation when accessibility to illicit substances is prohibited.

Structure

Structure is a very important aspect of your life because it helps you make sense of your life and gives you a sense of ownership. The lack of structure can actually be an enabler for substance abuse especially when one feels unconfident, unmotivated, and overwhelmed. At these dual diagnosis treatment facilities, individuals are given set schedules to follow, bringing order to what may have been a chaotic life. These schedules include any physical treatment they need as well as therapeutic activities that help to reinforce recovery and allow individuals to feel a sense of accomplishment.

Constant Support and Supervision

None of the treatments would be possible without the help of professional staff that support individuals in their journey to sobriety and supervise their progress. During long-term drug rehab, individuals will have 24/7 access during and after their retreatment. Certain facilities have alumni programs that they highly encourage individuals to join after completing their long-term addiction treatments. Since family will not be able to be present, professional assistance and support will be of convenient access whenever needed, especially in critical moments such as the likelihood of relapses.

Sober Peers and Accountability

The drug rehab facility can help create an environment where individuals can meet peers who have similar experiences to them and are also working toward sobriety. These friendships can grow and strengthen over the duration of their long-term drug rehab, even extending to life after treatment. Having peers who can understand them helps them know that they aren’t the only ones struggling through things and that they are not alone. Often time, it is very easy for individuals to feel like an outcast due to their struggles with addiction. A strong support system from their peers helps them attain a feeling of belonging and create an accountability check.

Therapy Options

Another great benefit to long-term treatment is there is access to many more therapy options that can help an individual’s recovery. Whereas short-term drug rehab may only have time to focus on the physical aspects of recovery, dual diagnosis treatment facilities can offer medical, social, and psychiatric services. Instead of focusing on just the detox, the extra time in long-term treatment allows for more time with learning how to function in society.

Practice for Real Life

In my opinion, the most important thing that long term drug rehab can offer to their clients is the time and practice of life skills in a safe and substance-free environment. Different facilities have different methods, but it usually involves a slow transition from partial-hospitalization (depending on how severe the addiction is) to living at the facility to being able to go to work while attending activities held at the facility. It takes time for people to learn new things and adjust. A long-term addiction treatment also includes formal aftercare and community self-help groups that continue to assist their former clients.

Why Do Interventions Fail?

In the context of addiction, an intervention is a process by which family members and friends (and maybe a professional intervention specialist) show someone who is struggling with addiction the negative consequences he has on his own life and those who care for him. Interventions are needed when the addicted person cannot be motivated to seek help on his own and his behavior puts both himself and others around him in danger.

I have heard people say that you should wait until the person hits rock bottom and realize on his own that he needs help because he can only go up from where he landed. However, what is “rock bottom” defined as? And what if “rock bottom” means an overdose or a car accident? If you notice that someone close to you is struggling with addiction and is putting not only himself but also others in danger, it is your responsibility to intervene.

You don’t need permission to warn someone that they are about to walk into a door, so why do you need permission to save someone’s life? Done correctly, an intervention can save and change someone’s life for the better. However, interventions can fail very easily when the people involved are not equipped with proper intervention strategies for drug addiction.

Why do Interventions Fail?

According to the 2016 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an estimated 21.0 million people aged 12 or older needed substance use treatment, but only 3.8 million received any treatment. One of the reasons why this number may be the effects failed interventions. Interventions staged without professional help or sufficient knowledge are a lot more susceptible to failure because families and friends. Let us explore a few reasons why interventions fail in general:

Intervention costs

Interventions can be costly and not everyone has that money. Depending on whether you choose a company or an individual to assist in the intervention, costs can range from $2,500 up to $10,000. This cost can easily deter people from seeking professional help could be critical in making an intervention successful.

Lacking a Unified Front

A unified front from everyone involved in the intervention is critical to its success. If a participant was not informed properly of the plans ahead of time or they let their heart become soft during the intervention, the addict will be quick to use him/her to his advantage. During the intervention, the addict will be sat in the middle; should he find an opportunity to foil the intervention or break out, he will definitely pounce on it. Thus, it is important that everyone involved has the mental fortitude to follow through with the set plan.

Shaming the Addicted Person

Although intervention requires that the people involved help the addicted person become aware of his dangerous and detrimental behavior, it is not helpful to point fingers or shame him at all. The addicted person has most likely be carrying a lot of shame and guilt that could also be the root of their addiction. Don’t make him feel worse than he may already feel, or else he will simply be unreceptive to anything you say. Try avoiding statements beginning with “you” and talk more about how you feel using “I statements.”

Lack of Planning Post-Intervention

Be prepared for anything. Sometimes, interventions fail because there was no concrete plan immediately following it. If you allow the addicted person time to choose a treatment center or even to pack, you are allowing the addicted person more time to think about his decision and he could easily rationalize that he does not need treatment even though he had agreed to it during the intervention. You can avoid this by having picked out a treatment center (preferably far away, by plane), transportation booked, and bags packed. This way, there would be a smooth and immediate transition that would leave no room for escape.

Insufficient Knowledge on Addiction

If participants staging the intervention are not knowledgeable about addiction in general or know how to navigate the psychology of people who struggle with addiction, the chances of the intervention failing is a lot higher. You may not have all the time to pour over research or comb through articles online, and even if you do, you may not know where to look. You may miss out on certain information or not know how to react if the addicted person says or does something that you did not expect. If you falter at all, the addicted person will notice and use that as an excuse to avoid treatment. Your best bet is to hire a professional who can educate the participants on the statistics of addiction recovery, methods and tips for navigating difficult situations, and he can be a mediator for you and your loved one. A trained interventionist understands the correlation between addiction and psychology, and is properly trained to help guide everyone through the process.

Poor Timing

Timing is critical to arriving at a successful intervention, yet it is one of the easiest components to overlook. Choose when to intervene wisely. Do not stage an intervention when the addicted person is intoxicated because he would not be cognizant to anything that is happening to him.

Why You Might Need a Professional Interventionist

Although a professional interventionist is not always necessary, he can still increase the chances of the addicted person agreeing to treatment. I would personally hire a professional for two main reasons: they have experience and will handle the work for you. Although you may not be considering a professional’s help, but there are certain situations where it would be best for them to step in, such as:

History of mental illness
Abusive or violent behavior
Suicidal behaviors

Whatever you decide, there is no right or wrong answer.

Gender and Addiction

Colleges are pretty smart when it comes to alcohol safety education on campus. After officially accepting Boston University as my college of choice, I was immediately directed to fulfill certain requirements like health forms and complete a course on alcohol consumption. Being a rather sheltered child, I had never been exposed to much alcohol (other than the occasional beers I see my dad drink). I knew the consequences of being drunk because there were so many assemblies about drunk driving or texting while driving. Consequently, I was pretty intrigued with the mandatory course on alcohol consumption. I learned a lot about: about how much one serving of alcohol was for different types of drinks, how alcohol prevents you from being cognizant, and what you can do if you find someone intoxicated.

After I joined a club on campus that mandated a workshop on alcohol, I learned more about other factors that affect one’s blood alcohol concentration such as weight, birth sex, food, strength of drink, rate of drinking, and drug use. There is one particular exercise that I always look forward to -- it involved creating a fictional girl (as my club was a sorority) and mapping out a regular Friday night for her going out to drink. We would figure out her BAC levels using an online BAC Calculator. At the end of the workshop, we were also handed little cards comparing BAC levels between men and women.

After the facts and this exercise, I would be reminded that alcohol affects women a lot faster than it does for men. And, this got me thinking about the relationship between substance abuse and gender.

Sex vs Gender

Before we dive into how gender affects alcohol addiction and drug abuse, I want to clear up some definitions. Sex refers to the physical, biological characteristics that we are born with while gender refers to societal roles set by our society.. For my post, I will be using gender to identify the same sexual and gender characteristics.

Substance Use in Men and Women

Substance use differs between men and women because of our their physical bodies as well as their gender roles in society. There are different motivating factors as well as genetic dispositions that influence how one becomes addicted to drugs and/or alcohol

Mental Health

Without a doubt, there is a strong correlation between mental health and substance abuse. Unfortunately, according to the Anxiety Disorders Association of America, women are 70 times more likely than men to be diagnosed with major depression and twice as likely to develop an anxiety disorders. This means that women are more likely to abuse prescription drugs that have be prescribed for their anxiety disorders or depression. In another sense, women are also more likely to self-medicate than men especially when prescription opioids can be help decrease the fatigue from work, child care, and household chores.

Physical Differences

According to research, women are more likely to anticipate pleasure and rewards with drugs due to their estrogen levels. When they take drugs, estrogen trigger receptors that help women feel the effects of the substances a lot faster than it does for women. For example, women have a harder time giving up smoking because their bodies metabolize nicotine faster and the nicotine patches and gum are unable to work as effectively as they do for men.

While estrogen helps women seek after the pleasure aspect of drugs and alcohol, male brains release a greater amount of dopamine from alcohol than women.

In terms of alcohol, women and men also metabolize alcohol very differently. Men have a higher concentration of a particular enzyme that helps metabolize alcohol, thus they sober up faster than women.

Drug use can increase infertility in both men and women. In women, it can even hasten the onset of menopause. Women should also not use drugs when pregnant because the drugs can pass on to their children through the blood system and their breast milk

Societal Roles

One of the reasons why men continue to use drugs and consume alcohol is because these actions reinforce their masculinity. On the flip side, women participate in the consumption of drugs and alcohol as a socializing event.

Addiction Treatment

Drug addiction had been studied from a male perspective and that means a lot of prevent programs and rehab facilities have been designed for men. Now that there has been more research done on the effects of both men and women, we know that men and women need different types of treatment.

Women are often better at identifying and acknowledging their problems and taking the necessary steps to get help for their conditions. However, at the same time, wanting to go in for treatment can be very difficult if they have a family to worry about. Some might even hide the fact that they have a problem fearing that they could possibly lose custody of their children. Women are also prone to a higher rate of relapse, so they should be put in contact with people who can help navigate those situations should they arise. An ideal environment will allow women to feel supported and empowered, provide quality child care options on site, and lead by women.

When approaching treatment, men have a harder time acknowledging that they have a problem and that they need help. This may be because of our society’s ideals on masculinity. Consequently, the only way they can be motivated to accept treatment is if they are faced with ultimatums such as prison, divorce, loss of custody, or loss of employment/enrollment.

Having gender-specific treatment programs allows men and women to feel comfortable opening up about sensitive issues and be free of distractions that the opposite sex could pose.

Art Therapy

It has been a little over a year now since I picked up brush lettering. I have always had a fascination with my own handwriting whether it be print or cursive. My younger self had made a few attempts with calligraphy that didn’t go so well, so I never thought I would take up brush lettering in the first place. I had a strong dislike for lettering because my fiancé’s ex is actually one of those people who makes cutesy cards to sell on Etsy. Just thinking about it makes me gag a little.

Now how did I end up brush lettering? Near the end of my junior year, I started experiencing depression and anxiety that crippled my mental health. There were times when I didn’t want to fight it, and I would skip class just so I could avoid seeing people or email understanding professors who would give me an extension on my essays.

I don’t know how I did it, but one night, I decided that I was going to cut the relation my mind had made between brush lettering and my fiancé’s ex. I went on Amazon and purchased a beginner brush lettering set. Mind you, I was really proud of my ability to detach emotions from something that was had been neutral, but tainted with my insecurities. And quite honestly, I am so glad I was able to do that because being open to brush lettering opened up a lot of doors for me as I found community through workshops provided by Caffeinated Letters. Caffeinated Letters is a collective of female artists with the goals to empower and inspire women to be boldly creative and build authentic community. Not only did I find a community, I also stumbled upon a very stress-relieving and therapeutic activity that I could incorporate into my daily life. Brush lettering became a creative outlet for me to cope with stress and control my anxiety.

Healing through Art Therapy

Although I personally never had my depression and/or anxiety treated officially diagnosed or received treatment, I can understand firsthand how art therapy is commonly used to treat psychological and mental health disorders. There is something to be said about breathing in and out as I pull the brush pen downwards and gently moved it upwards, slowly and carefully.

According to the American Art Therapy Association, art therapy is “a mental health profession that uses the creative process of art making to improve and enhance the physical, mental and emotional well-being of individuals of all ages. It is based on the belief that the creativity process involved in artistic self-expression helps people to resolve conflicts and problems, develop interpersonal skills, manage behavior, reduce stress, increase self-esteem and self-awareness, and achieve insight.” It not only helps people cope with anxiety and stress, but it is also used as a component of a person’s holistic addiction treatment.

Who is Art Therapy for?

Art therapy can be for everyone and anyone from young children to senior citizens as a means of communication and a way for them to express and explore their thoughts and emotions. Although no prior art experience is required, this type of therapy may not suit everyone. Here are some examples of people that strongly benefit from art therapy:

People with mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia.

People with learning difficulties or who are on the autistic spectrum that make it hard for them to verbalize their feelings.

People who suffer from dementia and struggle with feeling like they have a lack of personal identity.

People with a chronic/terminal illness such as cancer, leaving them potentially hopeless and in despair.

People who have a hard time expressing their thoughts verbally and find creative outlets a better communicator.

People who are coping with traumatic events and need medium to help process their emotions and trauma.

Consequently, art therapy can be found in hospitals, community organizations, senior communities, psychiatric rehabilitation centers, crisis centers, addiction rehabilitation centers, and domestic abuse shelters.

Goals of Art Therapy

Although there may be different materials, settings, and outcomes from each art therapy session, there are four concepts that remain constant:

Perception: Art therapy allows an individual to explore his/her own understanding of “self-perception” and “global perception,” leading the individual to recognize and validate his/her emotions.

Personal Integration: Through art, individuals can become more comfortable with their own identities and self-image.

Emotional Regulation: By channeling expression through a creative process, individuals can work on regulating his/her own emotions and impulses, leading to better emotional control.

Behavior Modification: Art therapy provides a space to exercise different responses to stressful situations, and it can help an individual learn how to better manage his/her behaviors in situations that cause them distress.

Types of Art Therapy

Art therapy comes in many different forms, and just because painting works for me doesn’t mean it would work for another individual. Below, I’ve listed some of my preferred mediums of art therapy when coping with stress:

Painting. This is probably the most creative art therapy technique because one has the freedom to paint whatever they please. However, people like me find that a little daunting so it’s helpful to know that trained art therapists can help by providing exercises or prompts to follow.

Collaging. Collaging is an art form that involves searching for pictures, cutting them out, and pasting them together on a piece of paper or board. You can choose any image that expresses your emotions or even inspires you. What I like about this is that you won’t have to draw or paint anything. People often use this technique to create vision boards of their dreams and goals in life.

Photography. Photography is similar to collaging because you can gather images of what you delight in, such as people you are thankful for or objects that you find pleasing to the eye. Once you have the photos, you can print them out and put them into your collage if you wish!

Recovering From Addiction

Recovering from alcohol addiction is not easy. It is important for someone going through the process to have a strong network throughout the journey. Alcoholics Anonymous is a good example of what a strong support network is like. This international fellowship consists of both men and women who have had drinking problems. It is nonprofessional, self-supporting, multiracial, apolitical and available almost everywhere. Within this fellowship, there is a sponsor-sponsee relationship in place to assist newly recovering addicts. In the face of relapse triggers and preventing relapse, we should stress the importance of having a recovery companion.

Do You Need an AA Sponsor?

If you are new to Alcoholics Anonymous, you are not required to have a sponsor nor do you need one. However, studies have shown that having a sponsor correlates positively with more attendance and abstinence over time. It is hard for anyone to by themselves, let alone be on their own in a difficult journey of alcohol recovery.

According to an Alcoholics Anonymous booklet, a sponsor is defined as “an alcoholic who has made some progress in the recovery program and shares that experience on a continuous, individual basis with another alcoholic who is attempting to attain or maintain sobriety through AA.” Not everyone is going through alcohol recovery with family and friend support. Their only support could just be the fellowship in Alcoholics Anonymous. An AA sponsor can be first and foremost, a friend who will be there for you, through the ups and downs. They can be a shoulder to cry on during difficult times and lend an ear while you are encountering old/new stresses of living sober.

The most important thing a sponsor can provide to their sponsee is hope. The sponsor is an example that sobriety is possible and that it is possible to leave addiction behind. They are also able to connect with the sponsee in their similar experiences and difficulties. It will be easier for the sponsor to express empathy for what the sponsee is going through because they have been there before. They can let their sponsee know that they are not alone in the process. Feelings of hope and fraternity can help keep away negative emotions that could contribute to depression or relapse triggers.

Sponsors can also be accountability partners keeping their sponsee and encouraging them through difficult times or helping them navigate difficult situations. For example, if a sponsee is feeling stressed, they can reach out to their sponsor via phone or text and get immediate support. Last but not least, a sponsor can also be a point of various recovery resources both inside and outside of Alcoholics Anonymous.

In summary, AA sponsors are tasked with encouraging sponsees to actively engage in AA events/activities, providing emotional and practical support, and sharing personal experiences about alcohol recovery.

Things a Sponsor Should Not Do

The sponsor-sponsee relationship is usually between two people of the same genders. However, there are a few exceptions to that in cases which the sponsee is gay and requests a female sponsor and the reverse, where the sponsee is lesbian and requests a male sponsor.

Although there aren’t many rules, here a few things that sponsors should NOT do according to their 12 Traditions:

Impose their personal views or opinions on religion or politics
Act as if they know everything
Claim to be a substitute for AA itself
Take offense when their sponsee decides to ask someone else from the AA community for help

Should You Become a Sponsor?

If you have been sober for at least a year and you feel that you want to give back by being a sponsor in your AA community, here is a list of things you should be capable of doing and willing to do:

Help your sponsee achieve and maintain sobriety in Alcoholics Anonymous
Be able to demonstrate to others how AA has helped you maintain your sobriety
Encourage your sponsee to attend AA meeting and activities
Be available to help your sponsee handle challenging and triggering situations.

It would also be a good idea to check with your own sponsor if you are truly ready to become a sponsor yourself because being a sponsor requires a lot of patience, understanding, and willingness to walk with the sponsee on his/her perhaps tumultuous journey of alcohol recovery.

Tips for Avoiding Triggers Battling Cravings

If you are new to alcohol recovery and have not decided on having an AA sponsor, here are some helpful tips to help you avoid relapses.

Figure out what triggers you: Everyone has different triggers including traumatic events, ongoing stress, peer pressure, loneliness, boredom, overconfidence, feelings of shame/embarrassment, or inability to cope. Identifying what your relapse triggers are can help you come up with plans to tackle them when such situations arise.

Create a Plan: Have a plan on how you can act when faced with trigger situations. Perhaps it is counting till 10, stepping out of the room to breathe, or calling up your recovery companion.

Think Rationally: If you find yourself wanting to get that glass of wine after a long day or smoke after handling a difficult customer, take a quick pause and think about why you are feeling stressed out. Think about how you can fix the problem that may be causing you stress first instead of reaching for that bottle of beer.

Find a Distraction: Sometimes, the best way to avoid something is to find something else to do. If you feel a craving, try distracting yourself with some other physical activity. Exercise gives you a boost in endorphins AND helps you reduce any stress and anxiety that you may have. You can also call up your sponsor, if you have one, and they can help walk you through the situation.

A Millennial’s View on Depression

My first bout of depression happened in middle school when my boyfriend of eight months dumped me two days before Valentine’s Day. I was sad, but I didn’t think much of it, shoving broken pieces of a pound of milk chocolate into my mouth. Fast forward to senior year of high school, my mom let me skip school that day because I didn’t feel well emotionally. I wasn’t sad, but I wasn’t happy either, just a feeling of not wanting to do anything. Jump to college, depression and anxiety decided to formally invite themselves into my life. I had always thought that depression meant I have to have suicidal thoughts, and I never had those thoughts. I didn’t think I could be going through depression until my fiancé (then boyfriend) asked if I was depressed. I remember going online and searching up the symptoms.

Apathy. Check. Difficulty concentrating. Check. Loss of interest in food. Check (this was the biggest red flag for me because even when I was sad before, I would still enjoy eating). Withdrawal from friends. Check.

Even as I distanced myself from things that I thought were causing me stress, I was still feeling very anxious, apathetic, and depressed. However, my own peers started opening up about mental health issues. And, I thought, why is my generation, the millennial generation, so susceptible to depression and other mental health issues?

I pondered this while scrolling aimlessly through Instagram and Snapchat, all the while wishing that my life could be better than where I currently was. It didn’t click then, but I would realize later on the connection between social media and mental health in millennials.

Millennials and Mental Health

Perfectionism

Growing up as a part of the millennial generation, I was constantly inspired by personal improvement in both the economic and social spheres. It was all about self-improvement and with mental health issues on the rise, now it’s self-care. There was a huge output of self-improvement books, workshops, guest speakers. People told me that I could achieve anything as long as I put my heart and mind to it: a college degree that leads to a good career that leads to better social standing and stability for my me and my parents as well. I didn’t know it, but that was a really heavy burden for a 15-year-old still trying to figure out who she was in this world while translating for her parents and trailblazing for her younger siblings. Millennials like me in the States are less concerned with working for a living, we are concerned with achieving perfection, leading us to set excessively high personal standards and being overly critical in our self-evaluations. Millennials experience all three types of perfectionism as described in the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale: self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially prescribed.

For me, my self-oriented perfectionism pushed me to hold two to three jobs at a time on top of taking a full semester, socializing, and managing club activities. I aspired to be a superwoman like all my peers who seemed so successful. My other-oriented perfectionism showed up in my annoyance and disappointment with those who couldn’t accomplish their club officer duties, straining my relationships. Lastly, my socially prescribed perfectionism manifested from people’s view of me as a superwoman: I was always on top of my things, I had a great romantic relationship, and I always approached issues very calmly. Behind closed doors, the stress eventually piled up and broke me. My room was a mess, my relationship was a mess, and I was very far from being calm. A vicious cycle started because I would see myself like this and hate myself for not being good enough, and depression would drag me down, even more, rendering me emotionless.

Social Media

At first, social media was simply a way to pass time and entertain myself with. But slowly, the contents I viewed began to shape my values or ideas of what being successful means. Instead of being able to see my own talents and accomplishments, I became envious of other people’s success as portrayed in their personal media. Other people seemed to have a better life than I had. I started critiquing myself and even had meltdowns when I felt like I couldn’t achieve anything. I didn’t feel like anything I did was enough. I felt like I was letting my parents down.

Statistics claim that 88% of 18 to 29-year-olds use some kind of social media network. I am positive that I am not the only one affected by social media, nor am I the only one carrying this burden of striving for perfection. As a generation, we millennials are taught to succeed in a certain way. But, not everyone fits into this idealistic image of success ranging from traveling for a living, starting their own company right out of college, having a career of their dreams. Our smartphones help us organize our lives, but they are also strongly correlated to anxiety and depression in millennials today.

How You Can Help

Notice the Symptoms

Apathy: They are expressing a lack of interest and emotions.

Difficulty Concentrating: They have a hard time paying attention in class or focusing on finishing a project

Excessive/Inappropriate Guilt: They feel that they are not enough and have not done enough for their loved ones.

Irresponsible Behavior: They usually turn in assignments on time, but they start missing deadlines.

Loss of Interest in Food/Compulsive Overeating: They are skipping meals and saying that they are not hungry or they are eating excessively and gaining weight

Preoccupation with Death/Dying: They talk about running away from everything and/or they start having a fascination with death itself.

Sadness, Anxiety, or Hopeless

Use of Alcohol/Drugs and Promiscuous Sexual Activity: They start abusing drugs and/or developing an alcohol addiction as a teen. They also care less about their bodies in general, wishing to just feel something through alcohol, drugs, and/or sex.

Withdrawal from Friends: They start declining to hang out or making up excuses to skip out on gatherings.

What You Can Do

Be a Listener: Focus on being there for your friend and listening to what they are going through. Avoid trying to “solve the problem” and try to empathetic to what they may be going through.

Encourage the Person to Get Help: Only encourage them to get help if they explicitly tell you they want help. If you push them towards treatment, they may feel that you do not care for them or that they are a burden to you. Present them with the options, but wait for them to take the initiative.

Support Them in Their Treatment: If they do decide to seek help, continue supporting them. It could mean accompanying them to their first counseling appointment or just being a positive influence.

Take Care of Yourself: Taking care of someone going through depression can be a strenuous task both emotionally and physically. Make sure to set boundaries and be open in communications. Seek support for others if you need it!

Homelessness and Drug Addiction in SF

When I studied abroad in France, I stayed with a host family who loved traveling and visiting places all around the world. I remember them telling me that San Francisco was their favorite city in the United States because the vibe there was most similar was most similar to what they are used to in France. San Francisco is a very liberal city and it is filled with so many different cultures, so I was not surprised that my open-minded host family would enjoy visiting the city. Unfortunately, just as much as Silicon Valley has been booming from the tech industry, San Francisco is suffering from a rise in homelessness and addiction.

Kicked Out by Investors

It is easy to take a look at the growth of tech companies in Silicon Valley as the main reason for the increase in rent and cost of living, but I assure you that it isn’t entirely their fault. In fact, the fault probably lies in the big firms and investors who, after the global financial crisis in 2008, started buying up single-family dwellings and raising the rent. As the years went by, investors started buying up units and renting them out on services like Airbnb, feeding straight into San Francisco’s tourist industry. And little by little, they began pushing residents who couldn’t afford such ridiculous prices. As of 2017, there are more than 7,000 homeless residents in San Francisco. Most of them do not have basic access to water, toilets and sanitation facilities. I remember 10 years ago when it seemed like San Francisco was doing a better job taking care of its homeless population by offering more low-income housing. It is not that San Francisco is do nothing to provide housing, it is just that they cannot provide housing fast enough for the rate at which people are losing their homes.

Tent Cities

Being unable to afford rent or relocate somewhere else, these residents turn to the streets where they face constant difficulties each day. If they are lucky, other residents give away tents to them so they can have some sort of shelter against the rain or cold. Like all humans do, people congregate and tent cities have sprung up all over San Francisco. Tent cities may sound nice, but their living conditions are terrible. With no access to water or basic sanitation facilities, the tent communities are filled with people, discarded needles, drugs, and human wastes, the perfect place for diseases to be contracted and spread.

Open Air Drug Markets

Homeless people can be victims of hard times, making them very susceptible to developing mental health issues and drug addictions. Mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, all of which can develop being homeless, are strongly linked to developing alcohol and substance addiction. It does not help that coming into possession of drugs now is a lot easier than before. Although California law prohibits possession of drugs like heroin, in 2014, state voters approved a law that classified possession of drugs as a misdemeanor rather than a felony. Police also do not go around arresting people who have small amounts of drugs users usually go straight back to injecting drugs after they are released. There also isn’t enough manpower to take care of every drug user. The police do just enough to keep violent drug-related crimes at bay or to one location. Consequently, open air drug markets are popping up all over the city and a lot more addicts are living on the streets. Whereas users use to shoot up in private, abandoned buildings or places, you know things are getting worse when you look hard enough and you can easily find people shooting up in public or lying around on the streets.

New Drug Programs in SF

In order to address the addiction problems in San Francisco, the city has started implementing new drug programs aiming to bring anti-addiction medication such as buprenorphine and naltrexone to addicts on the streets. Both buprenorphine and naltrexone can help addicts by blocking their cravings for opioids as well as experiencing the symptoms of withdrawal.

Normally, it would be better for the user themselves to be admitted into a treatment facility where they could have access to basic sanitization, 24/7 support and medical providers that can administer anti-medication appropriately. Buprenorphine, for example, must be distributed by medical providers to users daily and naltrexone requires the users to be clean for 7 to 10 days before receiving it. A drug user has a better chance of weaning off opioids in a controlled setting like a treatment facility.

However, not all drug users are comfortable using the formal medical system and may have mental health issues that keep them from keeping their appointments. They may also not have a means of getting to the facility, which is why the city made a wise decision to bring anti-medication directly to the users. Instead of waiting around for users to come to the government for help, these programs encourage people to be more proactive in helping the city’s residents. This is a great idea because, ideally, medical providers will be able to reach more people who are struggling with addiction. But, that also means the medical providers must be dedicated to consistently bringing treatment to the users out on the streets.

Safe Drug Consumption Sites

Another program that is in the works is the plan for having safe drug consumption sites set up. San Francisco is one of the few cities advocating for safe drug consumption sites where drug users can go for injections without fear of the dangers of the streets. In addition, users would have access to clean needles, as well as medical care and treatment if they are seeking drug addiction treatment. This is definitely a better option than injecting drugs in tent communities where diseases can spread from exposure to used needles and human feces.

The Importance of Your Work-Life Balance

The world is constantly striving to be better, faster, and more successful. We can see that in our technological advancements that improve productivity which drive up profits. Driven by money, employers place their employees under chronic stress that could put their mental health at risk. When employees are not provided with healthy alternatives or stress management skills, they can easily turn to unhealthy ways of coping such as smoking, drinking, and drugs. At any workplace, it is important to have resources like stress management education, addiction recovery resources, and drug addiction support.

I value having plenty of work-life balance in my future career because I have struggled to deal with stress under various circumstances that have put my mental health at risk. I am still learning stress management while balancing my daily activities from school to work to my personal life.

Now, what exactly is work-life balance? And what is its relation to workplace addiction?

The Fine Balance Between Work and Life

Work-life balance is an individual’s balance between time for work and time for other aspects of life such as family, friends, personal time, etc. So, unfortunately, I don’t have a rubric for what is a perfect balance between work and life since each individual prioritizes and values things differently. He/she may be in different stages of life and have different economic statuses. As an individual, it is your responsibility to understand what your own work-life balance is in order to establish healthy habits in your everyday life. It will not only benefit yourself but also those around you, from coworkers to friends to your family members. I have found it interesting to look at the generational differences between my father’s work-life balance and mine.

Although my father is part of Gen X, his work-life balance is similar to that of those in the Baby Boomers generation. It is probably because he experienced many hardships growing up and despite having only a high school degree, he worked his way to the States with my family in tow. Although family time was important to my father, he worked around 12 hours a day and on weekends because providing for his family was more important. Because he worked so much, he experienced moderate to high levels of stress that did affect the household dynamics. It’s better now, but it’s not unusual that he has been at that company for more than 10 years since, which is very different for millennials like me.

My ideal work-balance in a career is where the stress stays at work and doesn’t come home with me. For me, it is important that I have time for myself for personal reflection as well as time to pursue my hobbies. By participating in activities that give me joy, I then have a way to relieve my daily stress from work, and that is something I highly value on a day-to-day basis. I know that if I work continuously without any breaks or time for leisure, my productivity levels would drop and I would be prone to having more anxiety attacks. New tech companies like LinkedIn and Apple offer great work-life balance when they provide their employees with many health, fitness, nutritional, and networking benefits.

Poor Work-Life Balance Leads to Poor Choices

Poor work-life balance leads to constant stress on a person’s mental state which could lead to mental health issues. When one’s mental state is not stable, they are more likely to not have control over their impulses and become a perfect victim of alcohol and drug abuse.

The food & beverages industry is an industry in which poor work-life balance can be found. It is non-stop physical work and constant communication with people who aren’t necessarily the nicest. Imagine having to constantly deal with entitled customers who are seen as “royalty” and letting them talk down to you while you force a smile back and heed their almost every need, and then be given little to no tips. Let’s add on that you may have a family to support, or you’re taking night classes to finish school, so you’re really working hard and being treated like trash. You’re going to want to relax afterward, but the question is how? Having worked in this industry, I remember going home with a small bottle of wine to drink by myself (in moderation of course). But, I did have coworkers that would go out that same night to the club as a way to cope with the stress. They’ll come to work the next evening still hungover. Another thing that isn’t uncommon is that workers step out for a quick smoke after a super busy and stressful day.

Chronic stress in the workplace that goes unchecked can increase one’s vulnerability to addiction. The Self-Medication Hypothesis (first published in the American Journal of Psychiatry) offers an explanation as to why unchecked chronic stress at work may lead people to alcohol and substance abuse. When people are feeling bad, it’s only natural to want to feel good or get away from the situation that makes them feel bad.

Impacts of Workplace Addiction

Workplace addiction isn’t confined to just the food & beverage industry, it is most likely present everywhere you go. Workplace addiction is harmful and dangerous to both the company and its employees as seen in decreases of profit and increases of occupational injuries and fatalities. It’s hard to work with employees who are often tardy, requesting excessive days, sleeping on the job, making poor decisions due to being hungover, or overly aggressive or defensive. These are some of the effects of workplace addiction, and they serve as signs of addiction to watch out for as employers.

Creating a Healthy Workplace

In order to create a healthy workplace to benefit both the employer and employee, it is important to take time to learn about stress management. Some things you could do to manage your stress are:

Write down what stresses you out
Take time for yourself and relax
Get support if you need it
Develop healthy responses to stressful circumstances

Employers can do their part by establishing an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to address alcohol and drug problems and support recovery for addiction. For employees working remotely, there are also many online addiction recovery resources available.