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Global Drug Survey: Invitation to participate in a look at changes in use of alcohol and drugs during the COVID-19 pandemic

COVID-19 has changed our lives: from travel bans, social and physical isolation and empty cities to workers laid off and governments scrambling to muster effective responses. The impact on people varies widely and differently between countries. Relationships may be placed under new stresses and for those educating children at home, long division will never have seemed so hard! Today, we invite you to take part in the Global Drug Survey Special Edition on COVID-19. We run the world’s largest drug survey and we are here to help.

The designers of the Global Drug Survey are looking at how people are coping with this unprecedented situation. For some people it's baking, reading, yoga, virtual dance parties, or simply binging with Netflix. For others it’s drinking or using other drugs. For good or bad, disruption to drug markets, and closures of pubs, nightclubs and other social venues means changes to ways and means of how we use alcohol or drugs. Access to drugs and alcohol has been impeded in South Africa while in other countries the sales of alcohol are going up in many parts of the globe and while many traditional settings of use have closed, people have found new ways of connecting. Some people may use more alcohol and/or other drugs to replace social connection or manage feelings of anxiety or boredom.

For others, reduced access, desire and opportunity to use might lead to a period of not using. Whether, how and in what quantities people choose to use under these new settings remains unclear as does the true extent of variation across and between different parts of the globe.

The survey seeks to develop a better understanding of how people adapt to the restrictions related to the global pandemic, so that it can help provide guidance on what works well for which group and inform future debates on drug policy and public health.

For some people being cooped in their homes with little or no options for socialising during the lock down may be the mental crisis point that converts them from casual users of alcohol and drugs to frequent users, said Professor Adam Winstock, the founder and director of the Global Drug Survey. If you were someone who was verging towards problematic use, you’re either going to use the pandemic as an opportunity to reduce use and improve mental health, or your use is going to escalate. And as you run out of your preferred choice of drug, you will look for other drugs to compensate for that.” The danger in these homemade concoctions cannot be overstated.

Continuing our mantra of having “honest conversations about alcohol and other drugs” we have created this Global Drug Survey Special Edition on COVID-19 that launches on 4 May, 2020. The survey is available in multiple languages. Participation will take 10-15 minutes if you recently drank alcohol and slightly longer if you also used other drugs. We’ll ask how COVID-19 has impacted your living situation, your relationships and your mental health. We’ll ask whether your use of alcohol and other drugs has changed and with what consequences as well as about how COVID-19 has impacted the drug market in your country and your access to services.

Finally, we’ll invite you to join a GDS cohort with short follow-up surveys every 30 days to monitor changes in your drug use as the world adapts to an unknown but hopefully safer future. Don’t forget to be kind to yourself, support those around you and stay safe.

Professor Adam Winstock on behalf of Global Drug Survey.

Issued by Phumlani Malinga

[link url="https://www.globaldrugsurvey.com/"]Survey link[/link]

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