MenuClose
cropped-evoke-wellness-favicon-logo-512x512-1-1.png

Build a foundation for lasting recovery from addiction

What Is the Link Between Unemployment and Drug Abuse?

young woman holding her head as she looks despondently in the mirror wondering what is the link between unemployment and drug abuse

People struggling with a drug addiction also tend to suffer financially too, with many battling both unemployment and drug abuse simultaneously, trapped in a cycle of shame and dependency. Because drug use often affects how a person functions, drugs can prevent them from performing well at work, which is often a one-way path to losing their job. Our caring professionals understand the correlation between unemployment and drug use. Contact us today at Evoke Wellness at Coconut Creek online or call 866.693.3871 to learn how our addiction treatment programs can help you get clean and get back to work.

The Connection Between Unemployment and Drug Abuse

Alcohol abuse, smoking, and prescription drug abuse are more prevalent among people who are unemployed. This is likely because the stress of losing a job is one of the causes of addiction, and an active addiction to drugs or alcohol could cause a person to lose their job. The correlation between unemployment and drug use couldn’t be clearer as there is a continuous cycle that requires professional care, treatment, therapy, and rehab to overcome.

Two Sides of the Same Coin

Much like the chicken and egg dilemma of wondering which comes first, unemployment and drug abuse are linked in two distinct ways. First, unemployment can act as a driving force of addiction for many people. This is especially true when unable to pay bills and provide for your family in the ways you once could or feel you should be doing. Lack of employment can be embarrassing and stressful, leaving a person without a sense of purpose. Sadly, these factors could be so overbearing that drugs and alcohol begin to be used as a way of coping. Over time, a few drinks a day may turn into alcoholism, and recreational drug use could develop into an addiction. These harmful ways of coping often lead to the following consequences:

  • Furthering the financial stress on a person and their family
  • Damaging relationships with friends, family, and co-workers
  • Increasing the likelihood of physical and mental health issues
  • Making it more difficult to obtain employment

We know that the first step is often the hardest, but it is the most critical in what we will work hard to ensure is a lifelong recovery. Transitioning from addiction to recovery can be smooth when you are in the care of a professional addiction treatment center with years of experience in helping to usher people just like you through drug abuse and into a better place that involves a new job and a renewed sense of purpose.

Drug abuse not only can occur in the unemployed, but unemployment and drug use are also connected because substance abuse can be one factor in why people lose work and have their careers derailed.

Although an addiction to drugs and alcohol may not always be noticeable, a substance abuse disorder will eventually reveal itself. A person’s body will begin to deteriorate, their mind will lose its sharpness, and priorities will be reorganized. These changes can subsequently prevent someone from fulfilling their responsibilities at work. As a substance abuse problem grows, an individual’s dependency on drugs will increase, causing them to focus more on the drugs – acquiring and taking them – rather than their job. Here, the second link between unemployment and drug abuse becomes clear. You may risk losing your home and damaging the most important relationships with the people you love most—those who depend on you and your job to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table.

Learn More at Evoke Wellness at Coconut Creek, FL

Addiction is a heartbreaking disease. Not only are unemployment and drug use tied together, but there are other ways drug or alcohol abuse can affect a person. Anyone is susceptible to an addiction, but thankfully, there is help just a phone call away. If you feel that you or a loved one is struggling with drug use in Florida, contact us at Evoke Wellness at Coconut Creek today using our secure online form or at 866.693.3871.