Typically, life becomes progressively difficult as you age. This in itself makes rehab for seniors of the utmost importance. That increased difficulty can easily lead to increased alcohol and drug abuse. There is an array of options centered around rehab for seniors to ensure nobody is disregarded in their about with addiction.
A very overlooked fact is that over 8 million adults aged 65 and older also struggle with addictive strongholds. This number doesn’t include the many in isolation who may go unrecognized in this statistic. A need for rehab usually is more essential than those who struggle at a younger age.
A common reason for this is a sense of shame for needing rehab at an older age. Rest assured, there is no shame in receiving help at any age, and no senior recovery center will perceive it as such. On the contrary, any senior who willingly accepts help is heavily regarded to be mentally and physically strong. The details below outline the imminent need for older adults to seek help at a rehab center for seniors.
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Why Is Rehab For Seniors More Serious?
Drug rehab for older adults is especially imminent because advanced age exacerbates substance abuse effects on the body and mind. While it is dangerous for young adults to indulge in their addictions, it becomes increasingly fatal as you age. Each day is a ticking time bomb for elderly adults who continually refuse to get help. The reasons listed are just a few of the various hazards of seniors battling addiction.
Declining Health And Medical Conditions
The immune system progressively declines with age and becomes slower in response to infections. Furthermore, many elderly already have preexisting health conditions that weaken their physical state.
Adding addiction or substance abuse to these natural declining factors only exacerbates the physical and mental deterioration. Even worse, it creates a blend that could rapidly become fatal. Whether it’s sooner rather than later, addictive strongholds will ultimately prove to be your demise if you continually refuse help.
Social Isolation And Loneliness
According to stonegatesl.com, a UCSF study found that over 40% of seniors end up in isolated environments and feelings of loneliness. This disturbing study means a high percentage of the elderly are not receiving the assistance they need. Many seniors find themselves alone, Whether by way of relocation, death, or abandonment of friends and family. In most cases, this age group requires the most aid, especially for seniors in need of rehab.
Isolation and loneliness are fueling factors for many individuals, but especially seniors who find themselves in an isolated environment with nobody to turn to. Even when such help is desired, the lack of company can deepen confusion on how and where to receive that help. In the circumstances of the elderly, isolation leads to a high probability of self-harm with nobody to call upon for help.
This social isolation further contributes to a greater susceptibility to emotional disorders such as depression, suicide, or emotional stress. This prominent loneliness among seniors can drive them deeper into their abuse. Some may even find a degree of enjoyment in their strongholds. However, this false sense of enjoyment is deceptive, as such abuse only leads to a deeper state of loneliness.
Easy Accessibility To Prescription Drugs
Prescribed drugs to deal with underlying conditions and bodily aches are common among senior citizens. The ease of accessibility can accelerate substance abuse. The variety of painkillers and other drugs available to seniors with ease can prove deadly. Compound this with the fact that alcoholism is the most commonly abused substance among the elderly, you have a dangerous combination. Whether it be alcohol rehab treatment options for seniors or other substance use disorder rehabilitation, medical professional help is imminent to prevent a sad and swift end.
Natural Resistance
Though hesitancy to receive therapy is true for any age group, it is exponentially more pronounced in seniors. The Wall Street Journal cites a study where 70 percent of those aged 55 and older who suffered from anxiety and mood disorders refused services for mental health disorders. The source specifies the primary reason for refusal was the unbelief that rehab would help.
Also, many seniors believe it is too late for them. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. As long as you are alive, it is never too late for you or a loved one to receive the help needed.
Undiagnosed Disorders
According to healthaffairs.org, many mental health conditions in seniors go undiagnosed because many physicians are untrained to recognize these disorders in the elderly. It is also common for friends and family members alike to overlook the signs that age can conceal. Infusing these factors with being socially disconnected is increasingly harmful to them mentally and physically. Getting help could be the key to pinpointing what exactly is causing these feelings, thoughts, or addictions you war with.
What Causes Addiction And Mental Conditions In Seniors?
Bereavement
The unfortunate loss of a loved one is a frequent cause of inciting mental health conditions or addictions in the elderly. This period of grief is usually a long-term or lifelong stage that requires a good support figure. All too often, that support is absent, inflicting torturous mental and emotional pain. This psychological and emotional toll can manifest itself in substance abuse and/or mental health issues.
Financial Strains
The hard truth is an overwhelming number of elderly struggle to make ends meet. Recent studies conducted by CNBC in 2020 found that 50% of single older adults simply struggle to pay their monthly bills.
With the majority of that number unable to work, lacking finances can be mentally and emotionally strenuous. Mental or addictive tendencies can arise when this is coupled with loneliness or isolation.
Long-Term Refusal At Rehab For Seniors
Whether it be from their youth or later years, numerous seniors continuously deny rehab since their strongholds. This also reverts back to one of the underlying causes for many mental health conditions going undiagnosed. Too many seniors have spent a large portion of their lives in denial of the issues at hand.
Furthermore, the self-sufficient mentality of baby boomers can be attributed to rehab denial. With prolonged stages of refusal, this is especially dangerous for many post-military veterans who, unbeknownst to themselves or their families, may struggle with delayed onsets of PTSD.
Retirement
With extended periods of unprecedented leisure, substance abuse is very common in retirees. With retirement comes celebration and relaxation through their well-earned accomplishment. Unfortunately for many seniors, retirement increases the risk of acquiring addictive strongholds. This mental state of relaxation can also cause you to relax your standards to a level of complete lack of regard for personal health or actions.
What’s worse is retirement can bring on a mental sense of “I’ve earned this” when indulging your addiction. This mentality alone can be the greatest deterrent of seniors to rehabbing the imminent struggles they often face alone.
Age
Sadly, but simply put, age can be the determining factor of a decline in mental health. These mental health factors become more pronounced over time, resulting in the impending need for physical therapy and extended health care. The longer seniors with deteriorating mental conditions are left to themselves, the more dangerous life can become for them. A therapeutic anchor can help them cope, manage their conditions, and improve their lives immensely.
What Is The Answer?
Admit You Need Help
Admit to yourself that there is a problem. Acknowledging your situation is truly the key to unlocking a greater life, while denial keeps that door locked. Refusal to accept this first step alone is what leads to the majority not receiving the help they need. Don’t be another statistic, especially as an older adult with increased risks and level of care should be considered.
Take The First Step At Our Rehab For Seniors
This means taking that first step in your rehabilitation by reaching out to a senior recovery center near you. Miracles Recovery Center, a health care provider, takes the time for seniors because of their equal passion for providing a better life for all age groups. Only when making that first click or call will you understand how much you need a support coach to help you through get through substance abuse treatment.
Put An End To Your Isolation
This happens as a result of taking even just one of the first two steps noted. By reaching out to a senior recovery center, you remove the prisons of your isolated environment. You will then be supplied with the support your life has been lacking. With this newfound support, you can then take the steps toward breaking those mental or addictive chains.
Is It Too Late For Me Or A Loved One?
As long as you or a loved one can read this, it is never too late to receive the addiction treatment program you need. Every moment you delay is another moment you put yourself in danger of addiction or conditions pertaining to mental health.
Our Rehab For Seniors Can Help You Recover
Your friends or loved ones at Miracles Recovery Center rehab facility, a senior rehabilitation center, care about giving you the mental and physical health support you direly need. The only thing preventing you from a greater life is yourself. They are that open door to seniors for their rehab needs. All you have to do is walk through the open door because, at Miracles Recovery Center, our senior rehab program treatment center can help you break the cycle of addiction in drug use or alcohol detoxification (detox) and get your life back on track and wellness. Contact us today.
References:
- Cnbc.com
- pccrh.com
- WSJ
- Health Affairs