Today is U.S. Coast Guard Day. It’s a good day to recognize what our active military service members do for the country and what veterans of the military have done in the past.
Unfortunately, the service of military members often comes with a cost. Some service members don’t make it home. Others return home with physical disabilities that they developed in the line of duty. Others develop brain injuries during their time of service.
Other service members may not have injuries to their brains or bodies, but still suffer. Many military veterans struggle with post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD), depression, or other mental conditions due to their experiences in the military.
As with other mental conditions, PTSD and depression can be tricky to diagnose and treat. People with depression and PTSD might seem perfectly healthy on the surface, even though they are dealing with intense and life-threatening conditions. Some people with these conditions try to medicate these feelings themselves by using illegal drugs or drinking a great deal of alcohol.
Depressed people who use alcohol and drugs to treat their condition often become even more depressed. This depression could cause them to use even more drugs or alcohol to try to soothe their pain, creating a dangerous cycle of depression and substance use disorder.
To break this cycle, effective treatment facilities address both mental conditions (like depression or PTSD) and substance use disorder. Furthermore, there are also several effective online tools for veterans looking to stay connected and finding the resources they need. If professionals only treat one of these conditions, such as substance use disorder, their patients might be more inclined to relapse, or leave their sobriety.
Effective treatment helps veterans and other people break the cycle of depression and addiction. This treatment helps people while they are attending rehab and helps people find additional treatment after they leave rehab. This can help them find better health and lifelong sobriety.
