First Responders on Addiction in America

From a personal dietician, to the perspective of veterans and those involved in the corrections systems in the United States, our field of entrants in the inaugural ‘Making an Impact Scholarship,’ was a truly diverse crowd of entrants with valuable insights into the nature of addiction in our country. The perspective of first responders on addiction serves as a direct report from those on the ‘front lines’ of this crisis.

And although not strictly from a first responder, the public health merits of creating ‘blue light’ areas (you’ll have to read more below!) is hard to deny. From first to last, these essays show a more personal side to those who struggle with the effects of addiction from the view of law enforcement, diet, and much more. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

1. A.B. (Liberty University) 

I used to be a Juvenile Detention Officer, and this is my first-hand experience you can take it or leave it. When I worked at the detention center, the staff worked on a constant adrenaline high. We would usually be involved in 2-5 restraints a day.

Adrenaline and Stress as Precursors to Addiction

When you are constantly on edge, and when you don’t know when the next altercation is your body is constantly sending this adrenaline to prepare you for what might come. When your body is surging with this main line of adrenaline your mind doesn’t cope with what you are seeing and experiencing.

You could go through years of this and never truly understand the mental toll of what you are going through. Once I stepped down from my position, at night I would have nightmares of what I had witnessed.

First Responders on Addiction and PTSD

Some of which is truly tragic, I didn’t know what to think or how to feel in this situation. It wasn’t until later I realized that I had a form of PTSD that needed to be addressed. I would say that I was a lucky one, I attacked the problem once I realized that I had one and didn’t let it manifest.

However, after talking to fellow officers, detention officers, and first responders I realized a trend. When officers go through something like this it may take them years before they realize there is a problem.

When that realization happens theirs two likelihoods of responses, one is getting help. The second and most prominent in these fields is covering those problems with addiction. I truly think if you want to tackle this problem head-on officers and first responders need to have free counseling.

Counseling as Part of the Job Package

They need to have counselors checking on them, especially once they are done in their chosen fields. These nightmares that manifest are hard to control, and they happen fast, they need to be tackled immediately to prevent these addictions from occurring. This is my opinion but when you look at the statistics of officers and first responders getting addicted to substances and committing suicide, it’s alarming. Once again take my opinion or leave it.

2. J.B. (University of Arkansas at Little Rock)

I feel that there should be more options for veterans to be able to talk to someone about the things that they have gone through in life. As a veteran that is currently going through a hard time mentally, I know that this is an area that needs a lot of work.

Experiencing all of the difficult times over my eight years in the United States Army made me into an emotionally guarded person. I learned that it was better to keep your feelings and emotions to yourself, because people treat you differently if you talk about getting help.

The Stigma of Addiction for Veterans

There is a stigma associated with seeking professional help in the military. However, people are working hard to fight that. I feel that the damage has been done though. I know many people that smoke, experiment with different drugs, or drink excessively to cope with everything that have experienced during their time in the military.

I see veterans that are homeless, but instead of purchasing food they buy alcohol. I have family members that are functioning alcoholics. I recently went through a very traumatic experience.

Making Counseling Readily Available for Veterans

Instead of being able to talk to a therapist, I was told that I had to wait until February, because that was the earliest that they had an availability. I believe that mental health and addiction go hand-in-hand. What if being able to talk to someone was the one thing that kept me from doing something bad? What is that was the one thing that kept me from overindulging?

I know that there are hotlines that are available if someone is feeling suicidal, but what if someone is struggling with addiction? Is there a hotline for that? I do not know of a place that people with substance abuse issues can go to when they need a little motivation. I feel that if there was a central location that offered these services, maybe more people would get help. I believe that addiction hotlines and group therapy sessions would benefit this community greatly. People would have someone to talk to. Sometimes that is all we need.

3. T.R. (Oregon State University)

I have known and lost a handful of individuals to addiction and overdose, and the worst part is that I know I am not the only one. These losses can come in the form of their life or losing them from yours. Both are devastating in their own ways as those that battle addiction aren’t bad people, just as those that suffer from other mental illnesses aren’t bad people.

They are simply battling something bigger than themselves. Therefore, I believe the best resource to reduce the number of people struggling with addiction in this country would be to provide insurance covered access to safe places for them to seek help.

The Importance of Diet and Addiction Treatment

As I work my way through my dietetic internship and master’s in dietetics at Oregon State University, I have worked case studies on the impact of both nutrition as well as treatment centers for those with addictions and eating disorders. One of the biggest things they note is how the person with the disorder typically feels ashamed.

This leads to them hiding the behaviors, becoming masterful in interweaving them into their daily lives, and in the end, potentially losing a battle to it because they never sought help nor did anyone realize they needed it.

Eliminating Judgement from Treatment Facilities

Providing an open, non-judgmental, skilled facility and program that removes the negative stigma as they welcome people in is vital. They can provide the immediate assistance in detoxing and acceptance. From there, they should be able to help in identifying behavioral triggers, finding healthy coping mechanisms and providing long-term support for challenging relapse potential situations.

Those with addiction can’t simply be checked into a hospital after an overdose and expected to change their ways once released any more than someone who had a heart attack can be expected to immediately change their lifestyle. The best way to ensure someone doesn’t repeat a behavior is to give them the proper, individualized education and tools.

Registered Dietitians as Key Components of Rehabilitation

In addition to this skilled treatment facility, I believe that the role of a Registered Dietitian, such as myself after graduation, would also be impactful – especially to those with alcoholism that tend to replace nutrient dense calories with those from alcohol, or those that suffer from liver cirrhosis.

In fact, there have been studies conducted that conclude the incorporation of nutrition education into substance abuse treatment programs and how they yield significantly better treatment outcomes.

That being said, the combination of both nutrition therapy and a skilled treatment facility with qualities mentioned prior would be my personal idea on how to help negate the issue of substance abuse in our country. Overall, we need to provide healthcare covered help and make it accessible emotionally, physically, and financially.

4. R.F. (University of Kentucky)

My senior year of high school, I helped shift the way my community handles drug use and addiction through pioneering a project centered around improving public health and safety, while also handling this serious topic with sensitivity and sincerity.

The Blue Light Initiative: An Innovative Approach

I created the Blue Light Initiative, where I, along with two close friends, met with local lawmakers, business owners, law enforcement, and health departments to install blue lights in public restrooms. Under the visibility of blue lights, intravenous drug users are unable to locate their veins, and subsequently, cannot use intravenous drugs within public spaces.

When drug users administer drugs in public, commonly in gas stations and fast-food chains, they often leave behind dangerous paraphernalia, such as needles and sharps.

However, the installation of blue lights in the restroom in public spaces directly reduces the presence of harmful drug paraphernalia and sharps, which is often otherwise exposed to customers and staff. Included with the installation of blue lights were informational posters detailing resources where a potential drug user could receive help, such as a rehab facility.

Community Outreach for Harm Reduction Initiatives

This initiative is beneficial to all members involved, as business owners were able to foster a safer environment for employees and patrons, and drug users were deterred from using in an unsafe manner in public.

For this project, I met with members of a local rehab clinic to discuss the implications, and their consensus was that this initiative would deter them from using drugs in public, or perhaps altogether, as they were aware that there are people out there looking after them and the public.

This initiative involved holding mature conversations with individuals and governing bodies that perceive drug users in a negative light, even though I come from a community in Eastern Kentucky where drug abuse is very common.

First Responders on Addiction: New Initiatives

Being able to utilize respect and love to help shift the stigma around drug use was very fulfilling to me, as I was able to ignite a conversation on a topic that’s very much overlooked in my community. This project opened my eyes to the power individuals, including myself, hold in making their communities a safer, more welcoming space for everyone, especially while utilizing the principles of trust, respect, and love.

I was able to instill trust in several businesses to carry out installing blue lights in their establishments through this project. The businesses that installed blue lights did report back to finding less evidence of drug use and paraphernalia within their establishments, which promotes a healthier work environment, and a healthier establishment for consumers.

Working on this project over the course of a year taught me a lot about the community I am destined to serve, and how I can employ empathy, leadership skills, and communication talents to pioneer the future of Eastern Kentucky. I truly believe a widespread implementation of this initiative could reduce the number of people struggling with addiction in America, as it would deter their use of drugs in public