With the opioid epidemic reaching new heights across our nation, everyone is becoming aware of the insidious and varied forms that illegal drug abuse can take. For those working in aging services, we’ve been trained to look for signs of prescription drug abuse by those we care for and their families. Certainly, theft of prescription […]
Last year, a piece I wrote regarding substance use and abuse in the senior population was published here on McKnight’s Senior Living. The response to that article was overwhelming, and it was clear that it touched a nerve. One of the people who reached out to me was Rick Shamberg, a managing partner at Cerulean Partners, a senior […]
Alcohol use is common among seniors. Nearly half of older adults aged 65 and older report having consumed alcohol in the past year. They may have a drink at a social event or party, to enhance their mood, or as a means of coping with a difficult symptom such as insomnia. Some older adults even […]
For some older adults with substance use disorders, attending group therapy with many younger adults can be uncomfortable. “Elders are in a different stage of life and grew up in a time when having an addiction or mental illness received a great deal of stigma,” explained Nicole MacFarland, executive director of Senior Hope, Inc., an elder-focused outpatient substance […]