Review: Young people's recovery processes from mental health problems - a scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Recovery from mental illness and mental health problems is relatively well-researched among adults, but evidence that focuses on the recovery experiences of young people and what characterizes it is scarce. With this in mind, this article aims to map out the existing research in order to identify prevailing knowledge about the recovery of young people between the ages of 12 and 25. METHOD: Drawing on scoping review methodology, this article is based on an analysis of 33 articles conducted in the USA, Australia, and Europe. RESULTS: Our findings reveal that young people express both similar and divergent lines of reasoning about recovery compared with adults. Our findings also indicate that young people often fluctuate in the way they view recovery, and that they thus tend to be ambivalent about what recovery means. Parents usually highlight the importance of professionals facilitating recovery, while care staff problematize the organizational frameworks available as aggravating circumstances for implementing personal recovery. Young people, parents, and care staff consistently describe recovery as a way to, despite lingering problems, enable a satisfying life. CONCLUSIONS: Through this review, we outline the need for a more distinct focus on agency and participation in young people's recovery processes, at the same time as family involvement needs to be further investigated and operationalized.

Recovery processes among young adults treated for alcohol and other drug problems: A five-year follow-up.

Aim: Studies on recovery from alcohol and other drugs (AOD) among young adults are scarce. In the present study, young adults, previously interviewed with a focus on their recovery process shortly after they completed treatment, were re-interviewed five years later focusing on their recovery process during the last five years in relation to their former AOD problems, other problems and processes of change. Methods: Twenty-one young adults were interviewed: 16 women and five men aged between 25 and 33 years. After transcribing the interviews, the material was analysed thematically. Results: Three overall themes emerged: previous problems, mental illness and the search for identity. The results were discussed in relation to recovery capital, primarily focusing on human and social capital. The results indicate that the group in focus often needs professional support for mental health issues in order to reach a stable recovery. Conclusions: Since the problems described were heterogeneous, this client group might benefit from individual treatment and extended support after treatment. Further, the results indicate that the established period of five years for a stable recovery might need to be extended for young adults.

Social inclusion of clients treated for substance abuse in Sweden in the 1980s: A 27-year follow-up.

AIM: To investigate social inclusion/exclusion in terms of criminality, substance abuse and participation in the labour market in clients treated for substance abuse in Sweden in the 1980s during a follow-up period of 27 years. METHOD: SWEDATE data are used for background information on the clients. The data were collected through interviews with clients registered for treatment in 31 in-patient treatment units in 1982 and 1983. Data on labour market status, education and medication related to drugs were collected from public registers. The study population consisted of 1132 individuals, who were followed from the year after exiting from treatment (Year 1) until the end of the follow-up (December 2013). RESULTS: Among those who survived, the women seem to have succeeded better in terms of social inclusion both at an aggregated level and when the individual pathways were followed during the follow-up period. When comparing pathways between adverse and non-adverse groups during the follow-up period the results show movements from being adverse to non-adverse but also the opposite. In the last follow-up in 2013, the majority of the clients defined as non-adverse for the last nine years were in some way established in the labour market (including studies). In total, about two fifths of the group were in some way established in the labour market. CONCLUSIONS: The fairly high proportion of clients moving between being adverse and non-adverse during the follow-up might support the perspective suggesting that dependence should not be considered as chronic.

Mortality and Cause of Death-A 30-Year Follow-Up of Substance Misusers in Sweden.

BACKGROUND: This article presents a 30-year follow-up study of a cohort of 1163 substance misusers who were in inpatient treatment in the early 1980s. Data was originally collected in the Swedish Drug Addict Treatment Evaluation (SWEDATE). OBJECTIVES: The aim is to examine the overall mortality and identify causes of death in different groups based on self-reported most dominant substance misuse among those who have died during January 1984-December 2013. METHODS: SWEDATE-data was linked to the National Cause of Death Register. Five mutually exclusive study groups were created based on self-reported most dominant substance misuse for the last 12 months before intake to treatment: Alcohol, Cannabis, Stimulants, Opiates, and Other. The Standardized Mortality Ratio (SMR) was calculated. RESULTS: During the follow-up, 40% died. SMR is 10.3 for women and 11.7 for men. The study groups differed regarding SMR; 13.1 in the Alcohol group, 9.2 in the Cannabis group, 9.6 in the Stimulants group, 16.7 in the Opiates group and 10.8 in the Other group. Drug related death was the most common cause of death (28% only underlying, 19% both underlying and contributing) followed by alcohol related reasons (17% vs. 9%). CONCLUSIONS: Alcohol misuse among substance abusers might have a negative impact on mortality rates. Methodological changes in how drug related deaths is registered affects the interpretation of the statistics of cause of death. Further analysis on the relation between drug related cause of death and drug misuse related death is needed.