Treating mental health issues can be the key to sobriety

CINCINNATI (WKRC) - Teens and young adults are having a tough time coping with this pandemic.

A new CDC study says one in four young people in this pandemic needed mental health help. One reason to address that is so young people don't self-medicate and raise the odds of addiction.

"I was alcoholic by the time I was 16. It’s gotten me into numerous prison numbers. Then it went to harder drugs," said Nick Macke, a DeCoach Rehabilitation client.

He knows where that path can lead.

"Me and my dad used to get high together. We both fell out in 2017. I woke up and found my dad dead. So it just got worse from there."

Sixty-four days clean, Macke says what made the difference this time was reaching out to a treatment center that focuses on treating mental health with addiction.

They do that DeCoach Rehabilitation Centre in Hamilton.

"If we can get past the substance abuse, we can get to the mental health, the trauma, the terrible traumas, then he's gonna have a fighting chance of success.," said Aaron Laine with DeCoach.

Much of the time, the drugs and alcohol use starts as an attempt to numb the deeper pain of depression, anxiety or other mental health concern according to the DeCoach team.

Realizing that, Macke says is life-changing.

"I’m 30 years old and I don’t have nothing to show for. And me and my dad have the same name and I have a 4-month-old son that also has our name. And I don’t want him to go and talk to me to a rock or always hear about the bad. I want a legacy. I want to leave behind a legacy."

Macke says even if you've tried before and not stayed clean, addressing your mental health will set you up for success.