Opioid addiction has been on the rise across America, it has killed more Americans than the Iraq, Afghanistan and Vietnam Wars combined, which is raising concern for care advocates for veterans.Â
According to the Centers for Disease Control, last year alone opioids killed more than 64,000 Americans, and according to a psychiatrist at the Reno VA Hospital, 20% of males will have some kind of addiction in their lifetime, and that is very true in the veteran community. Fortunately the VA hospital has plenty of resources for our vets. "We have an outreach alcohol and drug addiction which is aimed to all drugs not just opioids," says staff psychiatrist, Mark Broadhead.
When it comes to addiction the VA hospital looks at many factors into why the individual is addicted, such as suffering from PTSD. "One of the things we will look for is if addiction runs in the family (and) if it does, you are at a higher risk to get addicted," explains Broadhead. As well as group therapy the VA hospital has various ways to help our vets with addiction, such as Medication Assistant Treatment (MAT). "Medication to help prevent cravings, relapse of those drug use by blocking the receptors that those drugs effect," says Broadhead.Â
According to the Centers of Disease Control, 40 Americans die from prescription opioid overdoses every day. Back in October, President Donald Trump asked the Department of Health and Human Services to declare the opioid crisis a public health emergency.
Authorities say it can be easy to gain access to opioids but it can be hard to get off them. "What happens when someone takes those medications over a long period of time their body becomes dependent on them," says Jennifer Snyder, the Executive Director for Join Together Northern Nevada.
If you or someone you know are suffering from some form of addiction, you can find a list of local treatment centers here:Â http://www.jtnn.org/community-resources/local-treatment-resources/
