What is NJ Connect for Recovery?
NJ Connect for Recovery is a free, confidential call line focused on helping family members and friends coping with a loved one’s substance use disorder. A service of the Mental Health Association in New Jersey, NJ Connect for Recovery provides a safe, nonjudgmental place for individuals and family members to get counseling, and assistance from professional staff members on substance use issues.
We provide emotional support, education, ongoing family and peer guidance and access to treatment options through REACHNJ. Calls are answered live through our call line at 855-652-3737 from 8 am – 10 pm on weekdays, 5 pm – 10 pm on weekends, and 3 pm – 10 pm on holidays. Call 855-652-3737 for immediate guidance and support and get your substance use disorder questions answered.
NJ Connect for Recovery Fast Facts
• Our call center employs highly-trained Peer Family Specialists, individuals who understand substance use disorders and recovery and utilize these experiences to provide powerful recovery support for family members and friends.
• The average length of a telephone conversation between a caller and Peer Specialist is 17 minutes. We urge our callers to continue to call back for additional support, information and advice.
• NJ Connect for Recovery receives hundreds of calls per month from all 21 counties in NJ.
The Opioid Crisis in New Jersey
• Drug overdose is the leading cause of accidental death in NJ.
• NJ’s rate of a heroin overdose is 3x the national average.
• Opioid misuse is widespread across NJ, and with a presence in all 21 counties.
• NJ saw a 40 percent increase in drug-related deaths in 2016, the largest in at least six years, the spike was driven by opioids, heroin, and fentanyl.
• In 2018, more than 3,160 people died from drug overdoses in NJ.
• In 2018, the NJ drug related death toll was estimated to be four times what is was ten years ago.
• Opioids kill approximately 130 Americans a day.
• In 2018, there were 89,629 treatment admissions reported to the New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of
Mental Health and Addiction Services by substance abuse treatment providers.
Via NJTV Online:
In 2015, the Mental Health Association in New Jersey launched NJ Connect for Recovery, a free, confidential call line for those coping with substance use disorders. Callers are immediately connected to Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselors or Family Peer Specialists the first time they call. Call 855-652-3737 for immediate guidance and support.
