Content warning: discussions of addiction and suicide
The pandemic took the lives of many battling drug and alcohol addiction to new lows. However, for some, it was the trigger that finally forced them to confront their demons.
The number of over 50s seeking treatment for alcohol and drug addiction in England has increased by 50% since 2020, NHS data reveals. In the previous five years, the increase was only 15%.
Between 2008 and 2012, the rates of people seeking treatment for addiction rose in every age group. After that, rates only continued rising for over 45s – albeit slowly. However, from 2020, the number of over 50s entering treatment skyrocketed – which coincided with the start of the pandemic.
As the graph demonstrates, the leap was most pronounced in the 60–64 age group which jumped nearly 64%. Numbers also increased among 18-24 and 40-49 year-olds, whilst the figures for 25-39 year-olds decreased. The total increase for people over 50 was 50%.
‘Far more over 50s’
Andrew E. (who does not wish to be fully identified), used to spend every day in one room, drinking and using crack cocaine. Now, his life has changed beyond measure thanks to a treatment centre and a 12-step programme.
From London, Andrew is one of over 300,000 people in England who entered treatment for addictions in the year up to 31 March 2024. He is now 58 and has been clean and sober for almost a year.
Before treatment, he saw three people each day: his 81 year-old-stepdad who he lives with, “the guy” who served him in the off-licence at 6am, and his drug dealer. He would wake up in “alcoholic withdrawal”, drink half a bottle of vodka, then spend the day “smoking crack and drinking in one room”.
A man looking out of a window. Picture: Andrik Langfield on Unsplash
Like a growing number of over 50s, one of Andrew’s addictions was crack cocaine. Over the last five years, the number of people aged 50 and over entering treatment centres because of the drug have risen by 140%. Most notably, among the 60-64 age group, the increase was 207%.
‘Please get help’
Andrew had been drinking and using drugs since the age of 15. The pandemic meant that he found himself drinking and using earlier and earlier each day, until eventually “the wheels really came off”. He could no longer see a way out. He said:
I’d lost that delusion that things would ever get better.
This culminated in him attempting to take his own life. Thankfully, he wasn’t successful – but it wasn’t enough for him to get help. He said:
Immediately I got out, I went to the off-licence and went to my drug dealer.
Soon after, he unintentionally overdosed. Then, after another accident a few weeks later he found himself back in A&E. After waiting hours to be seen, he started going into alcohol withdrawal. Eventually, he had to get honest about how ill he was.
Luckily for Andrew, a kind doctor took him into a side room and stitched him up. He apologised for being a “nuisance”. She put her arm around him and said:
Don’t ever say that. Don’t ever say you’re a nuisance. But will you please get help?
At that point, he reached out for help and was given “an amazing key worker” who “fought really hard” to get him a place in rehab. He said:
I think those events were like the universe telling me, Andrew, you’re done with this now.
Andrew stayed at Ark House in Scarborough. It’s a 12-step-based rehab which helps people with all types of addictions.
Now Andrew is living a life filled with purpose and meaning – which is a far cry from his life in active addiction.
Image shows five different sobriety coins from a 12-step programme. Sobriety coins are given out to mark various sobriety milestones and used as a token of celebration. The ones pictured are for 24 hours, one year, three years, four years and five years. Picture: HG.
‘The brakes came off’
Since 2019, the number of people in treatment for alcohol addiction has risen by 42.7%. The biggest increase was among 60–64 year-olds, which saw a 57% increase.
Research suggests that higher levels of stress correlate with higher levels of alcohol consumption. The pandemic created extra stress and exacerbated both existing mental health issues and negative harmful mechanisms, from spending too much time scrolling social media to substance use:
⚠️ Addiction rates skyrocket in England amidst pandemic.
Every aspect of daily life was affected. Routines, jobs, education, social life, many people’s livelihood, and even their health. All this as well as the fear of the unknown, and it was the perfect environment for addictive behaviours to progress.
Paul, 56, (who does not wish to be fully identified), has worked as a counsellor at Ark House for three years. He noticed that until the pandemic, there were many people that — although alcoholic — were still “functioning”. They had jobs, mortgages, wives, families, and “seemed to be doing alright”. Paul said:
When COVID came, it kind of took the brakes off for them.
The jobs and the family were the brakes, and all of a sudden that routine was taken off them. I think it was the routine that allowed them to function, and once that had gone out, I believe that that was the breakdown.
Image shows Ark House Rehab in Scarborough, from the street. Picture: Ark House.
Andrew Dettman, 70, is also a counsellor at Ark House. He got sober in 1995 through a 12-step programme in Hull. He said:
The pandemic really did accelerate levels of anxiety and depression, which people who end up in a 12-step programme are well aware of.
Research points towards the mental health and well-being of over 50s being far worse than other age groups during the pandemic. This is thought to be due to the increased social isolation, with many older people not having access to the internet or technology such as video calling.
Often, people turn to substances to deal with difficult emotions — like anxiety, depression, or loneliness. Whilst this may help temporarily, it can very quickly become an addictive cycle.
Robin Pollard, head of policy at WithYou — a drug, alcohol, and mental health support charity, said:
… with an ageing population, we’ve also seen more older people in treatment for alcohol, fuelled by isolation during the Covid pandemic, and life changes such as bereavement, retirement and a lack of purpose.
The pandemic made many people’s lives more complicated. Whilst for some, it may have slowed things down — for those in active addiction, the brakes completely came off. Luckily for Andrew E. and many others, places like Ark House were there to help, and he was given a second chance. In his own words:
I’m leading the best life I’ve ever had.
If you are concerned about your drinking or drug use, please visit wearewithyou.org.uk.
