GEORGETOWN COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD)– The Behavioral Health Coalition, a group of community partners focused on helping people battling with addiction, is hosting a seminar to demonstrate the real-life impacts of substance abuse. They said they hope the event raises public awareness about the widespread but often overlooked issue. According to a recent study from the […]
GEORGETOWN COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD)– The Behavioral Health Coalition, a group of community partners focused on helping people battling with addiction, is hosting a seminar to demonstrate the real-life impacts of substance abuse. They said they hope the event raises public awareness about the widespread but often overlooked issue.
According to a recent study from the National Institutes of Health, 57.8 million people live with some form of mental illness, and 35% of those people struggle with substance abuse issues.
The Georgetown County Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission, Waccamaw Center for Mental Health, the Palmetto Project, and many more are working to remind the public these struggles are not choices. They’re illnesses.
“Mental illness and substance abuse is a disease, and individuals will go to the dentist when they have a toothache. They will go to the doctor if they know they broke their arm. They’ll go to the emergency room, so we try to use that analogy with individuals to help them feel more comfortable about decreasing the stigma and seeking treatment, said Kisha Guess-Black, the director of Waccamaw Center for Mental Health.
The public will get A chance to experience the world from the perspective of someone struggling.
“So, I’m excited that we get to offer this to our community. It’s a chance to notches come in for awareness, but it’s more than that. It’s a chance for you to come into a role-play simulation-type event and walk in the shoes of someone who might have a mental illness or substance addiction issues, said Judge Leigh Boan, the probate judge for Georgetown County.
Officials said they hope this seminar will bring awareness to the community and inspire more empathy.
“We need community help. We need more people to get involved. We need other partners to stop operating just in silos and recognize that we’re dealing with the exact next door. Come together, we can significantly impact that,” said Raphael Carr, the executive director of Georgetown County Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission.
The seminar will take place at the Howard Center on Thursday, from 2 p.m. until 4 pm, and it is open and free to the public.