Could peer-recovery coaches help fight drug addiction epidemic?
Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News on CNN
Dustin French, 29, had four drug overdoses in the span of a year. Now, he says, he's 100 days clean. He lives with his girlfriend and helps parent his three sons: an 8-year-old, a 2-year-old and a 1-year-old. He credits his turnaround to a relationship he launched in the emergency department with a "peer recovery specialist" — someone who had herself struggled with addiction. She was there, he said, "when nobody else was." Stories like French's have led policymakers — here in Rhode Island and in other states—to embrace a road to recovery led by people who have traveled it. It's a growing effort to address the nation's burgeoning opioid epidemic.
Peer support gaining as tool for addiction recovery
Bram Sable-Smith, KBIA
It is no secret that the United States is suffering from an opioid overdose epidemic. In Missouri, one tool being used to help people battling the addiction is peer support. KBIA visited a peer support recovery center for participants in treatment court — Peers Encouraging and Empowering Peers in Recovery — and explores why similar programs may soon catch on around the country.
How helping others could be the key to fighting addiction
Jill Suttie, Positive News
Alcoholism and drug addiction are often intractable illnesses. Many addicts and alcoholics relapse within six to 12 months of treatments that can include detoxification, drug therapy, behavioral therapy, and group counseling. But there might be a secret weapon in the fight against addiction: helping people. While other researchers look for ways to improve prescription drug regimens or talk therapies, Maria Pagano of Case Western University has focused her attention on the addict’s social connections. In studies spanning over a decade, she and her colleagues have shown that having a supportive network, reducing isolation, decreasing social anxiety, and especially helping others can increase the chances of staying sober by up to 50%.
From rescue to recovery: OD patients get help they need
Mary Jo Layton, NewJersey.com
It's becoming a familiar saga in New Jersey: An addict overdoses on heroin or a prescription painkiller and is saved by an EMT or a cop using the rescue drug Narcan (naloxone). But, sadly, many of those who are saved turn around and go back to using. Yet there is hope for an end to this vicious cycle: A new program brings recovering substance abusers into hospital emergency rooms to counsel overdose patients — helping hundreds to get clean in an effort that is rapidly expanding.
