The menace of substance abuse has affected all classes and age groups of the society, be it teenagers, young adults, celebrities, artists or anybody else. But have you ever thought about drug abuse or alcoholism inflicting the armed forces?
We have a preconceived notion that people from the army would be miles away from such vices. But the fact is even military personnel are not immune to drug abuse.
There are cases of heavy alcoholism, use of tobacco and prescription drug abuse among them as well. The pent-up stress due to deployment in war zones as well as the unique and stringent culture of military lead to substance abuse among these soldiers too. The problem also lies in identifying the abuse, because there is a stigma associated with it and they are reluctant to come out in the open to receive treatment. So, probably they might be trying natural alcohol detox on their own and refrain from visiting an alcohol detox clinic.
It has been observed that those subjected to frequent transfers and deployment in hostile zones are more susceptible to abusing drugs or alcohol. Starting with weekend drinking sessions, they turn to binge drinking and become alcoholics. They also get into chain smoking or relapse to smoking when under heavy stress. Being in confinement within the system getting into an alcohol detox program is a far cry when in service. It only aggravates the addict’s condition.
According to a survey in 2008 by the Department of Defence, only 2.3 percent military personnel abused drugs in a particular month as compared to civilians. Among young soldiers – those in the age group of 18-25 – the use of drugs was found to be a miniscule 3.9 percent against 17.2 percent among civilians. These numbers show that that there is some respite for the armed forces when it comes to drug abuse and alcoholism. The reason could be the policy of zero tolerance in the military towards drug or alcohol abuse.
The drug scenario: Though there is a very low percentage of illegal drug abuse among them, the misuse of prescription drugs is said to be rampant in the armed forces. Moreover, there has been a gradual rise in such cases. From a mere 2 percent in 2002 and 4 percent in 2005, it shot up to 11 percent in 2008. The easy access of these drugs being opioid pain killers has given rise to such cases.
Problem of alcoholism: Even though drug abuse is under control to some extent in the armed forces, alcoholism has emerged as a very serious issue. Almost 50 percent of the troops, both male and female, indulge in binge drinking and it tends to rise when in a combat zone. Easy supply of alcohol to them makes it easier to go on a drinking spree whenever they have time at their disposal. They perceive it as the only source of entertainment and gratification while posted in conflict zones. Incessant smoking is another malady crippling the army personnel deployed in war zones. They unknowingly and involuntarily reach out to their cigarette packs and start smoking one after the other. Against a 29 percent civilians, 30 percent of armed forces smoke cigarettes as per a survey conducted in 2008.
The way forward: Several studies conducted on how to tackle the problem concur that abolishing stigmas associated to drug abuse and alcoholism among army personnel will help a lot to the cause. It will require increased confidentiality in terms of substance abuse and alcoholism among the ranks. An increase in the insurance coverage of armed personnel is another suggestion made by the studies. So, alcoholism and drug abuse in the armed forces can be curtailed to a large extent by taking right measures.
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