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Closing Out Recovery Month
This September, this country observes National Recovery Month to celebrate the gains made by those in recovery from substance use and mental health. We also work to promote and support new evidence-based treatment and recovery practices, the emergence of a strong and proud recovery community, and the dedication of service providers and community members across the nation who make recovery in all its forms possible.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness reports that one in six youth in the United States aged 6-17 have a mental health disorder while one in twenty have substance use disorder. Oftentimes, mental health and substance use disorders are tightly linked with 30-45% of adolescents with mental health disorders reporting a co-occurring substance use disorder. However, only 50.6% of youth report receiving treatment for these disorders.
While some youth may struggle with mental health and substance use disorders themselves, many live in households with adults who do. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration estimates that one in eight children in the U.S. live in a household with at least one parent who had an active substance use disorder in the past year. Youth living in these households may experience adverse childhood experiences that can cause childhood trauma and lead to anxiety, depression and difficulties in school.
A major barrier to recovery is social stigma surrounding mental and substance use disorders. Research has found that experiencing stigma leads to social withdrawal, reduced goal setting, demoralization, self-blame and anger and can lower one’s self-esteem and perceived well-being, all of which make an individual less likely to seek help. Similarly, stigma can negatively impact family members of individuals with mental and substance use disorders by causing them to stay silent instead of actively promoting resources to help support their loved one’s recovery.
One of the four major dimensions of recovery is community, which involves having networks that provide support and hope. The school community presents a prime opportunity to provide support and hope to youth dealing with mental and substance use disorders both personally and within their families. Explore this week’s resources to learn how to best support students dealing with mental and substance use disorders personally and in their family. We hope these tools will help create stigma-free environments that support and celebrate students and their families as they move towards and through recovery.
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