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If you have something that you would like to share, please email us at [email protected].
Drug Abuse and Its Ties to Suicide
Suicide is caused by a number of factors, and many of them go undetected by loved ones, which can lead to feelings of guilt, anger, and shame. While depression and clinical disorders are widely believed to be the leading cause of death by suicide, drug and alcohol abuse follow closely, and no two people use for the same reason.
In understanding and treating these addictions, it is often helpful to look into why the abuse started in the first place. There are many underlying reasons, but for those who use drugs to dull emotional pain, the threat of suicide is often high. Getting to the root of the issue may be helpful in starting a user down a path of treatment and, hopefully, recovery.
In some cases, drug and alcohol abuse begins after a particularly traumatic event or time period; military veterans who return home with PTSD, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, are at high risk for substance abuse issues, as are those who have suffered childhood abuse or survived a terrorist attack or stressful accident. Some use drugs or alcohol to self-medicate physical pain, or to become a placeholder after being taken off prescription medication.
For anyone living with substance abuse, it’s important to remember that although treatments vary, help is out there. There are many different types of therapy available that will help in understanding the causes of drug abuse and how to cope with them, as well as how to treat the actual drug use. For some, learning how to manage stress or the emotional toll of losing a loved one may be a huge factor; for others, coming to terms with something from the past that was outside their control needs to be addressed and treated.
Although therapy and rehabilitation can be necessary to combat drug abuse, sometimes the stress of going through treatment can trigger suicidal thoughts and feelings of hopelessness, and the user may feel like there are few options to deal with their pain. Often, they may not know how to ask for help, but you can talk to a health care provider for more information on what to do for them. Interventions are delicate things to facilitate, but with the help of a doctor or trusted health professional you can make sure your loved one’s needs are addressed in the right way.
Sometimes, the use of two therapies in conjunction with one another is the most effective way to treat substance abuse and prevent potential suicidal behaviors. However, it is important to remember that everyone reacts to treatment differently, and there is no one right answer for every person dealing with drug abuse. For those who have been using heavily or for a long period of time, it will be especially difficult for them to transition to treatment. This may require some patience on your part, as they will need help with a variety of things, from managing their finances to rebuilding relationships.
Sometimes the physical change that treatment brings leaves the user angry, sick, or on edge, causing them to lash out at the people who are trying to help them. This doesn’t mean you’ve done something wrong; rather, it is a symptom of healing that requires understanding on your part.
Sussing out the needs of your loved one--as well as acknowledging that they have a problem that cannot be ignored--can be a bit overwhelming, especially if the threat of suicide is present. Just try to remember that neither of you are in it alone, and that things will get easier over time.
Jennifer McGregor has wanted to be a doctor since she was little. Now, as a pre-med student, she’s well on her way to achieving that dream. She helped create PublicHealthLibrary.org with a friend as part of a class project. With it, she hopes to provide access to trustworthy health and medical resources. When Jennifer isn’t working on the site, you can usually find her hitting the books in the campus library or spending some downtime with her dog at the local park.
In understanding and treating these addictions, it is often helpful to look into why the abuse started in the first place. There are many underlying reasons, but for those who use drugs to dull emotional pain, the threat of suicide is often high. Getting to the root of the issue may be helpful in starting a user down a path of treatment and, hopefully, recovery.
In some cases, drug and alcohol abuse begins after a particularly traumatic event or time period; military veterans who return home with PTSD, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, are at high risk for substance abuse issues, as are those who have suffered childhood abuse or survived a terrorist attack or stressful accident. Some use drugs or alcohol to self-medicate physical pain, or to become a placeholder after being taken off prescription medication.
For anyone living with substance abuse, it’s important to remember that although treatments vary, help is out there. There are many different types of therapy available that will help in understanding the causes of drug abuse and how to cope with them, as well as how to treat the actual drug use. For some, learning how to manage stress or the emotional toll of losing a loved one may be a huge factor; for others, coming to terms with something from the past that was outside their control needs to be addressed and treated.
Although therapy and rehabilitation can be necessary to combat drug abuse, sometimes the stress of going through treatment can trigger suicidal thoughts and feelings of hopelessness, and the user may feel like there are few options to deal with their pain. Often, they may not know how to ask for help, but you can talk to a health care provider for more information on what to do for them. Interventions are delicate things to facilitate, but with the help of a doctor or trusted health professional you can make sure your loved one’s needs are addressed in the right way.
Sometimes, the use of two therapies in conjunction with one another is the most effective way to treat substance abuse and prevent potential suicidal behaviors. However, it is important to remember that everyone reacts to treatment differently, and there is no one right answer for every person dealing with drug abuse. For those who have been using heavily or for a long period of time, it will be especially difficult for them to transition to treatment. This may require some patience on your part, as they will need help with a variety of things, from managing their finances to rebuilding relationships.
Sometimes the physical change that treatment brings leaves the user angry, sick, or on edge, causing them to lash out at the people who are trying to help them. This doesn’t mean you’ve done something wrong; rather, it is a symptom of healing that requires understanding on your part.
Sussing out the needs of your loved one--as well as acknowledging that they have a problem that cannot be ignored--can be a bit overwhelming, especially if the threat of suicide is present. Just try to remember that neither of you are in it alone, and that things will get easier over time.
Jennifer McGregor has wanted to be a doctor since she was little. Now, as a pre-med student, she’s well on her way to achieving that dream. She helped create PublicHealthLibrary.org with a friend as part of a class project. With it, she hopes to provide access to trustworthy health and medical resources. When Jennifer isn’t working on the site, you can usually find her hitting the books in the campus library or spending some downtime with her dog at the local park.
In This Room
By: Karen Pilarski
Daunting shadows press their bodies against the wall
In this mind the shadows take up space and time
Memories linger and spirits fall
In this room what was once before binds
Dimly lit windows decorates the dark house
Like changing moods that have sunk through time
Washed my hands of the sticky situation, quiet as a mouse
Time is all but mine
The air stale and musty fills the aura of my heart
Gasping for brand new feelings that have not yet formed
In this room the shadows dance and laugh at the one who fell apart
The damage is done the heart has grown deformed
Furniture traps my body in place
There is no room for love to be replaced
Wasted energy like static
Clings to my soul, deadly and tragic
I know deep down it is time
To let those bad feelings die
Let love like flowers bloom
But not while I wait desperate in this room.
By: Karen Pilarski
Daunting shadows press their bodies against the wall
In this mind the shadows take up space and time
Memories linger and spirits fall
In this room what was once before binds
Dimly lit windows decorates the dark house
Like changing moods that have sunk through time
Washed my hands of the sticky situation, quiet as a mouse
Time is all but mine
The air stale and musty fills the aura of my heart
Gasping for brand new feelings that have not yet formed
In this room the shadows dance and laugh at the one who fell apart
The damage is done the heart has grown deformed
Furniture traps my body in place
There is no room for love to be replaced
Wasted energy like static
Clings to my soul, deadly and tragic
I know deep down it is time
To let those bad feelings die
Let love like flowers bloom
But not while I wait desperate in this room.
Listen
By Sarah Hall
Sultry sullen eyes
Slanting in a swollen
Bag of Hope
And Joy
And all things nice,
Wandering around the point
Of focus.
So much energy
Not in people
But on things
Inanimate.
Perfection wins
Only
When connection is not there.
Bare yourself
To one another.
Dare
To hope.
Be open
To renewing old
Habits.
And listen.
Just listen.
By Sarah Hall
Sultry sullen eyes
Slanting in a swollen
Bag of Hope
And Joy
And all things nice,
Wandering around the point
Of focus.
So much energy
Not in people
But on things
Inanimate.
Perfection wins
Only
When connection is not there.
Bare yourself
To one another.
Dare
To hope.
Be open
To renewing old
Habits.
And listen.
Just listen.
Tomorrow Will Come
By Sarah Hall
Through silence I wait
Wondering if she will come
A promise made to myself
To grow older, stronger, wiser
Imparting knowledge
Bestowing joy
That little girl I once was
Waits in a corner wanting to play
To say, it’s okay
Yesterday can wait
Tomorrow will come
Be with me now.
By Sarah Hall
Through silence I wait
Wondering if she will come
A promise made to myself
To grow older, stronger, wiser
Imparting knowledge
Bestowing joy
That little girl I once was
Waits in a corner wanting to play
To say, it’s okay
Yesterday can wait
Tomorrow will come
Be with me now.
Barren Trees
By Elizabeth M. Giencke
We are the barren trees
The winter enters
We sleep
We know not the strength inside
To bring forth the change
Every new spring offers
We are close but cannot always touch
To bind our knowledge of the
Beauty that is asleep within
Why, why do we not bow in solitude, in fortitude
It cannot be visible, those whose strength
Is too worn to withstand the bitter winter
We awake to find, the loss, the grief, the missing limb
The grief, the grief, the grief, unbearable
So numb from this bitter wind, it is dark
We ask those above, was the spring water not enough
Was the summer sun and warmth not enough
To support, to provide
We cannot know, it is not for us to ever understand
Yet, another winter, we bond our roots ever stronger
Together, together with the one beside and the One above
We gather strength, weakened but wanting to bear the weight of what is ahead
What we cannot change, what we cannot hold control of
The lost limb that will always feel, sense and hurt
We hurt, for how can we grow, how can we live without that limb
Broken, broken, broken, no need to grow, one less barren tree
No loss
But nothing can remain the same, nothing can remain unchanged
With these bitter winds and loss of sun, warmth is
It just is
This is what we live for, to comfort, to provide
The warmth that will always be replenished, not diminished
Hold steady, hold on,
For no tree, barren, weak, bent or broken
Will ever, ever be gone
The life will flow back, some way, some how
For if no barren trees, no roots, that lost limb will not have existed
Brought comfort, strength and shade
So rise from that bitter, unbearable pain to provide the roots
Needed for the one near and the One above who
Has not abandoned the spring waters, the summer sun
It’s warmth, waiting to be a part, just for that
Warmth to remove the numbness.
By Elizabeth M. Giencke
We are the barren trees
The winter enters
We sleep
We know not the strength inside
To bring forth the change
Every new spring offers
We are close but cannot always touch
To bind our knowledge of the
Beauty that is asleep within
Why, why do we not bow in solitude, in fortitude
It cannot be visible, those whose strength
Is too worn to withstand the bitter winter
We awake to find, the loss, the grief, the missing limb
The grief, the grief, the grief, unbearable
So numb from this bitter wind, it is dark
We ask those above, was the spring water not enough
Was the summer sun and warmth not enough
To support, to provide
We cannot know, it is not for us to ever understand
Yet, another winter, we bond our roots ever stronger
Together, together with the one beside and the One above
We gather strength, weakened but wanting to bear the weight of what is ahead
What we cannot change, what we cannot hold control of
The lost limb that will always feel, sense and hurt
We hurt, for how can we grow, how can we live without that limb
Broken, broken, broken, no need to grow, one less barren tree
No loss
But nothing can remain the same, nothing can remain unchanged
With these bitter winds and loss of sun, warmth is
It just is
This is what we live for, to comfort, to provide
The warmth that will always be replenished, not diminished
Hold steady, hold on,
For no tree, barren, weak, bent or broken
Will ever, ever be gone
The life will flow back, some way, some how
For if no barren trees, no roots, that lost limb will not have existed
Brought comfort, strength and shade
So rise from that bitter, unbearable pain to provide the roots
Needed for the one near and the One above who
Has not abandoned the spring waters, the summer sun
It’s warmth, waiting to be a part, just for that
Warmth to remove the numbness.