With one of the highest suicide rates in the country and regular headlines about crimes and crashes related to substance abuse, it’s clear Montana has a problem with addiction and depression. Patrick Ryan is on the front-line of dealing with those problems as the program manager for Share House, an addiction and mental health treatment home here in Missoula. The home works with a large variety of addictions including everything from heroin to gambling, but Ryan says there are a handful of addictions that seem to be the most common.

"Number one is alcohol, and it is really the primary that we deal with, it's the most common for admissions in-patient and out-patient services," Ryan said. "Next to that is probably methamphetamine. It would be number two, and it is pretty closely followed by opiates. We see a lot of people dealing with major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, a lot, and also people with bi-polar or borderline personality disorder."

Getting help may take some time though. Share House focuses on longer-term stays, but Patrick also works in coordination with Recovery Center Missoula, which does a more traditional, 30-day intensive treatment for addictions.  According to Ryan, both are very busy.

"I don't know exactly what Recovery Center's in-patient wait list is like, but I know it's a ways out, at least about two to three months out for some individuals. For Share House, I have about four or five people on the wait list for both men and women because we are a co-ed facility."

Ryan says this is actually one of the slower times of the year as many people that seek out addiction services often choose to stop recovery during the holiday season. For more information on options for help, go to partnershiphealthcenter.com

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