BILLINGS — Montana ranks fourth nationally among states most at risk for addiction, highlighting an issue that Gov. Greg Gianforte calls a growing crisis as overdose deaths continue to leave families heartbroken.
Behavioral health officer Malcolm Horn describes addiction as a chronic disease that fundamentally changes the brain.
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“We understand now addiction fundamentally changes areas of the brain that help us with learning, problem-solving, memory,” Horn, who works at Rimrock Foundation in Billings, said Monday.
Horn identifies two main reasons for Montana’s high-risk status: inadequate behavioral health care systems and limited access to treatment.
“We don't have very good behavioral health care systems,” Horn said.
Adding that Montana is a rural state, Horn said that access to care remains limited even in its larger cities.
“It can be really hard for people to access care. So even in a metropolitan area like Billings, where there's lots of providers, there's not enough to go around,” Horn said.
Horn also points to cultural stigma as a barrier to addressing addiction in Montana.
“There is that cowboy-up mentality,” Horn said. “The idea was you don't need to deal with those emotions. You just set them aside. So, there's definitely that idea that we don't share that. We don't talk about that.”
Treatment centers across the state are working to combat the crisis. Healing Rock Recovery in Billings offers comprehensive patient services to address the growing need.
"We are an outpatient treatment center. We offer IOP (intensive outpatient programs) services and PHP (partial hospitalization programs), which is also considered day treatment services in Montana," Clinical Supervisor Malissa Raasakka said.
Raasakka says they focus on creating safe environments for people seeking help.
“We create such a safe environment that they're able just to be real people here when they walk in those doors. They don't have to worry about the shame and the guilt and the stigma,” Raasakka said.
The supervisor emphasized that fear prevents many people from seeking treatment.
“There are so many people in America that struggle with addiction that are too afraid to talk about the struggle with addiction and mental health,” Raasakka said.
Centers like Healing Rock Recovery are helping people such as Jeffrey Shelton get through recovery.
“It changed my life,” Shelton said. “This was the perfect place because they made it safe. And they made it comfortable.”
