Cheryl Brown Merriwether, co-founder of ICARE, notes the rise in substance use that came with the pandemic. For example, binge-drinking in the U.S rose 21% during the pandemic, and alcohol and associated complications are now listed as the third leading cause of death for Americans.

"Alcohol continues to be a leading cause of preventable death and lost productivity," she says. "Treatment costs are off the charts, and we believe one way to control costs is to look at prevention."

What is "sober curious?"

As the problem of substance abuse has come more into focus in recent years, many are exploring new terms and ideas around the issue of substance use and abuse. Although abstinence and 12-step recovery programs remain essential for many people who have struggled with addiction, there are a growing number of behavioral health experts who say that simply being more thoughtful and intentional about substance use could help develop healthier habits and prevent more serious problems with substance abuse.

The sober-curious movement has its roots back to the original Dry January concept, which first emerged in 2012, but the book "Sober Curious," written by Ruby Warrington, was released more recently, in 2018. Merriwether notes the concept is not an all-or-nothing approach; it allows people to experiment with abstinence at their own pace. "People get turned off by abstinence," she says. "But [Warrington] suggested a 100-day challenge to change your relationship with a substance."

The normalization of drinking often makes people feel pressured into drinking alcohol at events like happy hours or work retreats. However, with the sober-curious movement, that peer pressure may be abating, according to Merriwether. "Many people tell me they have had to fake it, to put something in a glass that looks like an alcoholic beverage — these folks are now discovering their voices," Meriwether says, noting that the sober-curious movement has sparked an explosion of non-alcoholic beverage options.

Another concept, "grey-area drinking" also eschews a black-or-white approach, but likewise suggests a more healthy path. Brian Klink, an addiction recovery coach at Living Color Healing , came to coaching after his own journey through alcoholism and recovery. He has noted a change in the way people talk about drinking, he says. "I have a number of clients who have come to me recently over the past year who have started what they call grey-area drinking," he says. "They don't see themselves as an alcoholic or addicted, but they do recognize that they have an unhealthy relationship with alcohol. They come because over the past three years, something has happened."

"Harm reduction" is another term used by experts in this area. The science suggests that any amount of alcohol can increase health risks in humans, but as with things like red meat and sugar, many people may want to focus simply on being more healthy, rather than a zero-risk approach.

"There are many people who say, 'I don't know if I fit in to the model of complete abstinence,'" Klink says. "It works for some people; it doesn't work for all people. The good news is that there is something out there for everybody if you're willing to find it. There is support out there for anybody, no matter what you're desiring, from 100% abstinence, to casual use, to reduced use."

An ounce of prevention…

Merriwether notes that HR systems and insurance carriers tend to focus on treatment rather than prevention. There are prevention programs, but they tend to focus on younger people. "Sadly there is very little money at the federal and state level for adult prevention," Merriwether says. "What we are trying to do is create a grassroots movement in the workplace… where employees can engage with education programs and safe conversation."

The growing popularity of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs is also helpful, Merriwether says. As employers encourage workers to bring their best and most authentic self to work, issues like substance use can be part of the conversation. And affinity groups and employee groups are places where issues like sober-curious approaches can be discussed and promoted in a proactive way.

The proactive, grassroots approach is also appealing due to lack of resources — not only is there a serious shortage of clinical providers of behavioral health service, but HR teams can also struggle to keep up with these issues.

"The HR world is understaffed, they don't have the tools, they don't have the data, the processes and the know-how," says Howard Gerver, founder and president of HR Best Practices. Gerver says there is claims data that can give employers information on how widespread addiction issues are in their workforce, and whether certain locations have more cases, but that few companies are really taking advantage of that data.

Gerver sees data as the way to get buy-in from company leadership, since company leaders want to see hard numbers on why behavioral health should be a higher priority. "HR needs to really speak the C-suite speak, and they can do that with analytics," he says. "Unless someone in the C-suite has someone in their life with an issue, they're not going to go for it, because today it's all about the business case."

Gerver founded The Adam Project after his son died due to behavioral-health related causes, in part because he saw a lack of resources for people with behavioral health issues. The Adam Project provides online resources to individuals and organizations seeking help with those issues. Gerver says mental health and substance abuse are difficult issues for HR to deal with, but that data analytics can help. "You can use the data to inform the process…for those who are really serious and want take the bull by the horns, it's the way to go."

A generational change

One thing that multiple surveys have shown is that younger workers are demanding more help with behavioral health issues. At a time when attracting and retaining workers are top priorities, many employers are finding that an increasing number of young workers have expectations of support in this area.

Merriwether says younger workers are more interested in addressing behavioral health in a proactive way. "The younger generation, so many people are interested in wellness and wellbeing," she says. "This is why we don't talk about just one substance. We talk about behavioral addictions like food addictions, like gaming — there are behavioral addictions in addition to substance use that people need to be mindful of and intentional about."

Read more: Two-thirds of employers plan to make mental health a top concern, survey finds

Klink says when it comes to improving one's mental health, starting out by asking questions about substance use is a good first step. "This is absolutely a bridge to start dealing with these issues," he says. "Hats off to the younger generation… I grew up in a more black and white generation, and there's so much to be gained from just experimenting and exploring."