Substance abuse recovery services see uptick in demand

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May 17, 2021 – While restrictions and mandates have been lifted, and vaccines are being distributed, many centers said they are starting to see an uptick in people coming back for help.

“I think we’re going to be seeing some stark reminders of just how deadly addiction is,” said Steve Wildsmith with Cornerstone of Recovery.

He said he knew the pandemic would come with a lot of changes and challenges. Self-isolation and social distancing restrictions brought several new challenges for people who were to having someone at their side during recovery.

Those changes meant going virtual for people seeking addiction help, far from the routine face-to-face meetings. Wildsmith said the more distance there was between people in recovery and their support groups, the harder it may have been to stay focused.

“You can’t see that in someone’s body language or their face,” he said. “It becomes all too easy to just turn your camera off and fold laundry or do dinner or mute myself.”

Because of that, Wildsmith says people relapsed. In some cases, it’s been deadly. He said that the number of reported overdose deaths is under-reported and that the actual number of lives lost due to addiction could be much higher.