‘I had to fix me’: social workers and substance misuse

Abstract

As social workers in recovery, we have experienced new stresses in our wellbeing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Similarly, we have observed colleagues encountering heightened concerns regarding these issues; those who use alcohol and other drugs (AOD) seem to be doing so with greater fervor, and coworkers in recovery have expressed fearing or experiencing relapse during this period of unrest. In response to these concerns, it is important for social work students, educators, and practitioners to engage more openly in discussions about our substance use and misuse. With these issues in mind, we reflect on our recent recovery and work-related experiences. In this paper, we also discuss literature regarding social workers’ AOD problems – including findings from our recent study of social workers’ wellness – and offer recommendations about how we might engender more critical and compassionate conversations regarding substance misuse and behavioral health treatment.