PTSD Awareness Day – June 27th
Back in 2010, Senator Kent Conrad spearheaded a campaign to create an official form of recognition of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) through a “day of awareness.” Senator Conrad was passionate about the creation of an awareness day as a tribute to North Dakota National Guard serviceman, Staff Sergeant Joe Biel, ...
Pride Month: How Addiction Impacts the LGBTQ+ Community
Pride Month is here! The month-long celebration of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community is a time for fun, raising awareness and reflection. The LGBTQ community faces many hardships, from accepting their own identities to coming out to facing social and political adversity. Studies show that an estimated ...
Four Outstanding Spectrum Employees Celebrate 20 Years with Spectrum Health Systems
Four of our talented employees recently celebrated their 20th anniversary with Spectrum! Barbara Tingley, Lisa Blanchard, Earl Warren, and Carole Palaima have all dedicated decades to our organization. To show our gratitude for their hard work and support for Spectrum’s mission, we hosted a celebration luncheon for all home office ...
Mental Health Month: The Connection Between Addiction and Mental Health Grows
While mental health has become a widely talked about topic in recent years, May is the official observance for mental health awareness. In its 70th year, Mental Health Month was launched by Mental Health America in May of 1949 with a mission of reaching millions of Americans through the media, ...
50 Addiction Facts in 50 Days to Celebrate 50 Years of Spectrum Health Systems
50 days from today, the team at Spectrum Health Systems will be celebrating the company’s 50th anniversary. Since our inception, we’ve seen a lot of positive changes in the addiction treatment field and recovery community. While many improvements have been made, there’s still much work to be done. We’ve worked ...
Addiction and Depression: A Vicious Cycle
According to the 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 7.9 million Americans have been diagnosed with both depression and addiction. Each disease can be difficult to deal with on its own, so dealing with both at the same time is obviously more challenging. With depression being one of ...
Spectrum’s Domestic Violence Education Program Aims to Change Harmful Behavior, Beliefs and Attitudes
On average, 20 people each minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. Each year, this equates to more than 10 million women and men who suffer from domestic violence. With one in four women and one in nine men experiencing severe intimate partner physical violence, ...
How Spectrum and Massachusetts DOC Work Together to Treat Female Offenders
According to the American Civil Liberties Union, there are more than 219,000 women incarcerated across the United States. Many wonder what brought them in contact with the criminal justice system. Oftentimes, women serving time behind bars struggle with co-occurring disorders – the combination of mental health disorders and addiction – ...
Today’s Students Aren’t Worse Off, They’re Simply Different
According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, there is a strong connection between childhood trauma and substance use disorders. Adolescents who engage in problematic substance use are more likely to develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression, suicidal thoughts, violent behaviors and other mental health disorders. Our VP of ...
Inside Spectrum – Winter 2019
In This Issue: January was Human Trafficking Awareness Month | Four Legged-Friends Provide Therapy | Recovery Month in the State of Georgia | Outside Spectrum | Spectrum Girls’ Detention Program Wins Statewide Decorating Contest | 17 Spectrum Employees Are Inducted into the President’s Club This Quarter | Spectrum Receives $10,000 ...
The Importance of Children of Alcoholics Awareness Week
While the nation continues to confront the public health crisis that is addiction, events like Children of Alcoholics Awareness Week help remind us of often forgotten victims. Alcoholism remains a prominent issue in the US, and as a result, one in four children live in a family impacted by parental ...
Why Are Women Overdosing More Than Men?
A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) contained some troubling statistics. Overdose deaths among women aged 30-64 have rapidly increased. From 1999 to 2017, the number climbed a staggering 260 percent. And the drugs causing them have evolved as well, with more overdoses being attributed ...
Jeffrey Born’s Story of Opioid Addiction, Torn Relationships, and the Overdose That Changed His Life
There’s a stigma against people who struggle with addiction that often exists because people believe it could never happen to them – but it can. Addiction is a disease that knows no boundaries, has no preconceived notions and leaves no clues as to who it will touch next. Jeffrey Born ...
A Startling New Trend: Viral Overdose Videos
Social media has changed our world, for better or for worse. When it comes to addiction, it’s a double-edged sword. While it opens up a whole new avenue for support – online communities and educational resources – it also makes someone’s personal struggles quite public. A recent report from the ...
Is Your Middle Schooler at Risk? What Every Parent Needs to Know About Addiction
Remember middle school? Braces, binders, first dances and budding friendships were always top of mind. But it’s around this age that less innocent topics begin to show up as well. Children between 13 and 17 are the most easily influenced age demographic, which can make them more susceptible to experimenting ...
