There’s no question about it. When times are hard in this country the Midwest feels it. When the economy struggles, the hard working people in Midwest cities struggle along with it.
Detroit has remained one of the most dangerous cities in the United States for the past ten years. Largely because of all the people who have been laid off over that time. Jobs have become scarce and a shortage of money often leads to an increase in crime.
The same goes for St. Louis, known as a hardworking city of industrious people. Cities in Ohio like Cincinnati and Cleveland have also fallen on hard times as well.
But one of the biggest domino effects of these struggles is drug use. Unemployment and crime lead to depression in many places. And depression is associated with a lack of worth, which can lead right into drug use and ultimately addiction.
Of course, someone who was laid off may revert to drugs to ease their pain, but it doesn’t stop there. Living in a struggling community with rampant drug use will drastically increase the likelihood that someone will experiment with drugs (and possibly become addicted) even if things are going relatively well for that person.
If you or someone around you is struggling with drug addiction it is crucially important that you acknowledge it and seek help immediately. Drugs will ruin a person’s life, all they need is time. The time you give drugs to do their work, the more damage they will do.
Make sure you and the people you love (or the people who love the addicted party) are all on the same page. There is no reason someone struggling with addiction should ever feel embarrassed. Addiction is immensely powerful and falling victim to it is not a sign of weakness. But it must be beat.
Do the research to find the best rehab centers. Simply running a search like “Best Drug Rehabilitation Manistee Reviews” might go a long way in finding you information. But don’t stop there. Ask around. Take pamphlets when you see them. Get the most information you can.
But entering rehab is simply the first step. There need to be tangible reasons to stay clean and sometimes one has to get creative to find those reasons.
On way of finding that hope is by embracing your community. That’s right, it might be that same down in the dumps community that seems to have put you in such a rut in the first place.
But a fresh perspective just might give you a new sense of nostalgia. Take a look at why the community is struggling and recognize that it will take dedicated individuals to bring it back. Perhaps you can find a soup kitchen to volunteer at or a youth basketball league to coach. Maybe you can even get involved in city council.
The realization that struggle comes with the hope for improvement. Just like you or the person you know has improved to a drug free life there is more improvement to be made in every community. And that’s something to enjoy.
Aside from that, stay involved with people that you know care about you. You’ll be surprised to find out that there are plenty of people in your life that don’t define you by your addiction the way they wouldn’t define you by a job you used to have.
The road can be long and painful on your way to sobriety, but there can be some beautiful things on the way.