About Addiction and Seniors

For 40 years, you finished work and had a drink with the boys before heading home.  The worries of the day seem to vanish at the bar.  You always made it to work, handled your responsibilities, and took care of the family.  In retirement, that “drink with the boys at 6pm” is now a nip or two or three in front of the TV alone at 10 in the morning.
OR
Twenty years ago (or more) you were nervous and a doctor prescribed Xanax, and then you couldn't sleep, so another Doctor prescribed Valium and another prescribed Vicoden for some pain.  You have been using these, for more than 20 years.  You can set your watch by the internal reminders to take your medication, not hard to come by, and after all they are prescribed.

Seniors with an alcohol or other drug problem:
“Carol Colleran, national director of older-adult services at Hanley-Hazelden, a treatment center in West Palm Beach, Fla., said at least 17 percent of Americans age 55 or older have either alcohol or drug problems, or both. However, she said, very few seniors are in treatment programs, because their physicians usually fail to diagnose the problem.”

Two-thirds of older, addicted Americans have alcoholism that started before age 50. The remaining one-third developed late-onset addictions, often arising from life changes such as retirement or death or disability of a spouse. Diagnosing drug addiction is difficult, older Americans usually don't use street drugs, but rather abuse their prescription medications.
"The most common addiction is to benzodiazepines, tranquilizer drugs like Valium and Xanax," Colleran said. "Valium was developed as post-trauma medication to be used for 14 days. We have patients who have been taking it for 20 to 25 years."

"Alcohol abuse among older adults is something few want to talk about or deal with," said SAMHSA Administrator Charles Curie. "Too often, family members are ashamed of the problem and choose not to address it. Health-care providers tend not to ask older patients about alcohol abuse if it wasn't a problem in their lives in earlier years." 
"The symptoms are mistaken for those of dementia, depression, or other problems common to older adults," added Curie. "Unfortunately, too many older persons turn to alcohol as a comfort following the death of a spouse, a divorce, retirement, or some other major life change, unaware that they are markedly affecting the quality of their lives."
TIP 26C: Substance Abuse Among Older Adults
This TIP recommends practices for identifying, screening, assessing, and treating alcohol and prescription drug abuse among older adults. It is designed for substance abuse treatment providers, primary care clinicians, social workers, and senior center staff. (Clinician's Version) 

Caught in Addiction

The link will take you to Motivate 4 Success Recovery Coaching.

Anxiety, Depression, can be signals of substance abuse
See your doctor. Some medication can not
immediately be stopped.

Along with addiction, there are addictive behaviors that are quite common among addicts. Hiding empty bottles, wanting to be alone, lying, keeping secrets, hiding pills and obsessively counting them, making unnecessary emergency room visits and constantly "doctor shopping."
These behaviors usually stem from the desperation an addict/alcoholic feels regarding getting, securing, and taking their drug of choice. Under other circumstances, the individual would probably not engage in the behaviors listed above, unless they were previously part of his/her personality structure. In other words, addictive behaviors are limited to the addiction itself and are generally dissonant with the person’s beliefs and values in any other area of their life.

DO not simply take the drink or drug away. Call someone first.

Call a Senior Recovery Coach from Motivate 4 Success today and discover for yourself what Senior Recovery Coaching is all about. Make that call today

(949) 375-2676