PEORIA, Ill. – A local doctor says the addictions and substance use he sees and helps treat have only been made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Doctor Robert Lizer is the Medical Director of UnityPoint Health-Unity Place.
“We saw isolation, we saw boredom, people are working from home, we saw depression increase, we saw anxiety,” said Lizer. “Along with al those things, substance abuse escalated tremendously with that.”
As compared to previous years, where Lizer says there were marked declines in substance use and addiction.
On the whole, officials estimate nationally only one in ten people who are addicted to something seek treatment, and increasing those numbers is one of the goals of National Addiction Treatment Week.
Lizer says it’s critical for someone addicted to any sort of substance, to work with a doctor or specialist to get a treatment plan in place, and stick to it.
“The brain is still wired for substances,” said Lizer. “Even though you might not have used, the brain is still usually wired for twelve to eighteen months for that substance.”
Lizer says both medication therapy and being part of a support group are equally as important to recovery, but relapse continues to be a great concern as well.
