Why are older adults misusing substances?
Two-thirds of older adults have used consistently their whole lives and one third start using in response multiple life losses. “If you add enough drops of water eventually the cup will overflow.” In other words, a substantial number of older adults who will abuse or misuse substance have been lifelong substance abusers or will turn to substance abuse as a coping strategy to deal with losses in their life such as the loss of a spouse, the loss of employment, loss of mobility, etc. Also, since aging bodies are more susceptible to the influence of drugs, amounts of substances such as alcohol that were once safe become dangerous when adults age which can lead to a substance abuse problem.
