Most conversations about addiction start after someone is already struggling. National Substance Use Prevention Month shifts the focus earlier. It’s a reminder that families, schools, workplaces, and neighbors all have a role in reducing the harm substance use causes, long before anyone needs treatment.

Here’s what Substance Use Prevention Month is, why it matters here in Maine, and practical ways your community can get involved.

What Is National Substance Use Prevention Month?

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) recognizes October as Substance Use Prevention Month, and its Substance Use Prevention Month digital toolkit offers resources for communities that want to take part. The observance focuses on raising awareness of how substance use affects individuals and communities and on encouraging people to take an active role in prevention.

You may also see the observance described a little differently in 2026. On August 12, 2026, the White House issued a proclamation designating August 2026 as National Substance Use Primary Prevention Month, emphasizing efforts to prevent drug use before it starts. Whichever month you mark it, the goal is the same: making prevention a shared community priority.

How October’s Prevention Efforts Come Together

Substance Use Prevention Month in October overlaps with two well-known national efforts:

• Red Ribbon Week: In a joint letter, the DEA and SAMHSA called on Americans to commemorate Red Ribbon Week, October 23–31, 2026. The campaign honors DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, who was murdered by drug traffickers in 1985. Teens in his hometown of Calexico, California, began wearing red ribbons in his memory.
• National Prescription Drug Take Back Day: The DEA held its 31st National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, October 24, 2026, with more than 4,400 collection sites nationwide. According to the DEA, Take Back Day has helped Americans remove more than twenty million pounds of unneeded medications since 2010, and more than 15,300 pharmacies, hospitals, and businesses offer medication disposal year-round.

Why Substance Use Prevention Month Matters in Maine

Maine’s progress shows that coordinated community action can save lives. According to the Office of Governor Janet Mills, 390 people in Maine died from a drug overdose in 2025, down 20 percent from 490 in 2024 and the lowest total since 2019. The state also reports that nearly 800,000 doses of naloxone have been distributed since 2019, credited with reversing more than 12,000 overdoses that may otherwise have been fatal.

The same report notes that nonfatal overdoses fell 9 percent, from 8,040 in 2024 to 7,313 in 2025, and that MaineCare coverage has supported more than 69,000 people receiving substance use treatment since 2019. The state also counts more than 3,830 Recovery Coach trainings, showing how many Mainers have stepped up to support neighbors in recovery.

Those numbers are encouraging, but every one of those 390 people mattered, and each nonfatal overdose represents someone who still needs help. Substance Use Prevention Month is a chance to build on that momentum, because prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery support work best when they work together.

What Prevention Actually Looks Like

Prevention is often misunderstood as a single school assembly or a slogan. In practice, it’s a set of everyday habits and community choices that lower risk factors and strengthen protective ones, such as stable relationships, trusted adults, healthy ways to manage stress, and easy access to help. Substance Use Prevention Month is a good time to look at which of those protective factors your family, school, or workplace already has, and which could be stronger.

How Communities Can Participate in Substance Use Prevention Month

Prevention doesn’t require a big budget or a formal program. Here are practical ways individuals and groups can participate.

For Families and Parents

• Start honest conversations. SAMHSA’s “Talk. They Hear You.” campaign encourages parents and caregivers to talk openly with young people about substance use.
• Secure and dispose of medications. Lock up prescriptions and use a year-round disposal site for anything you no longer need.
• Model healthy coping. Kids notice how adults handle stress.

For Schools and Youth Groups

• Join Red Ribbon Week activities. Ribbon campaigns, assemblies, and pledges give students a visible way to take part.
• Talk about mental health. Anxiety and depression often travel with substance use, so normalizing help-seeking is prevention, too.

For Workplaces

• Share resources. Make sure employees know what support is available, including employee assistance programs and health plan benefits.
• Reduce stigma. Treat substance use disorder as a health condition, not a character flaw. Maine reports 86 certified Recovery Friendly Workplaces, a sign that employers can play a real role.

For Faith Communities, Neighborhoods, and Civic Groups

• Host an education night. Invite local professionals to discuss warning signs and treatment options.
• Learn to respond to an overdose. Knowing how to recognize an overdose and use naloxone can save a life.
• Make support visible. People are more likely to reach out when they know their community won’t judge them.

Prevention Includes Supporting People in Recovery

Substance Use Prevention Month isn’t only about stopping first use. Prevention also means helping people who are already in recovery avoid a return to use, and helping families respond in ways that support healing.

Families play a huge part in that. Colleen Garrick, CADC, Director, People & Business Operations at Casco Bay Recovery, offers this guidance: “Families can encourage treatment, listen, and recognize progress without rescuing or removing every consequence. You can love someone deeply and still say no.”

If your family is learning how to support a loved one, family therapy can help everyone communicate more clearly and set healthy boundaries.

Recognizing When Prevention Becomes Treatment

Sometimes, despite everyone’s best efforts, substance use becomes a problem. Knowing the warning signs helps you act early:

• Using more, or more often, than intended
• Pulling away from family, friends, or activities
• Changes in mood, sleep, or appetite
• Falling behind at work or school
• Continuing to use despite clear consequences

If you recognize these signs in yourself or someone you love, it’s a reason to reach out, not a reason for shame. Casco Bay Recovery treats a wide range of substance use disorders, including alcohol, opioid, stimulant, and prescription drug use, through outpatient programs in Portland. Our young adult program also offers support tailored to younger people.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is Substance Use Prevention Month?

SAMHSA recognizes Substance Use Prevention Month in October. In 2026, a presidential proclamation also designated August as National Substance Use Primary Prevention Month.

Do I need to be part of an organization to participate?

No. Talking with your kids, disposing of unused medications, and learning the warning signs of substance use all count.

What if someone I love already needs help?

Prevention and treatment go hand in hand. An assessment can clarify what kind of support makes sense.

Make Substance Use Prevention Month Personal

This Substance Use Prevention Month, choose one small action: start a conversation, clean out a medicine cabinet, or check in on someone you’re worried about. And if you or someone you love is struggling, call Casco Bay Recovery at (844) 953-1628. Our Portland team is here to help, any month of the year.