The Relationship Between Addiction and Money
People struggling with addiction deal with the side effects of their disease impacting their health, employment, and personal relationships, but often not considered is the effect the disease can have on one’s financial well-being.
Simply put, substance abuse can cause significant financial strain, even beyond the cost to acquire the substance itself. Let’s take a look at some of those costs, and how rehab can help get your finances — and your life — back on track.
Addiction Causes Costly Health Problems
People struggling with a substance use disorder often can face serious health problems as a side effect of their disease. There are the obvious, debilitating health issues connected to addiction, such as liver damage in alcoholics and the risk of overdosing with nearly every substance, but there’s more hidden costs to addiction as well. For example, health insurance premiums can increase as a result of addiction.
Rehab facilities typically are not free but are certainly worth the investment. They allow people suffering with addiction to detox and recover in a safe, healthy, and supportive environment, while also learning skills to inform them to make better and healthier life choices.
Addiction Can Affect Employment
Struggling with an addiction is hard, and left untreated, it will affect all areas of the person’s life, including their relationship with their employer. As the addiction becomes the focus of the person’s life, it can affect productivity on the job, or even make holding a job impossible. This financial strain is worsened when any money they may still have goes straight to more drugs or alcohol.
This is where rehab can help. In addition to not spending money on substances, treatment programs typically teach life skills. This can encompass everything from building a resume and finding a job, and often includes lessons in money management to set clients up for success after rehab.
Addiction Leads to Legal Problems
The legal cost of addiction is potentially staggering. DUIs and legal fees as a result of using and abusing alcohol and other substances are usually astronomical — a first-time offense for driving under the influence of alcohol is estimated to cost more than $10,000 after fees and lawyers’ bills are paid. [1] This estimate does not include the increase in car insurance premiums people pay after a DUI arrest.
If transportation is a concern due to a revoked license or unpaid legal fees, this can be a huge obstacle in seeking employment for those in recovery. Many sober living facilities help to arrange transportation to and from jobs or wherever a client needs to go if they are unable to drive.
Make the Smart Financial Choice with Extra Mile Recovery
The financial burden of addiction may seem insurmountable, but no matter how far down someone may feel they have fallen, there is always hope of getting back up. For clients seeking life skills development at a sober living program, Extra Mile Recovery can help you find the perfect fit.
At our partner facilities, Brightside Sober Living and Ascension Sober Houses, clients will experience aftercare planning, where they can work with case managers to plan their living situation, transportation, and employment, as well as how they can transfer the skills they learned in rehab to the outside world.
If you or a loved one are struggling with addiction, contact Extra Mile Recovery today and learn how we can help you reclaim your life.
