Overview
Caregiving is the act or role of providing support to someone who struggles to manage their own lives due to age, illness, disability, or other ailment that makes independent survival difficult or impossible.
People who have substance use disorders are likely to need more caregiving from the community and network around them, but also might have developed a pattern of substance use in response to their own caregiving duties and burnout. Caring for someone in your household who is focusing on their recovery can mean picking up the daily routines and financial obligations they once handled while also dealing with the their own trauma experienced in the course of engaging with a loved one’s active addiction. That itself can lead to substance use to cope, with alcohol being a common way to unwind and induce sleep when the stress of caregiving leads to constant anxiety or insomnia. If a caregiver is managing someone’s pain medication, this gives them direct access to controlled substances; it’s not unheard of for parents to use their children’s prescriptions either. Caregiving is also inherently isolating as it pulls someone away from their usual networks and activities to be dedicated to another’s well-being.
Commentary
Caregiver burnout is implied to be a part of Jesse Pinkman’s story of drug use in Breaking Bad. He grew close to his Aunt Ginny who died of lung cancer seven months after her diagnosis in contrast to parents who are implied to be controlling and abusive. Anecdotally, young people burning out in the course of caregiving for older members of their community, especially family, is a more common story in recovery circles than I had thought. On a related note, one of the most predictive population-level correlates with youth substance use and overdoses is declining socioeconomic mobility. I’d argue this means that the prospect of a bleak future is an incredibly strong driver in self-destructive coping skills.