“Everything is changing in how we do business lately,” said Chief Clinical Officer, at Family Service, and Children’s Health in Jackson, Sarah Sabin.
Now that the center is back to helping people in-person, Sabin says, they’re seeing more, and more need for counseling, and substance abuse assistance.
“We noticed an increase in individuals seeking out that support once they heard that, hey we can go in there, and get that social contact, and that face to face support that is so desperately needed,” said Sabin.
Sabin says, they’ve seen people from all backgrounds, from health care professionals themselves, to parents, and kids.
“A lot of youth coming in due to depression an increase in depression due to the lack of socialization.”
New research from the CDC also shows an alarming trend in alcohol related deaths. Sabin says, they’ve heard many stories of recent relapses from situations of isolation, and now they are working to re-engage in personal interaction that was missing for so long during the pandemic.
“That relationship piece I think is vital in a person’s recovery. Having safe recovery friendly social activities that you can engage in.”
To help, the organization says they are focused on making sure people get human interaction, someone they can talk with.
“Some of the things that we did is we looked at how we provide peer support. So, we have a peer advocate on staff, and we looked at her schedule, and freeing her up so that we run some more groups that really just focus on those peer-based recovery skills,” said Sabin.
Everything is done with social distancing in mind. Sabin says if you feel stuck know that there are many others just like you, and help is out there.
“There’s treatment that’s available. It’s just a phone call away.”
Here is a link to resources at Family Service, and Children’s Aid in Jackson.
https://strong-families.org/
