Opioid epidemic on the rise due to COVID By: Moya Reid
With the COVID pandemic, we are now more isolated than ever before. This is not only messing with people’s ability to do their everyday activities, but also their mental health, bringing along anxiety, depression, and despair. One of the ways that we can see this shift is in the increase in overdose deaths. During the height of the COVID pandemic, these deaths were up 70% in some places in Central Florida. Nonetheless, all is not lost as adaptations are constantly being made to account for these ever-changing times. Due to the nature of this pandemic, isolation is a big part of how to keep yourself and others safe. However, this isolation is also in turn harming people as well leading to deteriorating mental health and an increase in feelings of loneliness and helplessness. This has caused people to start using drugs more frequently and in more harmful ways; the isolation making early intervention less likely to happen. Part of the reason is that there are a lot of relapses. People are unable to access recovery meetings, leading to blockades in their progress to recovery. Another reason might be inaccessibility to healthcare. Many people have had a hard time getting in contact with their doctors about their medical needs and as such have turned to street drugs. For those who are on street drugs, there are also instances in which there have been disruptions in their supply; the desperation to procure it leading to lessening the need for reliability and increasing the volatility of use.
There has also been a large increase in stress, whether it be emotional or financial. People’s lives have become very unpredictable, with ever-changing rules and information coming out and having no time to adapt. People are unsure of who to trust and believe, how to protect themselves, and even if the pandemic is as serious as the news makes it out to be. People have also had to Gregorio, Author: Renata Di. “Overdose Calls up 40% during COVID-19 Pandemic; Treatment Centers Seeing Relapses in Long-Time Sober Patients.” Firstcoastnews.com, First Coast News, 23 July 2020, https://www.firstcoastnews.com/article/entertainment/television/programs/gmj/jfrd-averaging-15-overdose-calls-a-day-group-provides-narcan-training-in-response/77Shanoor Seervai, “‘It’s Really, Truly Everywhere’: How the Opioid Crisis Worsened with COVID-19,” June 4, 2021, in The Dose, produced by Shanoor Seervai, Andrea Muraskin, Naomi Leibowitz, and Joshua Tallman, podcast, MP3 audio, 25:05. https://doi.org/10.26099/3d62-cv07fa78a385-d445-4e64-b31c-bcabb57a0925. Crawford, Author: Heather. “Dea Seeing Surge of Counterfeit Pills Laced with Fentanyl and Meth, and Just One Pill Can Kill.” Firstcoastnews.com, First Coast News, 11 Nov. 2021, https://www.firstcoastnews.com/article/news/specialreports/dea-counterfeit-pills-laced-with-fentanyl-meth-surging/77-c0698bf6-9b82-4540-954f-4452b130c7ec.
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