Reaching Recovery
With Bear River Health
COVID-19 Causes Rise in Overdose Deaths
As COVID-19, or CoronaVirus, has swept across the nation, let us not forget the other epidemic that has been an ongoing battle - opioid overdose deaths - which continues to leave death in its wake and was, until just a few months ago, considered to be the greatest public health crisis of this generation.
Though there is no question that COVID-19 is deadly, with more than 90,000 deaths in the U.S since January of 2020, opioids are equally as deadly. Opioids have taken approximately 450,000 lives between 1999 and 2017. In the year 2018 alone there were 67,367 deaths involving opioids, which is a slight improvement, about 4% fewer, in compar...
Deaths of Despair
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is projected that there will be an increase in "deaths of despair", which entails suicide, drug and alcohol poisoning, and alcoholic liver disease. It is expected that as many as 75,000 more people will be impacted by drug or alcohol misuse and suicide, according to new research released by Well Being Trust (WBT) and the Robert Graham Center for Policy Studies in Family Medicine and Primary Care.
It is noted that if the country fails to invest in solutions to help heal the nation's isolation,...
Addiction Recovery is Ongoing
If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, Bear River Health (BRH), located in Northern Lower Michigan, is an essential service and thus, remains open to provide withdrawal management (detox treatment) and residential treatment programs. These treatment protocols are provided to the client for as long as necessary in order to learn skills for sustaining recovery. Amid COVID-19, precautionary measures have been taken to ensure a safe, effective, treatment environment.
What is Addiction?
Addiction is defined as a disease by most medical associations, including the American Medical Association and the American Society of Addiction Medicine. Similar to diabetes, cancer and heart disease, the cause of addiction is ...
Addiction: Rebuilding Damaged Relationships
One of the casualties from the battle with addiction is the trail of damaged relationships it leaves in its wake. But, with the right help, repairing a damaged relationship is possible.
REBUILDING RELATIONSHIPS IN RECOVERY
The key to healing from addiction and rebuilding trust after an addict has hurt you is through a drug and alcohol treatment program. Professional help is sometimes necessary for people that are struggling with addiction in order for them to learn how to live a sober lifestyle.
The recovery process includes helping addicts realize that their lives will not immediately become better when they stop using chemicals. Responsibility needs to be taken by clients...
Loss, Grief, and Substance Use
The natural response to the pain and sadness that accompanies loss is called grief. Grief 
has no timetable for how long it will linger; it will last as long as it takes a person to adjust to life changes after loss, which could mean days, months or years. Grief can lead to feeling numb and removed from life. It can cause anger and frustration, and for some lead to anxiety disorders or depression. The natural reaction is to avoid the pain associated with grief. Some make life changing decisions such as moving or starting a new job. Others may cry, internalize their feelings, or lash out, and some attempt to cope with loss by
10+ Activities Online or Offline
According to Nielsen market research firm, alcoholic beverage sales spiked 55 percent in the week ending March 21. While many businesses have been forced to close, liquor stores are deemed essential and remain open during the stay-at-home order. This is due to the fact that these stores also sell goods such as water, perishable snacks, and non-alcoholic beverages.
A majority of Americans are currently under a stay-at-home order. States with the most strict social distancing measures include New York, California, Connecticut, Washington, Rhode Island, Alaska, Colorado, Vermont, Michigan, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Hawaii. In Maine, violators of the "Stay Healthy at Home Mandate" are subject to up to six months in jail and a $1,0...
Alcohol and the Body
Brain:
Alcohol interferes with the communication pathways in the brain, and can affect the way the brain looks and works.
Heart:
Drinking, whether a lot of a period of time or too much on a single occasion, can damage the heart and cause problems which include:
- Cardiomyopathy - Stretching and drooping of heart muscle
Arrhythmias - Irregular heart beat - Stroke
- High Blood Pressure
Liver:
Drinking takes a toll on the liver and can lead to a multitude of problems and liver inflam...
Opioid Epidemic: Michigan
In the past decade, prescription drug misuse and opioid use has risen to unprecedented levels. This epidemic impacts thousands of Michiganders and their families, friends, and communities. It is one of the greatest health crises of our lifetime, and we must respond efficiently and urgently.
The leading cause of misuse is associated with two types of prescription drugs: painkillers (opioids) and tranquilizers (benzodiazepines). Opioids include both illegal drugs as well as prescription pain medicine; common opioids used to treat pain are oxycodone, hydrocodone, morphine, methadone, and codeine.
The total number of opioid overdose deaths from 1999 to 2016 in...
Connection in a Disconnected World
As humanity faces a global pandemic unlike anything seen in more than a century, the term, “social distancing” quickly became the best strategy in our quest to slow the progression of COVID-19 transmission. However, that term may be disconcerting for some of us, sending a signal to our psyche that makes us feel more isolated than is actually the case. In reality, a better description of what we need to do is, “physical distancing”, which means actually putting space between ourselves and others, lots of space, six-feet of space as a suggested minimum.
But socially, w...