PTSD diagnosis and nonmedical use of benzodiazepines among African American incarcerated men: the mitigating effect of John Henry active coping

Abstract

The current study examined the relationship between PTSD and nonmedical use of benzodiazepines (BZDs) based on level of John Henry Active Coping (JHAC) among African American incarcerated men. Data were derived from the Helping Incarcerated Men (HIM) Study (n = 208). Nonmedical use of BZDs was measured for the 30 days before incarceration. Current PTSD diagnosis and JHAC were determined using DSM-5 criteria and the JHAC Scale. Adjusted logistic regression analyses showed PTSD diagnosis was significantly associated with nonmedical BZD use (p = .011), but that JHAC did not significantly mitigate this relationship. African American incarcerated men may experience an unmet need with regards to mental health treatment.

Keywords:

• Nonmedical use of prescription drugs
• PTSD
• John Henryism
• African Americans
• incarceration

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (T32DA035200; PI; Rush; K08DA032296; PI: Stevens-Watkins). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of the National Institutes of Health.