This Fundraiser Platform Helps Pay for Addiction Treatment

Last year, one of my friends badly injured himself on a canyoneering trip. His anchor broke while he was rappelling down an overhang; he fell over 40 feet to the rocks below.

He was airlifted to a hospital where he underwent 14 different surgeries to repair dozens of broken bones.

He started a GoFundMe campaign to cover his medical expenses, which included a new prosthesis to replace his amputated leg. The outpouring of support he received from our community was simply incredible, and he raised nearly $40,000 from supporters – both friends and strangers.

Help Could Be Just a Few Clicks Away

At the time I thought, if our community could help a friend in need like that, why couldn’t they do the same for someone struggling with chemical dependency? After all, getting treatment isn’t always affordable and, for many families, it isn’t even a viable option.

ne maintenance treatment was $4,700 per patient last year.

And thanks to an online compassionate crowdfunding platform, YouCaring.com, getting financial support for substance abuse treatment has become a reality.

“Our platform is very effective in providing financial help and emotional support for those struggling with all types of addiction,” Boland said. “Whether it’s someone who needs help affording drug or alcohol treatment or a parent raising money to raise addiction awareness, we encourage people to ask for help.”

A quick search on the site showed one campaign for a man requesting funding for treatment for his life-long affliction with alcoholism. He had raised over $5,000. Another campaign was made by a person’s spouse, begging donors to help bring her husband back from the brink. To date, her campaign had raised $6,600.

According to Boland, YouCaring.com is fully committed to helping those who can’t afford to pay for treatment. As such, it has actively created resources around such treatment, even allowing campaign members to keep the full amount of money they raise, without charging any user fees.

Communities Around the World Showing Love

While there are over 600 addiction-related campaigns currently listed, many I found were memorial fundraisers for the families of those lost to substance abuse.

Despite the tragic events, a number of the campaigns I visited have successfully raised thousands of dollars, showing that even though chemical dependency has a certain stigma attached to it, there are still so many compassionate people out there who are willing to help and support us. And that’s something worth celebrating.