Writing
COVID-19 limited access to mental health care
By Zachary Van Arsdale and Brenda Maytorena Lara / News21
Faith is an important part of Wayne Morgan’s recovery from substance-use disorder. He often credits God with working out his finances for him so he can focus on recovery. (Zach Van Arsdale/News21)
“A lot of addicts died last year, a lot. And it’s because that one-on-one interaction wasn’t there. And I could have very easily been one of them.”
-Wayne Morgan
Wayne Morgan winds his way through the clutter of chairs and hugs the other members of his Narcotics Anonymous group. He closes his eyes as they recite the Serenity Prayer.
Then he listens as others share their stories.
“I found home when I found this place,” Morgan said.
He lives a two-hour drive away in Stuttgart, Arkansas, 103 miles down the road from his addiction recovery group in Hot Springs. He visits most Sundays in his 2002 Mercury Sable that’s always on the verge of breaking down. He says it runs on prayers.
“Every day I choose to come here is a day that is saving my life, but it’s another day I’m going in the hole,” said Morgan, who is recovering from substance-use disorder. He was 56 days sober. “It’s another day that I’m not making a house payment. It’s another day that I’m not saving up for a car or paying off credit card debt.”
Morgan is among millions of Americans with mental illnesses such as substance use, depression and anxiety, for whom government and community resources grew more scarce during the pandemic. Poor people, those living in rural areas and those belonging to racial and gender minorities had even worse outcomes.