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PAGE 12 April Issue 2021 By Elena Cleaves, Staff Writer By Elena Cleaves, Staff Writer Early months of the COVID-19 pandemic brought an 18% increase nationwide in substance use overdoses compared with the same months in 2019. A year after the initial outbreak, substance use has continued to increase due to pandemic-related stress including financial instability, job loss, homelessness, and isolation. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found 13% of Americans reported starting or increasing substance use to cope with stress or emotions related to COVID-19. A WalletHub study examining national drug abuse, rehab, and arrest data scored Missouri with the overall worst drug problem. The study considered 22 metrics and focused on three main data categories: drug use and addiction, law enforcement issues, and drug health issues and rehab. In these areas, Missouri scored 18th in drug use and addiction, 1st in law enforcement issues, and 16th in lack of health support and rehab opportunities. The Pitch KC has a breakdown of the study here. Along with substance use concerns, Missouri has seen a rise in symptoms of anxiety and depressive order in adults. In October 2020, 38.6% of adults in Missouri reported these symptoms compared to 37.7% of adults nationally. These Missouri adults (27.3%) also reported needing counseling or therapy but not receiving it within the last month, compared to the U.S. average (22.5%). As Americans nationwide are desperately searching for mental health services and emotional relief, providers are becoming overwhelmed and are struggling to keep up with demand. The rise of substance use and the opioid epidemic, as well as increased reports of mental health symptoms, are national health concerns. However, these sensitive topics carry stigmas which can interfere with the motivation to seek or receive treatment. Individuals struggling with substance use disorder (SUD) and addiction face negative judgements regarding their circumstance, behavior, or appearance. However, these factors are often a product of or influenced by their struggle with substances. SUD and addiction also cooccur with mental health issues; if someone needs treatment for one, they will likely require treatment for the other. For people who use substances or face mental health issues, harsh judgements or assumptions from family, peers, providers, and others can cause shame and distrust and may prevent someone from seeking help or continuing treatment. Understanding substance use and addiction as a disease, rather than a personal failure, is necessary to breaking down stigmas surrounding substance use in health care. The Toll Substance Use Takes I lost my oldest sister to complications from opioid use seven years ago. Because of the stigma surrounding drug use in our rural hometown and the strains put on our family due to her addiction, I have only just begun to grapple with my grief surrounding her loss. Throughout her hospitalization, hospice stay, and even for years after her death I held animosity towards her for the harm she caused me and our family. I was furious with her for hurting herself and putting our family in danger. I was angry at her for stealing, lying, sneaking around, and taking advantage of our parents' generosity. I was disheartened by her lack of presence in her children's lives and disappointed by her seemingly unwillingness to meet her full potential. She had recently returned to school to become a surgical technician; I had never felt prouder of her and more hopeful for her recovery until I discovered a bag of syringes she snuck home from work to use recreationally. My mother, a far more compassionate and spiritual woman, took a different route processing her grief. Throughout my sister's addiction, our mom played the role of authoritarian, refusing to enable my sister nearly to a restrictive and cold fault. Her desperation to intervene and save my sister meant drawing firm boundaries and learning to say no. She feared every late phone call we received, anxious it would be the call letting us know about an overdose, and refused to play a part in allowing that to happen. Cutting off access to certain resources seemed like an act of love, such as refusing to send money believing it would be spent on drugs and only worsen the problem. To my sister, though, that money was a necessity, even if it was for another dose – especially one to stop painful withdrawal symptoms from settling in. During my sister's final weeks and after her death, our mother transformed from a confused, frustrated, heartbroken parent to an empowering advocate for addicts and their support systems. She immersed herself in Nar-Anon meetings and programs, the support group counterpart to Narcotics Anonymous (NA) for family and loved ones, and eventually climbed the volunteer ranks to become the head of her local Kansas chapter. Through her advocacy work helping families understand the nature of addiction as a disease and navigate how to show compassion for addicts without perpetuating the problem, I learned how to let go of the anger towards my sister. In one of many back-and-forth trips to the hospice room, I walked in on my mother speaking to my sister in one of her last lucid moments. My mom softly whispered a gentle mantra reminding her that the addict self is not the same as the self and that while one physical body may be perishing, the disease and all its problems would with it. The spiritual being within my sister, the true self, full of personality and light and free of addiction or guilt, would continue in another form. Though spirituality differs between everyone, the recognition of a stark difference between the addict identity and the true identity of a loved one is vital to understanding addiction, breaking down stigma, and supporting those struggling with substance use in their journey to recovery. (© Oleksandr - stock.adobe.com)