Comparison of social support, coping strategies, and mental health of drug addicts anonymous with drug addicts treated with methadone in Qorve city (Kurdistan province)

Dissertation for M.A

Abstract

Aim: Paying attention to social support and mental health and coping skills of addicts during addiction recovery is an important and valuable issue for success in addiction recovery. The general purpose of this research is to determine the social support, coping strategies, and mental health of Narcotics Anonymous and addicts being treated with methadone in Qorve city (Kurdistan province). Method and tools: The statistical population includes all people who have been referred to addiction treatment centers (Razi) in Qorve city for treatment through therapy, and also includes addicts participating in Narcotics Anonymous meetings that have been 3 months since the start of treatment. Sampling was done in a targeted way from among the above two groups and 100 people were selected from each group. In this research, 3 research tools, the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), social support test, and coping strategies test, were used to evaluate the investigated variables. Findings: The results of the study showed that the amount of social support in drug addicts anonymous is higher than that of drug addicts under methadone treatment. Also, the coping strategies used by drug addicts anonymous are more and more effective than drug addicts under methadone treatment. And also, the general mental health of addicts anonymous is more than those treated with methadone.

Discussion and conclusion: According to the results obtained, it seems that among the treatment methods used to quit drug addiction, if counseling and group therapy are used systematically and regularly, the possibility of success in treatment and the possibility of slipping and returning to drug addiction in people who are quitting drugs are reduced.

It is suggested to quit during treatment Addiction should be paid more attention to the issue of mental health of addicts and not only the position of drug therapy. At the same time, effective coping methods should be taught to addicts who are quitting so that more effectiveness can be observed in the context of quitting. Also, with the help of the families of addicts who are quitting, more attention can be paid to the issue of social support and psychological support for them to increase the effectiveness of drug addiction in these people.

Key words: mental health, coping skills, social support, drug addicts anonymous, Qorweh city

1- General Health Question (GHQ)

2- coping strategies

-1-1 Introduction:

Undoubtedly, addiction disease is a big problem and a growing and increasing event. In today's societies, there are few countries that do not struggle with the problem of addiction. Today, the problem of addiction is no longer considered an individual problem. In addition to the physical and mental effects that an addict causes on his body, on a broader level, the mental and social health of his family members, friends, peers, and colleagues, and ultimately the entire human society.

In addition, drug use causes social, economic, and political losses and damages to countries.

Narcotics is an important issue of public health research and investigation all over the world, which in its literal sense is defined as a kind of physical and psychological dependence, but in the dynamic and psychological sense, it is considered a kind of disorder and disease. Although it is one of the most obvious psychological and social damages that endangers human dynamics and destroys the material and spiritual facilities of a society. The disease of addiction is a tempting disease that people dealing with it alone will not be successful in getting rid of it and reaching a relative point of physical and mental health.

2-1-Statement of the problem:

The phenomenon of drug abuse as one of the most important social harms, especially among the young generation, has drawn the attention of many experts and political, cultural, educational and educational officials in most countries.

In Iran because The existence of a young population has made this issue complicated. Therefore, identifying and explaining it correctly is necessary to find appropriate solutions. According to the official statistics in Iran, the number of drug users is estimated to be close to 1.8 to 3.3 million people, and opiates are the most consumed substances.Merom, past studies show that the effectiveness of maintenance drug treatments without psycho-social interventions is weak due to low drug compliance and high shedding rate.(Bowalhari, 2007)

Humans have been using drugs for thousands of years to treat diseases, relieve pain, and reduce mental suffering, but the benefits of drug use today have crossed the borders of healthcare and become a psycho-social problem. The increase in drug use during the last century has caused increasing concerns for all societies. Iran is considered one of the victims of narcotics in the world due to the fact that it is on the way of one of the main transportation routes of opiates and also due to historical and social reasons. (Heidriohamkaran, 2012).

The UN report in 2005 indicates that Iran has the highest statistics of heroin and opium addicts in the world. According to this report, one out of every seventeen people in Iran is addicted to drugs. This figure is about 0.20 of the Iranian society (Sefermanesh, Ahmadvand, and Mousavi, 1387 and Nouri Moghadam 1388).

Statistics published by international organizations, especially the World Health Organization or the UNESCO Narcotics Control Committee, indicate the increasing increase of these drugs at the world level; The only difference between countries and in different age groups is their consumption pattern. The spread of this trend has destroyed all the moral, social and economic foundations of a society and will cause it to suffer from internal corruption and eventually decline. (Welfare Organization, 1387)

Addiction to various types of drugs is one of the important problems in Iranian society that worries officials and families, and it is necessary to have different measures and ideas to solve it and put it into practice.  Statistics published by the anti-narcotics headquarters show that there are more than 2 million drug addicts in our country. This has caused our country to be considered as one of the countries with the largest number of drug addicts. For this reason, administrators in their social planning attach great importance to the category of drug addiction and its appropriate treatment. In recent years, the topic of drug addiction has been raised as a specialized and interdisciplinary issue, which is necessary to identify successful and effective methods in the field of addiction due to the concerns that have been raised in the field of youth addiction in recent years. Various methods have been proposed so far to quit addiction and every year a large number of addicts try to quit their addiction in many ways. Treatment through methadone as a maintenance treatment method has been suggested by doctors to addicts in recent years and has brought favorable results. Usually, people who come to get rid of their addiction experience more success in the addiction cycle if they have higher social support. According to Davidson (2010), social support can provide the right context and conditions for people to leave. Addicts can go through the difficult stages of quitting more easily if they have a suitable supportive social network. Stanton (1989) states that the most appropriate way of dealing with addicts for treatment is to pay attention to the addiction process and his family in addition to the addict in dealing with the issues of the addiction process and his family, and in addition, it is necessary to pay attention to the behavioral patterns of his family. Coping strategy or the way people deal with different conditions and situations is different from each other. According to Lazarus and Folkman (1984), coping with a series of lasting changes and behavioral and cognitive efforts created by a person is to control and manage external and special demands that have surpassed the person's resources and abilities and put an exhausting pressure on him. According to Lazarus (2004), coping has two important functions: 1-regulating unpleasant and helpless emotions and 2-taking action to improve and change the problem that caused discomfort.

Based on this, we have two types of coping: problem-solving coping [2] and emotion-oriented coping [3].

Emotional coping strategies are methods through which people achieve an optimal level of emotional regulation and the ability to deal with intense and critical emotions.