Rising Strong Group for Families of Addicted Loved Ones

While the pandemic was extremely hard on most people throughout the world and the lasting impacts on mental health are still to be determined, there is one group of people who have been even more gravely impacted this past year versus in years past, those who struggle with drug addiction. According to a recent article in the AP News, deaths from overdoses hit a record 93,000 last year during the pandemic. That’s more than 250 deaths per day or about 11 per hour. This number is the biggest year-to-year jump in overdose deaths, with about 21,000 more lives lost in 2020 than in the previous year. Many things could have contributed to this rise in numbers, but likely the high unemployment rates along with cash provided by stimulus money allowed many who were already struggling with addiction to buy more of their drugs of choice and ultimately use to the point of overdosing. In addition, most drugs these days are contaminated with a synthetic substance called Fentanyl, which is extremely powerful and dangerous opioid. According to the AP News article which cited the CDC, about 60% of all overdose deaths last year involved Fentanyl. 

You might ask, why are we writing about this? Of course it’s important news, but how does it pertain to Harper Therapy? As a provider of mental health services in the community, it’s hard not to think of the families who have been  affected by this increase in overdose deaths. For every person who died last year, there are likely at least 5 people whose lives have been turned upside down. That’s almost half a million people throughout the country. If you compound the stress of losing a loved one to overdose with the stress of living through a pandemic, one can only imagine what lasting effects this may have on mental health. At Harper Therapy, we are dedicated to helping individuals and families cope with life’s hard things. That is why we created a group for family members of addicted loved ones, starting this fall. While you may not have lost someone to  the disease of addiction, chances are that if you love someone who struggles with addiction, this is a very real fear that you face every day. In our group, we teach you how to cope with the uncomfortable and often painful feelings that come up as a result of having an addicted loved one and provide you with a safe and healing environment to be with others who are experiencing the same thing. If you’re interested in learning more, please sign up for our email list here: https://www.harpertherapy.com/rising-strong-for-families-of-addicted-loved-ones#signup