4 Reasons Drug Use Rises During A Recession
Larry Alton / April 17, 2015
During the recession of 2008-2009, researchers had an ideal opportunity to study the effects of a recession on people’s use of drugs and alcohol. This was a deep recession, comparable to the the most famous one in American History in the 1930’s. It deeply affected many Americans in ways that some have never recovered from, and caused many others to seek help at professionally run rehabilitation centers.
Not surprisingly, one of the most comprehensive studies conducted during that recession concluded that drug and alcohol usage increased significantly, for a variety of different reasons. Even though people had less money because of job cutbacks, the need to self-medicate overruled the practical consideration of less income.
Loss of Jobs or Housing
The number one trigger for increased drug and alcohol usage is most often the loss of a job, or the loss of a home, and sometimes the two were combined in a terrible cause and effect relationship. People unable to cope with the depression brought about by one or both of these significant losses found solace in escaping from the cold reality of the situation to the warmth of a more care-free world – at least for a few hours at a time.
Drug and alcohol users who confessed to double or triple their normal usage during the recession period also reported frequent signs of the increased usage such as being much more irritable, getting into fights, sustaining significant health problems, and even being arrested for various reasons.
Increased Sales Force
One reason that drug use increased during the recession was found to be attributable to an increased sales force out in the streets. Young people unable to find gainful employment elsewhere took to the streets, thereby increasing the availability of drugs and marijuana to their peers and other consumers. With far fewer jobs available, especially to young people with little experience, jobs had to be created impromptu, and drug distribution always requires more of a sales force out among potential buyers. Additionally, in many cases the street sale of drugs was lucrative enough to keep newcomers in place with their new found jobs.
Free Time Activities
Many people who found themselves unemployed during the recent depression suddenly had a great deal of available time, and those who didn’t choose to make use of that time by seeking alternative employment often fell into a funk and abused drugs or alcohol. The pain and stress of being jobless led them to self-medicate more and more, since they had so much free time on their hands.
Increased Stress Levels
Even those people who were not immediately impacted by layoffs and terminations were still often affected by the downturn in the economy. Many people who avoided the initial waves of layoffs admitted to being extremely stressed at each successive wave of job layoffs and terminations, expecting that they could be in the next round. Living with that kind of stress on a daily basis led many to abuse alcohol and or drugs to deal with the anxiety of what might be coming. Ironically, even those who kept their jobs all throughout the great recession were sometimes just as much affected as if they had been included in those employment cuts.