Addiction within the Military Community

Addiction within the Military Community

Capella University

WRIT 6088

Written by:

Jefferson M Tillery

Professor:

Nicole Mclnnes

Aug 19th 2021

Addiction within the Military Community

Addiction is a common phenomenon within the military community that affects war

veterans' mental health treatment efforts. Addiction is a chronic health condition that entails a

relapsing brain illness that causes uncontrollable substance use, regardless of its harmful

consequences to the individual. The initial decision to engage in substance use is usually voluntary

for many people. However, with time, brain changes challenge an individual's self-control,

affecting their ability to stand firm against the intense impulses to engage in substance use. When

military personnel goes to war, they often come back differently. Some of the changes are

physically evident as they entail physical injuries such as gunshot wounds, amputations, or burn

wounds. Others are deeper as they entail psychological and mental health disorders. Because of

these physical and psychological changes, military personnel turns to alcohol and drugs for

comfort, resulting in substance abuse, which leads to addiction in the long run. According to the

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), 47 percent of military personnel on active duty engage

in binge drinking, 30 percent are smokers, and 11 percent engage in illicit drug use, most of whom

abuse opioids (Vertava Health, 2021). Hence, addiction within the military community is a serious

problem caused by combat experience, psychological distress associated with the job and the

increased injury risk, and the military culture, which can be managed by prevention, screening, and

referral to treatment which includes both pharmacological and behavioral.

Causes of Addiction within the Military Community

Combat Experience

Most military personnel are actively deployed in combat zones, which has proved to be the

most outstanding risk factor for substance abuse and addiction within the military community.

During deployments, military personnel goes through traumatic experiences such as becoming

seriously injured, witnessing serious injuries to others, and even the death of colleagues and people

they have grown close with, resulting in a negative cumulative effect that causes stress and trauma.

These experiences put them at an increased risk of PTSD, which in turn pushes them to substance

use and misuse, leading to addiction (Goodwin et al., 2020). They record high hospital admissions

for non-communicable illnesses such as alcohol misuse, binge drinking, and smoking.

Psychological Distress

Combat experience often causes psychological distress in the military community. Physical

injuries and invisible wounds that military personnel return from combat contribute to

psychological distress, resulting in mental problems such as PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and

depression. Unfortunately, most military personnel engage in substance use as a maladaptive

coping method because of the psychological distress and mental health problems they face due to

the extreme working conditions. In the beginning, substance use may seem effective in easing the

symptoms of mental health issues and PTSD, but it has a high risk of developing a substance use

disorder and addiction. However, Goodwin et al. (2020) claim that substance use among military

personnel varies with time due to their increased chances of having extended periods of absence,

such as during advanced training operations and deployments, which reduces the chances for

addiction. Likewise, despite the psychological distress among military personnel and their

increased substance use, the physical activeness of the profession reduces the health consequences

of excessive substance use (Goodwin et al., 2020). Moreover, regardless of how long it may take

for military populations to become addicted to alcohol and other substances, addiction remains a

possibility because of the psychological distress that they experience during deployment.

Increased Injury Risk

Military work is associated with an increased injury risk due to its strenuous and very

active nature. Treatment for injuries often entails painkillers and opioid prescriptions, which have a

high potential for abuse and misuse and can lead to addiction in the long run. The number of

military personnel misusing opioids and painkiller medications is a major concern, given that they

can also obtain the drugs from corpsmen and non-physician medics (Vertava Health, 2021).

Combat-related injuries are very high among soldiers, whereby explosions and gunshot wounds are

the leading causes of those injuries. In most cases, soldiers self-medicate after sustaining injuries

using painkillers, leading to addiction (Vertava Health, 2021). Hence, the increased injury risk

associated with military life contributes to addiction due to the increased chances of treatment with

opioids and other painkiller medications, which are highly addictive.

Military Culture

Alcohol consumption is a common practice in the military. Traditionally, military

personnel has used it to cope with the stress and anxiety brought about by combat. According to

Teachman, Anderson, and Tedrow (2015), the military seems to encourage soldiers to consume

alcohol considering there are price supports on military bases whereby alcohol is cheaper than

elsewhere. The military believes that alcohol lifts one's morale and aids in unit cohesion while

contributing to soldier adjustment. Jones and Fear (2011) assert that alcoholism has been part of

the military service for a long time. It was widely used during World War I and II as the initial

shell shock treatment, mainly to assist sleep and for therapeutical purposes. Turning to alcohol for

comfort has been, and is still, a common occurrence in military life. This mode of alcohol

consumption has a high chance of leading to alcohol use disorders and addiction.

Treatment Options

Prevention

Various treatments can help addicted military veterans stop alcohol and drug use, evade

relapse, and recover successfully. According to Sharbafchi and Heydari (2017), the best approach

to addiction should start with prevention, which is the fundamental approach to controlling the

inception and progression of substance use from experimental to regular use, followed by

dependence. Individuals respond differently to different prevention programs, as some might be

effective for one individual and ineffective for another. For that reason, prevention programs

should be adopted to meet the unique needs of an individual. They include selective, indicated, and

universal strategies whereby selective efforts center on subgroups at high risk for addiction and

substance use disorders, indicated strategies focus on individuals in the early stages of substance

use, and universal efforts target populations that are not currently at high risk for addiction. These

strategies intensify protection factors, thus reducing risk factors such as peer pressure, low

psychological resilience, and low-cost accessibility.

Screening

Individuals suffering from addiction differ widely from other patients as they rarely accept

their conditions and need help. Military personnel rarely see their substance use problems. They

only seek treatment when they experience the physical side effects of substance use, such as

intoxication and withdrawal. According to Sharbafchi and Heydari (2017), the diagnosis of

addiction can be attained by screening for recognizable health-related, work-related, behavioral,

and interpersonal problems. Screening should be socially and culturally acceptable to avoid the

condition being seen as a moral fault and not a health problem. Likewise, some physical conditions

can be used, such as recurrent injuries and gastritis hepatitis, among other related medical

conditions, in screening.

Diagnosis and Treatment

The diagnosis should be based on valid and reliable facts about addiction. It should be

guided by the DSM-V of APA 2013, which associates the diagnosis of a substance use disorder

with significant quantities that lead to toxicity and have psychopathological behavioral features

(Sharbafchi & Heydari, 2017). Treatment is the next step after a proper diagnosis with the DSM-V.

Military services may impact the selection of treatment methods for substance use disorders and

addiction. The military community has its unique routines, which may fail to correlate with the

research-based practice efforts for therapy. The general therapists in the military may lack adequate

experience and skills, and inadequate standardized training for clinicians in the military are the

main factors that may affect addiction treatment in the military (Sharbafchi & Heydari, 2017).

Effective treatment for addiction in the military needs a wide-ranging approach since the areas that

should be addressed to change the situation in the military are psychological disturbances, physical

and cognitive dysfunctions, behavioral difficulties, and social and interpersonal impairments.

Hence, the first goal is abstinence, followed by recovery, which is a lasting task.

Conclusion

Addiction is a common issue within the military community and is often brought about by

military combat experience, psychological distress, and the increased chances of injury. The

military culture also encourages substance use by ensuring alcohol and other substances are

cheaper in institutions than in other public places and upholds the idea that it reduces the anxiety

and stress associated with military life. Its treatment process entails prevention, screening,

diagnosis, and treatment.

References

Goodwin, L., Leightley, D., Chui, Z. E., Landau, S., McCrone, P., Hayes, R. D., Jones, M.,

Wessely, S., & Fear, N. T. (2020). Hospital admissions for non-communicable disease in

the UK military and associations with alcohol use and mental health: a data linkage

study. BMC Public Health, 20, 1-17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-09300-5

Jones, E., & Fear, N. T. (2011). Alcohol Use and Misuse within the Military: A Review,

International Review of Psychiatry, 23(1), 166-172.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/51077971_Alcohol_use_and_misuse_within_the

_military_A_review

Sharbafchi, M., & Heydari, M. (2017). Management of Substance use Disorder in Military

Services: A Comprehensive Approach. Advanced Biomedical

Research, 6http://dx.doi.org/10.4103/abr.abr_283_16

Teachman, J., Anderson, C., & Tedrow, L. M. (2015). Military Service and Alcohol Use in the

United States, Armed Forces & Society, 41(3), 460-476.

https://cedar.wwu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1013&context=sociology_facpubs

Vertava Health (2021). Substance Use Prevalence in the military,

https://vertavahealth.com/addiction-resources/military-substance-abuse/