Fentanyl, Meth Drive Hoosier Treatment Decisions
INDIANAPOLIS — Families dealing with addiction often face tough decisions, especially when a loved one refuses treatment.
Summer Toth, an outreach associate with Recovery Centers of America in Indianapolis, said, “Addiction affects the whole family, not just the person using.”
“We try to provide support to loved ones because they’re such a huge part of recovery. Everything we do involves the family,” she said.
Toth said one of the biggest challenges is refusal of help. “We can do our best to show how addiction is influencing their life, and caregivers can start to set boundaries. But we really can’t force somebody to come into treatment.”
She said boundaries might mean, “Not allowing a person to continue living at home if their behavior is harmful or if they aren’t contributing.”
“This isn’t a moral failing. This is a disease, and people can get professional medical help,” Toth added.
She said the main reasons people enter treatment in Indianapolis are fentanyl and meth addiction.
Toth stressed acting quickly when someone agrees to treatment. “We really move fast when someone is willing,” she said, describing the admissions process: assessment, insurance verification, and arranging transportation, often all at once.
Patients often spend the first week apart from family, then, “Families may be incorporated into therapy sessions to begin rebuilding relationships,” Toth said.
Treatment usually lasts about a month, she said, “if not longer.”
