Mental health treatment and addiction treatment are two phrases that are widely misunderstood, along with how mental health treatment and addiction treatment work. To learn about mental health and addiction treatment, please visit our treatment page. It includes a basic overview of our diagnosis and treatment planning process.
But we digress.
May is Mental Health Month (MHM) in the U.S., and during the process of preparing an article to join in the annual MHM advocacy movement, we found an instructive set of statistics in the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2022 NSDUH). Researchers asked survey respondents two questions that interest us:
If you needed treatment for a substance use disorder, why didn’t you get treatment?
If you needed treatment for a mental health disorder, why didn’t you get treatment?
We’ll share the answer in just a moment. First, we encourage you to navigate to the blog section of our website and read out article on Mental Health Month 2024:
What is Mental Health Month 2024? Learn, Act, Advocate
Now let’s look at the answers to those two survey questions.
Reasons for Not Receiving Mental Health or Addiction Treatment
The NSDUH is an important resource for two reasons: its size and its frequency. Researchers distribute surveys to over 70,000 participants across the country. Data from a sample set this large allows us to make population level generalizations. For example, if 50 percent of the sample set says “yes” to a specific question, statistical analysis tells us that – because of the large sample size – it’s almost certain 50 percent of all similar people will answer “yes” to the same question: that’s what we mean by population level generalization.
And that’s why we pay attention when the NSDUH includes questions on why people who need treatment don’t get treatment. We ask ourselves the same question every day. Now – with this reliable data – we can begin to understand.
Let’s see that the survey respondents said.
Substance Use Disorder: Reasons for Not Getting Treatment
- 78.2% of people said they thought they should be able to handle their alcohol or drug use without outside help.
- 61.3% of people said they weren’t ready for treatment.
- 52.9% said they didn’t want to go without alcohol or drugs.
- 52.2% said they didn’t know where or how to find treatment.
- 47.9% though treatment would be too expensive.
- 46.1% worried about what other people would think/say.
- 42.4% said they didn’t have time.
- 41.9% said their insurance wouldn’t cover treatment.
We’re amazed at the first bullet point, and need to editorialize immediately. Please remember:
Asking for help is a sign of strength, rather than a sign of weakness.
We understand the rest of the bullet points, too, and we spend a great deal of time working to remove barriers associated with access, cost, time, and awareness.
Now let’s look at reasons people who needed mental health treatment cited for not getting treatment.
Mental Health Disorders: Reasons for Not Getting Treatment
- 58.9% thought it would be too expensive.
- 51.6% said they weren’t ready.
- 51.2% said they didn’t know where or how to find treatment.
- 48.9% said they didn’t have time.
- 46.8% said they couldn’t find a program or provider they wanted to go to.
We see, hear, and understand – and work every day to remove these barriers to care. We encourage people who need treatment but defer for financial reasons to read these two pages published by Medicaid.gov:
For people who don’t know where or how to find treatment, these free resources can help:
- For alcohol/substance use disorder support: the SAMHSA treatment locator.
- For mental health support: The American Psychological Association (APA) treatment locator
- For opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment:
In addition, you can contact us here at Pinnacle Treatment Centers: we’re always just an email or phone call away.
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