r/addiction • u/healthpusher • 1d ago
Discussion How can we actually help all addicts?
This thought has been sitting heavy with me. I see so many people struggling, and I keep thinking “what if there was some kind of organization that actually did what the world is missing right now?” I would love to dedicate myself to something like this but honestly I have no idea what shape it should take.
Should it be more free peer support spaces, like local drop-ins or online meetups? Should it focus on education, so that younger people don’t slide into the same patterns? Or maybe a system of mentors, people in recovery who guide others through the roughest parts? What do you think our world doesn’t have yet but really needs?
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u/drawingcircles0o0 1d ago
I think it needs to be treated as a mental illness and there needs to be free resources for addicts to get quality care and not the really shitty detoxes you have to go to if you don’t have insurance or money. I think there needs to be harm reduction, there should be more needle exchange, those supervised consumption sites they’ve started opening so people can use safely and without spreading diseases, they’ll have help there if they overdose, and they’ll have access to detox and treatment referrals.
In the bigger picture I think they need to massively cut the budget they have for “the war on drugs” and put that money towards treating addiction. If you treat the illness, the demand goes down and that’ll hit the drug trade at the source instead of spending billions of dollars arresting dealers and confiscating drugs that will all be immediately replaced as long as there’s demand. Countries that have put their drug war budget towards treatment for addicts have seen major improvements, it absolutely works.
I think to start we just need a lot more harm reduction, education, advocacy, working on getting rid of the stigma, and providing a lot more free resources and treatment. Like getting maintenance meds should be easier and more affordable, there should be organizations that not only help addicts get clean but also help them afterwards to find a job and housing, I think that could reduce relapses, and follow up with them long term.
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u/Civil_Concentrate_19 1d ago
This is the best and only answer(s) in the history of ‘best’ and ‘only’ 😉
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u/LakiaHarp 1d ago
There’s no single solution that will help all addicts. What really works is a mix of things, peer support, mentorship, education, harm reduction, and affordable treatment because everyone’s needs are different.
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u/unbreakablekango 1d ago
What we need is a world that doesn't encourage quite so much addiction. We need less stress, more empathy, more community, more peace.
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