ZANESVILLE – Many times, people with substance abuse disorders are not that way by choice. The stress as well as not being able to go through the same daily routine or perhaps enjoy relationship with others at the same frequency has forced some patients who may even be on the road to recovery into a setback.
“What the pandemic has done… it has taken away a lot of structure that we’ve tried to help people to build. It’s taken away support group meetings. Almost immediately, AANA closed and we rely on those and our clients rely on those but most of them online. So, this has presented a challenge. Of course, then, we had to figure out how do we do counseling and within three days, our staff had telehealth set up and we were starting to see clients remotely,” Muskingum Behavioral Health CEO Steve Carrel said.
Carrel said, while hard, its critical for clients who are facing challenges during this time to keep track of their mental health and to take steps to take the power back.
“Establish those routines that reinforce recovery. You have a routine before the pandemic; find the positive ways of dealing with this – connect online, reading the big book, connecting with counselors,” Carrel said.
Carrel wants people to know that Muskingum Behavioral Health is still open but conducting business a bit differently. For people who are in trouble, they are encouraged to call in and the center will schedule a telehealth appointment.
