This is a day of remembrance and action. Black Balloon Day, like many other overdose awareness campaigns, emerged from the unfortunate and tragic death of Greg Tremblay, of Saugus, Massachusetts. He died at age 38 of a drug overdose. His story is much too common during this rising opioid epidemic our country is facing. We hear about stories like this often at our New Hampshire Treatment locations at GateHouse Treatment.
GateHouse Treatment Raises Awareness
GateHouse Treatment wanted to ensure we supported this cause as it is one that impacts millions of families across the country. We strive to participate in recovery every day, so joining an event like Black Balloon Day allows us to spread awareness to our communities and encourage others to also take action.
Raising awareness involves creating a specific messaging campaign about an issue. According to the United Nations, public awareness is the public’s level of understanding about the importance and implications of addiction. Raising public awareness is not the same as telling the public what to do- but rather explaining issues and disseminating knowledge to people so that they can make their own decisions.
Methodologically sound approaches to raising awareness, together with sufficient exposure have been shown, through social science research, to have an effect on knowledge, attitudes, and behavior.
On this day, we proudly display black balloons at our facilities, share photos with the Black Balloon Day hashtag, and encourage others to do the same so people will see, and hopefully ask questions.
Addiction Statistics
Addiction is much more common than most people realize. It’s an epidemic that is plaguing our country and only getting worse each year.
- Approximately 21.5 million people in the United State over the age of 12 have a problem with addiction (National Survey on Drug Use and Health)
- Of those, only 3 million people received treatment for their addiction (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)
- Addiction has cost taxpayers nearly $200 billion in healthcare, legal, and lost workplace production in 2007 (Office on National Drug Control Policy)
- An estimated 5.4 percent of the entire world population suffers from drug and alcohol issues (World Health Organization)
- About 75% of individuals currently incarcerated suffer from both mental illness and substance abuse (National Institute of Health)
- In 2015, close to 600,000 Americans struggled with a heroin addiction (American Society of Addiction Medicine)
- Addiction has risen in numbers in all demographic groups in the United States over the past few years (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Community Fellowship
A solution to the growing addiction epidemic can only come from community efforts and unification on the matter. Not One More, an advocacy group that supports drug addiction prevention, recovery and education efforts participate in Black Balloon Day and many other awareness campaigns. The campaign is the kind of fellowship the community must engage in that is necessary to make a difference and make addiction a vital topic of interest for politicians and legislators.
While community support for prevention and recovery efforts have increased over the past few years, there is yet much more work to do. GateHouse Treatment works closely with our communities to participate and educate because we understand that is the only way there will be a significant change.
If you or a loved one is suffering from addiction, treatment options are available. Please contact GateHouse Treatment to learn more about how we can help at our New Hampshire Treatment locations. Give us a call at (855) 448-3588.
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