John F Kelly1, M Claire Greene2, Alexandra Abry3, Brandon G Bergman3. 1. Recovery Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 151 Merrimac Street, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02114, United States. Electronic address: jkelly11@mgh.harvard.edu. 2. Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States. 3. Recovery Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 151 Merrimac Street, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02114, United States.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: For physical health conditions, earlier intervention typically results in better prognoses and improved quality of life (QoL). Despite some evidence that early intervention yields better subsequent functioning too for behavioral health conditions like alcohol and other drug (AOD) disorders, less is known. This study examined the relationship between the life-stage at which individuals entered AOD recovery, demographic and clinical correlates, and its relationship to a variety of indices of current functioning, QoL and well-being. METHOD: Nationally representative sample of U.S. adults who resolved an AOD problem (Weighted N = 1844). Structured regression analyses tested whether life-stage at which individuals entered recovery (i.e., as a young [18-30yrs,n = 746] vs. older [>30yrs,n = 1098] adult), was associated with current QoL, happiness, self-esteem, distress, and recovery capital, independent of confounders. Sensitivity analyses investigated effects during the first 5-years of recovery. RESULTS: Young adult recovery entry was independently associated with current employment, younger age of onset for primary substance, primary substance other than alcohol, and less lifetime psychiatric comorbidity. In fully-adjusted models examining indices of functioning, no association was found between life-stage at recovery entry and current self-esteem, happiness, or distress, but an association was found between young adult recovery entry and better current functioning and QoL. This effect was even more pronounced during the first 5-years of recovery. CONCLUSION: Irrespective of current age, duration of recovery, and clinical markers of impairment, entering recovery as a young, versus older, adult, is associated with better subsequent QoL - an advantage that appears even more discernable early in recovery.
BACKGROUND: For physical health conditions, earlier intervention typically results in better prognoses and improved quality of life (QoL). Despite some evidence that early intervention yields better subsequent functioning too for behavioral health conditions like alcohol and other drug (AOD) disorders, less is known. This study examined the relationship between the life-stage at which individuals entered AOD recovery, demographic and clinical correlates, and its relationship to a variety of indices of current functioning, QoL and well-being. METHOD: Nationally representative sample of U.S. adults who resolved an AOD problem (Weighted N = 1844). Structured regression analyses tested whether life-stage at which individuals entered recovery (i.e., as a young [18-30yrs,n = 746] vs. older [>30yrs,n = 1098] adult), was associated with current QoL, happiness, self-esteem, distress, and recovery capital, independent of confounders. Sensitivity analyses investigated effects during the first 5-years of recovery. RESULTS: Young adult recovery entry was independently associated with current employment, younger age of onset for primary substance, primary substance other than alcohol, and less lifetime psychiatric comorbidity. In fully-adjusted models examining indices of functioning, no association was found between life-stage at recovery entry and current self-esteem, happiness, or distress, but an association was found between young adult recovery entry and better current functioning and QoL. This effect was even more pronounced during the first 5-years of recovery. CONCLUSION: Irrespective of current age, duration of recovery, and clinical markers of impairment, entering recovery as a young, versus older, adult, is associated with better subsequent QoL - an advantage that appears even more discernable early in recovery.
Authors: Ronald C Kessler; Peggy R Barker; Lisa J Colpe; Joan F Epstein; Joseph C Gfroerer; Eva Hiripi; Mary J Howes; Sharon-Lise T Normand; Ronald W Manderscheid; Ellen E Walters; Alan M Zaslavsky Journal: Arch Gen Psychiatry Date: 2003-02
Authors: Ali H Mokdad; Mohammad Hossein Forouzanfar; Farah Daoud; Arwa A Mokdad; Charbel El Bcheraoui; Maziar Moradi-Lakeh; Hmwe Hmwe Kyu; Ryan M Barber; Joseph Wagner; Kelly Cercy; Hannah Kravitz; Megan Coggeshall; Adrienne Chew; Kevin F O'Rourke; Caitlyn Steiner; Marwa Tuffaha; Raghid Charara; Essam Abdullah Al-Ghamdi; Yaser Adi; Rima A Afifi; Hanan Alahmadi; Fadia AlBuhairan; Nicholas Allen; Mohammad AlMazroa; Abdulwahab A Al-Nehmi; Zulfa AlRayess; Monika Arora; Peter Azzopardi; Carmen Barroso; Mohammed Basulaiman; Zulfiqar A Bhutta; Chris Bonell; Cecilia Breinbauer; Louisa Degenhardt; Donna Denno; Jing Fang; Adesegun Fatusi; Andrea B Feigl; Ritsuko Kakuma; Nadim Karam; Elissa Kennedy; Tawfik A M Khoja; Fadi Maalouf; Carla Makhlouf Obermeyer; Amitabh Mattoo; Terry McGovern; Ziad A Memish; George A Mensah; Vikram Patel; Suzanne Petroni; Nicola Reavley; Diego Rios Zertuche; Mohammad Saeedi; John Santelli; Susan M Sawyer; Fred Ssewamala; Kikelomo Taiwo; Muhammad Tantawy; Russell M Viner; Jane Waldfogel; Maria Paola Zuñiga; Mohsen Naghavi; Haidong Wang; Theo Vos; Alan D Lopez; Abdullah A Al Rabeeah; George C Patton; Christopher J L Murray Journal: Lancet Date: 2016-05-09 Impact factor: 79.321
Authors: John F Kelly; Brandon Bergman; Bettina B Hoeppner; Corrie Vilsaint; William L White Journal: Drug Alcohol Depend Date: 2017-10-18 Impact factor: 4.492