Facing Addiction In America

All across the United States, individuals, families, communities, and health care systems are struggling to cope with substance use, misuse, and substance use disorders. Substance misuse and substance use disorders have devastating effects, disrupt the future plans of too many young people, and all too often, end lives prematurely and tragically. Substance misuse is a major public health challenge and a priority for our nation to address. The effects of substance use are cumulative and costly for our society, placing burdens on workplaces, the health care system, families, states, and communities. The Report discusses opportunities to bring substance use disorder treatment and mainstream health care systems into alignment so that they can address a person's overall health, rather than a substance misuse or a physical health condition alone or in isolation. It also provides suggestions and recommendations for action that everyone-individuals, families, community leaders, law enforcement, health care professionals, policymakers, and researchers-can take to prevent substance misuse and reduce its consequences.

Estimates indicate that as many as 1 in 4 Americans will experience a mental health problem or will misuse alcohol or drugs in their lifetimes. These disorders are among the most highly stigmatized health conditions in the United States, and they remain barriers to full participation in society in areas as basic as education, housing, and employment. Improving the lives of people with mental health and substance abuse disorders has been a priority in the United States for more than 50 years. The Community Mental Health Act of 1963 is considered a major turning point in America's efforts to improve behavioral healthcare. It ushered in an era of optimism and hope and laid the groundwork for the consumer movement and new models of recovery. The consumer movement gave voice to people with mental and substance use disorders and brought their perspectives and experience into national discussions about mental health. However over the same 50-year period, positive change in American public attitudes and beliefs about mental and substance use disorders has lagged behind these advances. Stigma is a complex social phenomenon based on a relationship between an attribute and a stereotype that assigns undesirable labels, qualities, and behaviors to a person with that attribute. Labeled individuals are then socially devalued, which leads to inequality and discrimination. This report contributes to national efforts to understand and change attitudes, beliefs and behaviors that can lead to stigma and discrimination. Changing stigma in a lasting way will require coordinated efforts, which are based on the best possible evidence, supported at the national level with multiyear funding, and planned and implemented by an effective coalition of representative stakeholders. Ending Discrimination Against People with Mental and Substance Use Disorders: The Evidence for Stigma Change explores stigma and discrimination faced by individuals with mental or substance use disorders and recommends effective strategies for reducing stigma and encouraging people to seek treatment and other supportive services. It offers a set of conclusions and recommendations about successful stigma change strategies and the research needed to inform and evaluate these efforts in the United States.

The indespensible workbook to begin recovery from drugs and alcohol, using Dr. Patrick Carnes' pioneering thirty-task model.

Substance misuse is one of the critical public health problems of our time. The most recent data on substance use, misuse, and substance use disorders reveal that the problem is deepening and the consequences are becoming more deadly than ever. There is an urgent need to raise awareness about the issue. At the same time, we need to spread the word that substance misuse and addiction are solvable problems. We can, and must, inspire and catalyze action on this crisis. That's why I am so proud to support the Office of the Surgeon General in releasing this first report of its kind - The Surgeon General's Report on Alcohol, Drugs, and Health. This Report takes a comprehensive look at the problem; covering topics including misuse of alcohol, prescription drugs, and other substances, and bringing together the best available science on the adverse health consequences of substance misuse. It also summarizes what we know about what works in prevention, treatment, and recovery. Our goal: to equip health care providers, communities, policymakers, law enforcement, and others with the evidence, the tools, and the information they need to take action to address this growing epidemic. Now is the time for this Report. The substance misuse problem in America won't wait. Almost 22.5 million people reported use of an illegal drug in the prior year. Over 20 million people have substance use disorders, and 12.5 million Americans reported misusing prescription pain relievers in the past year. Seventy-eight people die every day in the United States from an opioid overdose, and those numbers have nearly quadrupled since 1999. Despite the fact that we have treatments we know are effective, only one in five people who currently need treatment for opioid use disorders is actually receiving it. The addiction problem touches us all. We all need to play a part in solving it. The Surgeon General's Report on Alcohol, Drugs, and Health provides a roadmap for working together to move our efforts forward. I hope all who read it will be inspired to take action to stem the rising tide of this public health crisis and reduce the impact of substance misuse and addiction on individuals, communities, and our nation.

An insight and summary on addiction in America. Drawn from the landmark 500-page report by the office of the US Surgeon General.

In this issue of Medical Clinics, guest editor Melissa B. Weimer brings her considerable expertise to the topic of Substance Use Disorders. Provides in-depth, clinical reviews on the latest updates in Substance Use Disorders, providing actionable insights for clinical practice. Presents the latest information on this timely, focused topic under the leadership of experienced editors in the field; Authors synthesize and distill the latest research and practice guidelines to create these timely topic-based reviews.

The ultimate ‘what you need to know’ guide for navigating the confusing world of addiction treatment, insurance coverage, and recovery. Imagine you are awakened by a call at 3 a.m., informing you that your loved one is in crisis due to addiction or mental illness. Maybe he or she has been incarcerated, hospitalized, or left for dead from an overdose. Who would you turn to and what would you do next? Walter Wolf got that very call when his own family member was in crisis . There was no playbook, but Walter knew who to call — a friend in the treatment world who knew exactly what to do. And that got him thinking about the $42 billion unregulated treatment industry with its share of grifters and 1-800 toll-free call centers standing by to promise you anything to get your credit card number. Who protects the uninitiated terrified to the point of doing anything they're told to save their loved one? Wolf knew something had to change. Families hit by addiction like Wolf’s needed a “how-to” book on finding the right treatment at the right rehab. Since that book didn’t exist, he wrote it himself. From intervention to recovery, The Right Rehab is a step-by-step guide that details how to identify and access treatment options available to all individuals and families, no matter how plentiful or spare their resources. Due to Walter's relationships with the most ethical and renowned professionals in the treatment world, he is able to explain the treatment plan principled experts insist is the most evidence-based, dependable, and customizable for the individual who is fully committed to sobriety. The Right Rehab is for the millions of vulnerable, terrified and uninitiated families who need to know what to do first, next, and into the future,while protecting them from programs that don’t work. No one wants to get that call, but many can see it coming. Arm yourself ahead of time with this clear, concise, and easy-to-follow guide to getting the right help for your loved one.