Best Addiction Treatment Center for Veterans
Alcohol and Drug Rehab for Veterans
Veterans returning home from deployment are often graciously welcomed by home by people who respect and honor the time spent serving America’s interests. However, veterans who have returned home from active duty know how hard it can be to reintegrate into civilian life. For many, drugs and alcohol become a means to escape and numb difficult feelings and unwanted memories. Finding an addiction treatment center for veterans can help vets learn to overcome addiction and the underlying issues that led to it in the first place.
Facts About Veterans and Addiction
Substance abuse is a major concern for the men and women who have served our country. One in every fifteen soldiers will turn to alcohol or drugs as a means to cope. Veterans that have endured injuries while on deployment often return home with a prescription for pain management medication. The rate of veterans succumbing to accidental death by overdose has increased to 21% losing their lives to opioid overdose.
Alcohol is a substance that is readily available to turn to with liquor stores practically on every corner. Veterans returning home from active duty with little emotional support often turn to alcohol as a means to quieten the painful memories of deployment. Alcohol addiction can quickly enter your life when you’re at your most vulnerable. With a nearly 56% increase in veterans looking for support in battling alcoholism after returning from active duty, alcohol has become a sweeping concern for this country’s veterans.
Co-Occurring Disorders Veterans Face
Veterans living with addiction often turn to substance use to cope with other presenting concerns that they don’t have the tools to cope effectively. Through individual therapy sessions, you will understand how to manage the unpleasant emotions and memories that can arise for you.
Nearly 41% of veterans experience mood disorders like anxiety and depression. Living with the memories from your active duty and your missions can undoubtedly leave behind emotional turmoil detrimental to your health if not dealt with through proper therapeutic channels. When an onset of anxiety or panic attack arises, and you don’t have the skills to identify and cope with the feelings, the emotions can quickly take over.
PTSD affects veterans at an alarming rate, with nearly 87% of veterans reporting witnessing a traumatic event in their deployment. The effects of trauma impact the brain by keeping it in a state of hypervigilance, leading to an increase in emotional reactivity. As you adjust to everyday life, there is potential to be sent into a traumatic response by things such as a loud noise or someone getting close to you. The onset of these emotions can lead to veterans searching for substances to provide them with the escape they are looking for.
Dual Diagnosis Treatment for Veterans
For veterans experiencing mood or behavior concerns due to an ongoing mental health concern, a route of treatment that will serve you best is dual diagnosis treatment. Dual diagnosis treatment at our addiction treatment center for veterans will focus on the underlying causes of your addiction while looking at how your substance use has impacted your pre-existing health concern. Some mental health concerns are exacerbated with the use of substances leading the onset of symptoms to worsen. Dual diagnosis will treat both problems individually and provide you with intervention strategies that are effective coping strategies rather than turning to substances.
PTSD and Substance Abuse
Veterans living with PTSD often turn to substance abuse to cope with the symptoms they are experiencing. Living on high alert due to the trauma responses in the brain is exhausting, with many looking for a way to escape the daily stress and toll it takes on your body. To heal from your alcohol or drug dependency, you will need to address the PTSD through trauma therapy from a trained therapist during drug rehab or alcohol rehab. Trauma therapy will reframe your trauma responses and memories to lessen the crippling effect or response to memories or flashbacks.
Chronic Pain and Substance Abuse in Veterans
Veterans returning from active duty experience have a strong possibility of returning home with injuries or pains from their deployment time. Many are prescribed strong prescription opioid medications to mitigate their symptoms. Drug dependence requires medical supervision for detoxing and holistic treatment methods that will have you navigating through your pain management with healthy coping strategies.
Addiction Treatment for Veterans at WhiteSands
WhiteSands Alcohol and Drug Rehab sees our veterans for the unsung heroes they are. We value your service to the country and respect that your experience in active duty was filled with heavy hearts and emotions. We want to support you in processing your experiences while honoring the work that you have done. Through our trauma-informed care practices, we will work alongside you at a pace that works for you to provide you with a safe space to heal. To learn more about our addiction treatment center for veterans, contact us today.
If you or a loved one needs help with abuse and/or treatment, please call the WhiteSands Treatment at (877) 855-3470. Our addiction specialists can assess your recovery needs and help you get the addiction treatment that provides the best chance for your long-term recovery.
About the Author
Jackie has been involved in the substance abuse and addiction treatment sector for over five years and this is something that she is truly eager about. She has a passion for writing and continuously works to create informative pieces that not only educate and inform the public about the disease of addiction but also provide solutions for those who struggle with drug and alcohol abuse.
