Healthcare | Unsplash by Online Marketing
Healthcare | Unsplash by Online Marketing
Unlike a broken leg or back injury, addiction is a health condition that can’t be readily observed by your employer or colleagues. Yet it’s still a real issue that’s serious enough to impact your mental and physical health as well as your career and relationships.
“Addiction is an illness that needs to be treated, just like heart disease or cancer. People facing substance abuse disorders are carrying all the impacts of the illness, along with shame and guilt,” said Malia Holbeck, LCSW-PIP, LAC, outpatient manager with Avera’s Addiction Recovery Program.
Substance abuse disorders, like addiction to alcohol, painkillers or other drugs, can lead to denial – not being honest with yourself or others about what’s really happening.
“Because denial is so common, it may take some strong encouragement from loved ones, friends or even your employer to get the help you need,” Holbeck said. “If this describes you, the best thing you can do for yourself is to face your illness head on and look for the best possible solutions, which may include counseling or treatment. It can start with a private conversation with your primary care provider or a licensed addiction counselor.”
People often fear the stigma, and what their employer might think about asking for time away to seek treatment for addiction. “You may be surprised at how understanding people can be when given an honest explanation of what you’re going through. Your employer wants you to be healthy so you can do your best work and experience success,” Holbeck said.
Awareness of substance use disorder and understanding the ways in which employees can get better is a good investment for a business that wants to thrive.
When You Need Help for Addiction
Many adults enjoy a drink now and then. What’s beyond alcohol use that’s safe and normal? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a general guideline is two drinks or less a day for men and one drink or less a day for women. “One indication that your drinking is becoming problematic is if you feel that you’re drinking too much or others around you criticize your drinking,” Holbeck said. When it comes to painkillers, any use beyond the recommended time for treating a painful physical condition or using more than prescribed is a red flag.
When you have a problem, your loved ones and work colleagues may see signs like:
- Decline in appearance
- Often late or out sick
- Frequent mistakes or a sense of forgetfulness
- Mood swings – extreme highs or especially lows
- A lack of motivation or a more emotional bearing at work
- Angry outbursts or rage
- Bursts of energy, sometimes followed by agitation and irritable speech or actions
“People who are addicted find themselves needing that next drink or pill to feel right or normal,” Holbeck said. They’re looking for ways to hide their drug or alcohol use from others.
An Environment of Healing
The Avera Addiction Care Center in Sioux Falls recently won the 2022 Human Experience Guardian of Excellence Award® from Press Ganey, a company that administers patient experience surveys, working with more than 41,000 health care facilities in its mission to reduce patient suffering and enhance caregiver resilience to improve the overall safety, quality and experience of care. This award is part of Press Ganey’s annual ranking of the top hospitals and health systems in the country, according to performance in patient experience. As a winner of the award, the Avera Addiction Care Center ranks in the top 5% of health care providers in delivering patient experience in 2022.
“This award mirrors what we set out to do when we designed and opened the Avera Addiction Care Center three years ago,” Holbeck said. “It was designed to be a welcoming, comforting, healing environment that expresses a sense of dignity, respect and most importantly, hope.”
The center is staffed by a specialty team that includes rounding and oversight by psychiatrists. “This is important because people often need medical stabilization to safely withdraw from substances,” Holbeck said. “Also, addiction is often a co-occurring disorder with other mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, borderline personality disorder or bipolar disorder.”
Residential care follows criteria set by the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). Addiction counselors use a range of evidence-based methods that are suited to each individual, and participants receive follow-up for a year to help prevent relapse.
“In every way – through our facility and interactions – we want to communicate that it’s possible to get a new start. There’s hope for healing from addiction,” Holbeck said.
To learn more go to Avera.org/Addiction or call 605-504-2222.
Original source can be found here.
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