An Addiction Special You Won't Want To Miss

Richard is a recovering alcoholic who has worked in the construction industry for fourteen years. His bravery and honesty will touch you whether you are dealing with an addiction yourself or know of someone who is. The addiction doesn’t need to be alcohol for this episode to be relevant for you.

Two top addiction healthcare specialists from the UK and USA are part of the conversation. Both of whom have a lot of respect for Richard’s courage for not only speaking out on Constructive Voices, but also for accepting his addiction and finding the tools available to him to deal with it.

This episode will give you a deeper understanding of the issue of addiction in the construction industry. Richard’s lived experience will resonate with some of you and the honest, in-depth discussion with him and the healthcare experts is enlightening.

It is clear that no one should feel ashamed of an addiction according to all of our experts

It is clear that no one should feel ashamed of an addiction according to all of our experts. The shame is not to feel okay to seek support.

Richard also highlights the fact that in his case, as in many others, his addiction can be linked to various mental imbalances.

"I drank every day for about five, six years, I think and I thought I was doing it successfully working in the construction industry, I was working in the offices as a technician, I didn’t really think I had a problem, which is the case with many addicts, they often are quite deluded and think that there’s no issue."

Some construction industry addiction statistics

Employees of the construction industry, mostly blue-collar workers, have nearly twice the rate of substance abuse as the national average. Around 15% of all construction workers in the United States have a substance abuse disorder compared to 8.6% of the general population of adults, according to data from the National Survey on Drug Use conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration. Other statistics from this study pertaining to construction workers include:1-2

These statistics are reflected in other countries as well. 

Richard has also experienced the ongoing feeling of:

"Keeping it secret, not opening up about it- it’s all been about fear of losing your job, essentially, that’s what it’s been for me. Just creating an environment where people don’t feel that fear, they feel safe, that if they’re serious about doing something about it, that they’re gonna get the support they need, and they’re not going to be thrown away in some way because that’s what I was scared off and that’s what I’m still scared of, you know."

There isn’t an investment in making sure that there’s a healthy workforce

Dr. Lucas Trautman, MPH, the Medical Director, Oxford Treatment Center recognises that,

"More and more of our construction workers have gone from full employees to quote contracted labor. And so what happens in those cases are that the employer really even stops doing any kind of drug testing. And there isn’t an investment in making sure that there’s a healthy workforce."

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