January 21, 1997, is a banner day for Tara Rivera, the Sobriety Centers of New Hampshire (SCNH) business development representative. “It’s my sober birthday!” she says. But in the years since, it’s not just her recovery she celebrates, but also that of hundreds of people. She follows a courageous model set by her Gold Star mother to maintain the front line for Veterans, first responders, and underserved populations seeking sobriety. 

“I’ve worked in the recovery space for more than seven years,” Rivera adds. “I’ve lost several family members to addiction, including my father when I was just 11 years old, I watched my uncle who went to Vietnam come home with an addiction and suffer for decades until we lost him in the early 2000s. I was unable to help him recover, but I can now help other Veterans and first responders overcome their addictions.”

Rivera has used many multimedia platforms to forward this mission, but her message to anyone questioning their health remains the same. “Please don’t suffer in silence. Don’t be ashamed.  You’re not the only one struggling—and there’s power in sharing your story.”

Sounding the Alarm About Veteran and First Responder Health

Substance use disorder (SUD), alcohol use disorder (AUD), and suicide are real threats to individuals who protect others. There are countless reasons why.

• According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans have a higher rate of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) than civilians and are three times more likely to experience the disorder if deployed than if not. The VA also indicates that “one study found that among Veterans using VA care, 23 out of every 100 had PTSD at some point in their lives, compared to 7 out of every 100 Veterans who don’t use VA for health care.” 

• However, this data is based on Vets who use VA for health services, as they’re automatically screened for PTSD and military sexual trauma. In reality, the number of affected individuals might be higher.
• Although the 2018 Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act was enacted to provide valuable resources to this community, studies indicate that “public safety officers, particularly those in law enforcement, are at a considerably higher risk of suicide. A recent study concluded that LEO officers have a 54 percent increase in suicide risk compared to civilians.” 

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also notes that “studies have found that between 17 percent and 24 percent of public safety telecommunicators have symptoms of PTSD and 24 percent have symptoms of depression. While telecommunicators are often the very first responders engaged with those on the scene, research on their suicide risk and mental health has lagged.” 
• Additionally, in the VA’s 2023 report, it was noted that “suicide was the 13th leading cause of death for Veterans overall, and the second-leading cause of death among Veterans under age 45.”

Thousands of service-oriented personnel tend to hide behavior and problems related to SUD and AUD because of the military’s zero-tolerance policies or prejudice within the ranks and among commanding officers. Also, some emotional and mental health conditions were grounds for release until the 2023 enactment of The Brandon Act, a focused effort to help improve individuals’ access to and care for these issues. 

Implementing Culturally Competent Care at SCNH

Unfortunately, less than 50 percent of individuals receive the help they need. Rivera believes there are three additional reasons why people don’t seek out treatment. 

• Denial. This applies to both an individual struggling with SUD, AUD, and mental health issues and their family members. Rivera experienced this first hand with her uncle, and hears this from others, too. “We often don’t want to make matters worse and don’t know what to say or where to turn to for help. I always suggest family members get help themselves, then learn who and where the resources are to have that conversation armed with the facts.”
• Shame. “[People] don’t like to admit they’re no longer in control of their drug and alcohol use.” 
• Lack of information. “Because they don’t always know where to go to get the help they need.”

Conversely, while many people might suspect they need quality care, Rivera says it’s hard to “‘course correct’ because we sometimes don’t notice how far we have fallen until it’s too late. Also, because we don’t ever take the time to take care of ourselves, it takes longer to realize we aren’t ‘okay’.” 

So she’s excited about SCNH’s progressive approach to Veteran and first responder treatment, the Tactical Recovery program. The initiative, certified as Veteran-Ready, is a partnership with PsychArmor and provides a culturally competent and trauma-informed environment, offering individualized care using evidence-based practices proven to promote recovery. 

“We, as providers, have to equip ourselves and our staff to manage these populations and introduce new ways of thinking and acting to help them unlearn some of the negative and relearn—or learn for the first time—how to be self-aware and communicate their thoughts and feelings in healthy ways,” she says. “In addition, we all need to be trained on how to deal with a patient coming in for treatment who may have an underlying mental health condition, PTSD, childhood trauma, and undesirable actions and behaviors that they adopted along their addiction journey.” 

Trusting in the Quality Care You’ll Find at SCNH

Rivera adds that Veterans and first responders “see, hear, and experience things that most of us don’t know about and couldn’t endure—and they do that over years and sometimes decades. It takes a long time and a safe space to begin to unpack and heal from those traumatic experiences. When you’re in a culturally competent place, you can begin to do just that.”

The Sobriety Centers of New Hampshire has three treatment centers with board-certified professionals offering an evidenced-based approach to wellness: 

• The Antrim House in Antrim is a detoxification and residential treatment facility for people.
• The Lakes Addiction Treatment Center in Laconia provides inpatient, outpatient, partial hospitalization, and intensive outpatient rehabilitation programs for everyone.
• Recovery Mountain in Tilton, a residence for Veterans and first responders as part of outpatient programming. 

Every journey requires courage to start, but Rivera and our other dedicated staff members are ready to encourage every step you take toward your own recovery birthday. If you’re ready to experience focused care, talk to a member of our admissions team today.