Depression and break ups

SAMHSA’s National Helpline | SAMHSA

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SAMHSA’s National Helpline is a free, confidential, 24/7, 365-day-a-year treatment referral and information service (in English and Spanish) for individuals and families facing mental and/or substance use disorders.
Also visit the online treatment locator.

SAMHSA’s National Helpline, 1-800-662-HELP (4357) (also known as the Treatment Referral Routing Service), or TTY: 1-800-487-4889 is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. This service provides referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations.

Also visit the online treatment locator, or send your zip code via text message: 435748 (HELP4U) to find help near you. Read more about the HELP4U text messaging service.

The service is open 24/7, 365 days a year.

English and Spanish are available if you select the option to speak with a national representative. Currently, the 435748 (HELP4U) text messaging service is only available in English.

In 2020, the Helpline received 833,598 calls. This is a 27 percent increase from 2019, when the Helpline received a total of 656,953 calls for the year.

The referral service is free of charge. If you have no insurance or are underinsured, we will refer you to your state office, which is responsible for state-funded treatment programs. In addition, we can often refer you to facilities that charge on a sliding fee scale or accept Medicare or Medicaid. If you have health insurance, you are encouraged to contact your insurer for a list of participating health care providers and facilities.

The service is confidential. We will not ask you for any personal information. We may ask for your zip code or other pertinent geographic information in order to track calls being routed to other offices or to accurately identify the local resources appropriate to your needs.

No, we do not provide counseling. Trained information specialists answer calls, transfer callers to state services or other appropriate intake centers in their states, and connect them with local assistance and support.

Suggested Resources
What Is Substance Abuse Treatment? A Booklet for Families
Created for family members of people with alcohol abuse or drug abuse problems. Answers questions about substance abuse, its symptoms, different types of treatment, and recovery. Addresses concerns of children of parents with substance use/abuse problems.
It's Not Your Fault (NACoA) (PDF | 12 KB)
Assures teens with parents who abuse alcohol or drugs that, "It's not your fault!" and that they are not alone. Encourages teens to seek emotional support from other adults, school counselors, and youth support groups such as Alateen, and provides a resource list.

After an Attempt: A Guide for Taking Care of Your Family Member After Treatment in the Emergency Department
Aids family members in coping with the aftermath of a relative's suicide attempt. Describes the emergency department treatment process, lists questions to ask about follow-up treatment, and describes how to reduce risk and ensure safety at home.
Family Therapy Can Help: For People in Recovery From Mental Illness or Addiction
Explores the role of family therapy in recovery from mental illness or substance abuse. Explains how family therapy sessions are run and who conducts them, describes a typical session, and provides information on its effectiveness in recovery.
For additional resources, please visit the SAMHSA Store.

Last Updated: 08/30/2022

Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs

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Misusing alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs can have both immediate and long-term health effects.

The misuse and abuse of alcohol, tobacco, illicit drugs, and prescription medications affect the health and well-being of millions of Americans. SAMHSA’s 2020 National Survey on Drug Use and Health reports that approximately 19.3 million people aged 18 or older had a substance use disorder in the past year.

Alcohol

Data:

In 2020, 50.0% of people aged 12 or older (or 138.5 million people) used alcohol in the past month (i.e., current alcohol users) (2020 NSDUH)
Among the 138.5 million people who were current alcohol users, 61. 6 million people (or 44.4%) were classified as binge drinkers and 17.7 million people (28.8% of current binge drinkers and 12.8% of current alcohol users) were classified as heavy drinkers (2020 NSDUH)
The percentage of people who were past month binge alcohol users was highest among young adults aged 18 to 25 (31.4%) compared with 22.9% of adults aged 26 or older and 4.1% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 (2020 NSDUH)
The 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health reports that 139.7 million Americans age 12 or older were past month alcohol users, 65.8 million people were binge drinkers in the past month, and 16 million were heavy drinkers in the past month

About 2.3 million adolescents aged 12 to 17 in 2019 drank alcohol in the past month, and 1.2 million of these adolescents binge drank in that period (2019 NSDUH)
Approximately 14.5 million people age 12 or older had an alcohol use disorder (2019 NSDUH)
Excessive alcohol use can increase a person’s risk of stroke, liver cirrhosis, alcoholic hepatitis, cancer, and other serious health conditions
Excessive alcohol use can also lead to risk-taking behavior, including driving while impaired. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 29 people in the United States die in motor vehicle crashes that involve an alcohol-impaired driver daily

Programs/Initiatives:

STOP Underage Drinking interagency portal - Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drinking
Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drinking
Talk. They Hear You.
Underage Drinking: Myths vs. Facts
Talking with your College-Bound Young Adult About Alcohol

Relevant links:

National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors
Department of Transportation Office of Drug & Alcohol Policy & Compliance
Alcohol Policy Information Systems Database (APIS)
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

Tobacco

Data:

In 2020, 20.7% of people aged 12 or older (or 57. 3 million people) used nicotine products (i.e., used tobacco products or vaped nicotine) in the past month (2020 NSDUH)
Among past month users of nicotine products, nearly two thirds of adolescents aged 12 to 17 (63.1%) vaped nicotine but did not use tobacco products. In contrast, 88.9% of past month nicotine product users aged 26 or older used only tobacco products (2020 NSDUH)
Data from the 2019 NSDUH reports that 58.1 million people were current (i.e., past month) tobacco users. Specifically, 45.9 million people aged 12 or older in 2019 were past month cigarette smokers (2019 NSDUH)
Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death, often leading to lung cancer, respiratory disorders, heart disease, stroke, and other serious illnesses. The CDC reports that cigarette smoking causes more than 480,000 deaths each year in the United States
The CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health reports that more than 16 million Americans are living with a disease caused by smoking cigarettes

Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) use data:

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2020 National Youth Tobacco Survey. Among both middle and high school students, current use of e-cigarettes declined from 2019 to 2020, reversing previous trends and returning current e-cigarette use to levels similar to those observed in 2018
E-cigarettes are not safe for youth, young adults, or pregnant women, especially because they contain nicotine and other chemicals

Resources:

Tips for Teens: Tobacco
Tips for Teens: E-cigarettes
Implementing Tobacco Cessation Programs in Substance Use Disorder Treatment Settings
Synar Amendment Program

Links:

Truth Initiative
FDA Center for Tobacco Products
CDC Office on Smoking and Health
National Institute on Drug Abuse: Tobacco, Nicotine, and E-Cigarettes
National Institute on Drug Abuse: E-Cigarettes

Opioids

Data:

Among people aged 12 or older in 2020, 3.4% (or 9.5 million people) misused opioids in the past year. Among the 9.5 million people who misused opioids in the past year, 9.3 million people misused prescription pain relievers and 902,000 people used heroin (2020 NSDUH)
An estimated 745,000 people had used heroin in the past year, based on 2019 NSDUH data
In 2019, there were 10.1 million people age 12 or older who misused opioids in the past year. The vast majority of people misused prescription pain relievers (2019 NSDUH)
An estimated 1.6 million people aged 12 or older had an opioid use disorder based on 2019 NSDUH data
Opioid use, specifically injection drug use, is a risk factor for contracting HIV, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C. The CDC reports that people who inject drugs accounted for 9 percent of HIV diagnoses in the United States in 2016
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Understanding the Epidemic, an average of 128 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose

Resources:

Medication-Assisted Treatment
Opioid Overdose Prevention Toolkit
TIP 63: Medications for Opioid Use Disorder
Use of Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in Criminal Justice Settings
Opioid Use Disorder and Pregnancy
Clinical Guidance for Treating Pregnant and Parenting Women With Opioid Use Disorder and Their Infants
The Facts about Buprenorphine for Treatment of Opioid Addiction
Pregnancy Planning for Women Being Treated for Opioid Use Disorder
Tips for Teens: Opioids
Rural Opioid Technical Assistance Grants
Tribal Opioid Response Grants
Provider’s Clinical Support System - Medication Assisted Treatment Grant Program

Links:

National Institute on Drug Abuse: Opioids
National Institute on Drug Abuse: Heroin
HHS Prevent Opioid Abuse
Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America
Addiction Technology Transfer Center (ATTC) Network
Prevention Technology Transfer Center (PTTC) Network

Marijuana

Data:

The percentage of people who used marijuana in the past year was highest among young adults aged 18 to 25 (34. 5%) compared with 16.3% of adults aged 26 or older and 10.1% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 (2020 NSDUH)
2019 NSDUH data indicates that 48.2 million Americans aged 12 or older, 17.5 percent of the population, used marijuana in the past year
Approximately 4.8 million people aged 12 or older in 2019 had a marijuana use disorder in the past year (2019 NSDUH)
Marijuana can impair judgment and distort perception in the short term and can lead to memory impairment in the long term
Marijuana can have significant health effects on youth and pregnant women.

Resources:

Know the Risks of Marijuana
Marijuana and Pregnancy
Tips for Teens: Marijuana

Relevant links:

National Institute on Drug Abuse: Marijuana
Addiction Technology Transfer Centers on Marijuana
CDC Marijuana and Public Health

Emerging Trends in Substance Misuse:

Methamphetamine—In 2019, NSDUH data show that approximately 2 million people used methamphetamine in the past year. Approximately 1 million people had a methamphetamine use disorder, which was higher than the percentage in 2016, but similar to the percentages in 2015 and 2018. The National Institute on Drug Abuse Data shows that overdose death rates involving methamphetamine have quadrupled from 2011 to 2017. Frequent meth use is associated with mood disturbances, hallucinations, and paranoia.
Cocaine—In 2019, NSDUH data show an estimated 5.5 million people aged 12 or older were past users of cocaine, including about 778,000 users of crack. The CDC reports that overdose deaths involving have increased by one-third from 2016 to 2017. In the short term, cocaine use can result in increased blood pressure, restlessness, and irritability. In the long term, severe medical complications of cocaine use include heart attacks, seizures, and abdominal pain.
Kratom—In 2019, NSDUH data show that about 825,000 people had used Kratom in the past month. Kratom is a tropical plant that grows naturally in Southeast Asia with leaves that can have psychotropic effects by affecting opioid brain receptors. It is currently unregulated and has risk of abuse and dependence. The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that health effects of Kratom can include nausea, itching, seizures, and hallucinations.

Resources:

Tips for Teens: Methamphetamine
Tips for Teens: Cocaine
National Institute on Drug Abuse

More SAMHSA publications on substance use prevention and treatment.

Last Updated: 04/27/2022

How to overcome depression after parting?

May 10, 2019

May 24, 2021

6 minutes

28026

ProWellness What to do?

Gap bridging steps

When the relationship is over, a breakup follows. Most often painful on at least one side. Any person goes through several stages after the end of a relationship:

Denial stage. A person tries to protect himself from what happened, as if it happened in the life of another.
Anger and accusations. The stage at which all the accusations go to the former partner.
Trading stages. At this time, thoughts arise about what to do if the partner decides to return, whether he should take revenge, whether it is worth fighting for him.
Depression. This is a state after a divorce, when it seems that there will be no more love in life, you will forever find yourself alone, and there is no way to live in such mental anguish. Under normal circumstances, this process should take no more than three weeks.
Acceptance stage. An understanding comes that divorce is only for the good, life is getting better, new acquaintances, new hobbies arise.

Valerian and Melissa - Essential Botanics anti-stress complex will help to provide a quick and long-lasting calming effect. It helps to reduce irritability, improves sleep quality and normalizes the emotional background. Active ingredients in optimal dosages gently affect the central nervous system without causing drowsiness.

The main calming mineral - magnesium in a bioavailable form, as well as a powerful set of anti-stress plant extracts contains the RELAX Box / Stress Protection complex. It provides an adequate response of the body to stress and rapid adaptation to nervous overload, and also helps to normalize the emotional background and relieve nervous excitement without inhibiting performance and concentration.

Attention! Depressive disorder lasts differently for everyone. It depends on the model of behavior during these experiences and the temperament of the person. For some, it drags on for years. But with proper work on yourself, it is normal to get out of depression after parting in a month.

Signs of depression

Most people who suffer from depression do not take any action to deal with it. Some simply do not consider their condition serious, someone does not know about ways to overcome depression, and others are not ready to admit that they suffer from depression. Depression has several characteristic features. They need to be recognized in order to get out of this state in time:

people look at the whole world from a negative side;
frequent thoughts of feeling sorry for oneself;
interest in appearance is lost, the woman ceases to care about how she is dressed, combed;
is haunted by apathy, in some cases suicidal thoughts;
reduced self-esteem;
many phobias arise;
there is no way to concentrate, absent-mindedness appears;
efficiency and purposefulness decrease;
sleep problems, insomnia, nightmares;
constant fatigue appears;
the meaning of life disappears.

The condition is divided into two types depending on the nature of the person. There is a victim complex or an aggressor complex.

Aggressor complex. This is aggression directed at oneself. A person blames himself for parting, anger and bitterness appear. In such a period, a sense of revenge is born at the same time.
Victim complex. It happens more often among the fair sex. This complex is characterized by a feeling of sadness and helplessness. It seems to a person that nothing can be overcome, everything in life is bad and hopeless.

Attention! Any variant of prolonged depression can lead to serious disorders of not only mental but also physical health. The meaning of life is lost, self-esteem decreases.

What to do?

A person in a state of depression is in captivity of his emotions and is almost unable to control them. Often he is not able to get out of this state on his own and he needs the support of others. There are some basic tips on what to do after a breakup to overcome depression and move on with your life:

first of all it is necessary to get rid of the idea that a relationship with a former partner is still possible;
it is necessary to remove from your eyes everything that reminds you of a broken relationship: photographs, things of the former half, joint books;
devote yourself to your favorite business or find an exciting activity that you can immerse yourself in;
acquire new skills, master a new prestigious or highly paid profession in order to increase the level of professional and social recognition;
sports help against depression - a simple daily run in the fresh air is enough;
if possible, change the situation - travel, home renovation, change of residence or other changes are distracting and bring peace of mind back to normal;
follow a complete diet so that all vitamins and minerals, as well as omega-3 fatty acids, are present in the diet, then it will be easier for the body to overcome depression on its own;
write a letter to a former partner, state all the emotions there, then reread it several times if you want to cry and destroy the letter.
the most important thing is a positive attitude! And it can also be trained, like training muscles. There are various training techniques for controlling emotions, there are exercises for developing positive thinking, which can be found freely available on the Internet. Recently, even such a profession as a laughter therapist has appeared. He conducts individual and group sessions in which people laugh using a variety of laughing techniques.

Treat yourself to a healthy honey delicacy that will help reduce nervous excitement! Honey paste with meadowsweet, hawthorn, passionflower and lemon balm helps maintain the normal functioning of the cardiovascular system and strengthen the heart muscle, helping to keep stress under control.

Attention! If all of the above methods do not help, you need to contact a psychotherapist.

Disclaimer

Expert: Ekaterina Vorobieva Adept of a healthy and active lifestyle

Reviewer: Ekaterina Vorobieva Adept of a healthy and active lifestyle

Read other articles on similar topics

(12 votes, average 5)

Depression after a breakup, how to get out of depression after a divorce

The relevance of the topic of depression after parting with a loved one will never disappear. Unfortunately, almost every one of us has experienced the pain of breaking up with our soulmate.

Many who have been affected by depression after parting with a boyfriend or girlfriend hear empty consolations from relatives and friends. Only for some reason these words do not help, but on the contrary, they leave an unpleasant aftertaste on the soul and the feeling that no one understands you.

You've probably heard the saying, "No one can help you until you help yourself." But how to do it, if hands fall and it seems that everything is hopelessly lost?

We invite you to look into this complex but extremely important topic together.

Getting out of depression after a breakup: where to start?

To begin with, let's try to understand: we were overwhelmed by depression after the breakup of relations, or this is a short-term subdepressive state.

Main symptoms of depression:

Emotional signs:

1. Depression, depressed mood.

2. Anticipation of trouble, constant anxiety.

3. Frequent self-accusation, feeling of guilt.

4. Loss of the ability to experience any feelings.

5. Irritability, aggression.

Physiological signs:

1. Insomnia or drowsiness.

2. Loss of appetite or overeating.

3. Pain all over the body.

4. Increased fatigue.

Behavioral signs:

1. The desire to limit any contacts.

2. Passivity.

3. Abuse of alcohol, other psychoactive drugs.

4. Slow thinking, difficulty concentrating.

If you have noticed most of the manifestations from this list in yourself, then you are depressed. Now, it is important to understand how to get rid of depression after a divorce from a loved one.

Getting out of depression after parting is possible only if we have found the true cause of this condition. And we need to fight it.

Parting with a man or woman who meant a lot in our lives leads to the collapse of plans, hopes and dreams. It turns out that we lose all reference points in life. We are at a crossroads and suffer, in fact, not from lost love, but from the fact that we do not know how to rebuild and begin to create a new reality.

Breaking up a relationship with a loved one often leads to low self-esteem. We are disappointed in ourselves, we begin to engage in self-digging and, of course, we conclude that we are not capable of anything. We are fixated on the fact that we will not succeed, we are afraid to take any step, and therefore we do not even try to change something.

It turns out a vicious circle. To overcome depression, you need to start making new plans, set goals and go towards them. But we cannot do this, because the fear of new failures does not allow us to move forward.

Now you know the main thing: in order for depression after a divorce from a husband or wife to go away, you need to increase self-esteem and start moving forward. This is quite hard work, but believe me, if not very quickly, but it will bear fruit.

Post-breakup depression: steps to overcome depression

It is worth noting that men and women have slightly different options for coping with depression.

So, how can a woman get out of depression after a divorce?

1. We take care of our appearance.

Haven't been to a beauty salon, shopping, gym for a long time? Right now.

Go to the mirror and look at your reflection. I do not like? Now remember that day when you left the house in a stylish dress, with a neat manicure, well-styled hair and beautiful makeup. You heard compliments from strangers and it certainly brought pleasure.

When you feel that you look worthy, you will want to go out. And this, in turn, will lead to new acquaintances, opportunities, and maybe new love.

2. Doing what we love.

For true careerists, a great option to cope with depression after a divorce is to give yourself to work. Women who have devoted themselves entirely to marriage probably have hobbies. That's why we give him the most attention.

New successes will add to your self-confidence. You will realize that you can do anything, you just have to make a little effort.

Learn more

Depression and break ups

SAMHSA’s National Helpline | SAMHSA

Main page content

Suggested Resources

Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs

Alcohol

Tobacco

Opioids

Marijuana

Emerging Trends in Substance Misuse:

How to overcome depression after parting?

Gap bridging steps

Signs of depression

What to do?

Depression after a breakup, how to get out of depression after a divorce

Getting out of depression after a breakup: where to start?

Post-breakup depression: steps to overcome depression