There are unfortunate misconceptions we have about addiction. For example, when it comes to who we envision as an “addict,” it may not be the high-performing professional. In reality, people in high-pressure, high-stress jobs who may appear to have it all together are sometimes most affected by addictive substances.

When you’re in a high-profile or demanding position, you can feel a sense of shame about your addiction. In other instances, it might feel like an accepted part of your industry or corporate culture. One of our biggest priorities is helping you realize it’s not shameful. Addiction is a chronic disease requiring proper treatment.

The good news is that when you seek help from an addiction recovery center like ours that understands your particular needs, you can live a fulfilling and productive life. You can find clarity, make your family members proud, and rebuild relationships in addition to having a great career. 

Receiving comprehensive treatment for any other mental health issue and your substance use disorder is integral to a healthy life. 

What Industries Have the Highest Addiction Rates?

Below is a brief overview of some industries and professions with the highest addiction rates, and they’re likely to surprise you.

• Health care professionals and doctors: We’ll delve into this a little more below, but doctors and medical professionals have an estimated rate of around 10% for substance abuse. Medical professionals are more likely to abuse prescription drugs than their patients.
• Lawyers and legal professionals: When you’re a young lawyer, in particular, you face long hours, job stress, and potentially high debt payments from your education — around 29% of lawyers in their first ten years of practice reporting problematic drinking or alcohol abuse. 
• Executives: High-level employees are plagued by substance abuse problems, whether in tech companies or other industries. Prescription drug abuse is prevalent among these professionals.

We’ll explore these professions and addiction among high performers a little more in-depth below. 

People in recovery enjoy better career performance and overfall fulfillment. Participation in a 12-step program like Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous can help you maintain your recovery after treatment once you return to your career. 

Health Care Professionals

Health care professionals, including doctors and nurses, have some of the highest addiction rates in the entire workforce. The pandemic has probably worsened those trends, but it may be years before we can see the full impact.

People who work in health care are most likely to abuse narcotics, which are prescription opioids, including Fentanyl and Oxycodone.

Reasons people in health care are prone to developing substance use disorders include:

• They work in a very demand, high-stress environment where their decisions quite literally are life-or-death in their daily life 
• Medical professionals have to stay awake for long hours and often work all day or overnight
• There are emotional, painful decisions and outcomes to deal with regularly
• People working in health care have access to powerful prescription drugs

Unfortunately, the effects of addiction when you work in the medical field can be especially devastating. 

While being a healthcare professional can sometimes be thankless and heartbreaking, long-term recovery rates after treatment are high for people in this field who develop an addiction to prescription medications, other drugs, or alcohol.

Lawyers and Legal Professionals

Lawyers work long hours and deal with tremendous stress. In younger lawyers, the pressure may be particularly high since they’re also probably trying to pay off student loan debt and juggle financial responsibilities while working their way up the ladder in their careers.

Along with drug and alcohol addiction, many lawyers have a co-occurring mental health condition. For example, more than 45% of attorneys have co-occurring disorders like depression at some point in their careers. Around 12% of those lawyers reporting depression or a similar mental illness experience suicidal thoughts at least once.

Around 21% of lawyers may be problem drinkers or have an alcohol use disorder, and some estimates put the number as high as 36%. Approximately 9% of attorneys may struggle with prescription drugs. Stimulants are also an issue, helping attorneys stay awake for long hours, maintain high energy levels and potentially work more daily. 

Executives

Executives in all industries, including the tech industries, have higher rates of substance abuse than you might expect. For example, one study found nearly 20% of tech professionals abuse or have an opioid addiction. 

There’s also an alcohol culture in the tech industry, where it can be seen as acceptable to drink in work environments. For example, 53% of tech employees said they’d participated in a team bonding event with alcohol in one survey, and 35% said their employers sponsor happy hours.

Why Are High-Performing Professionals Likely To Abuse Substances?

Whether you’re working at a hospital, a start-up, or a high-profile established company, why are you, as someone who’s seen as a significant achiever, more likely to need a special level of care for substance abuse treatment?

There are a few factors that likely play a significant role.

• When you’re a high-level employee or in any position of stress at your job, it’s demanding. Your schedule is packed, and you may start early in the morning and work late into the night. Everything you do has the potential to affect many other people. Executives and professionals may turn to drugs or alcohol to relax after challenging days, help them sleep, or as a coping mechanism. 
• When you work in a stressful job, you may dedicate so much of your time and attention to it that your relationships suffer. You could find yourself struggling to connect with people on a personal level. Social support is critical to mental health, and without it, you could be more likely to turn to drugs or alcohol.
• Many executives and professionals with substance abuse problems are high-functioning. They appear “normal,” and no one would assume they have a substance use disorder. 
• These are people who may simultaneously make a lot of money and have disposable income, which in some cases can also fuel addiction more.
• When someone struggles with drugs or alcohol and has a high-profile or stressful job, they may be apprehensive about the stigma of not just their substance use but the potential of going to an addiction recovery center and taking time from work.

Finding a Recovery Program 

If anything above sounds like you, the most important thing to do, once you realize that you have a problem, is find addiction treatment that will address your needs to help you start the recovery process through effective treatment options and behavioral therapy. 

The needs of someone who has the weight of other employees and a company on their shoulders will differ from someone in another profession on their path to recovery. 

Executive addiction treatment centers in California, like Silicon Valley Recovery, will create an individualized dual diagnosis treatment plan, with your career in mind. You have to work on identifying underlying causes for your addiction. You may also need treatment for a co-occurring mental health disorder like anxiety or depression, essential for your quality of life and relapse prevention. 

Realize you aren’t alone, and drug addiction recovery is possible and can work in your life. So many people in America are striving to drive their careers forward and maximize their productivity. You can’t do that to the detriment of your mental and physical well-being.

We encourage you to call 408-547-4089 and contact the team at Silicon Valley Recovery to learn how we can help you change your trajectory and get evidence-based treatment for the disease that keeps on taking. We’ll share details about our admissions process, medically assisted detoxification, exclusive support groups, executive treatment programs, and how our holistic approach can meet your unique needs as a professional.