If your loved one is addicted to drugs or alcohol, it’s easy to feel alone. But, it’s essential to know you’re far from it. Nearly 20 million Americans over the age of twelve battle with a substance abuse disorder.
When you see someone you care about losing more of themselves to their addiction, you want to get help. Rehab is the best option, but talking to your loved one can be difficult. Continue reading to learn useful information on how to talk about the subject.
Be Empathetic
When a loved one is addicted to drugs or alcohol, it’s easy to become angry, frustrated, and overwhelmed. While these are natural reactions to seeing someone you care about hurt themselves, they can make the situation worse. Instead of getting angry, try to be empathetic. This doesn’t mean you should aid your loved one’s addiction in any form.
Instead, it merely means avoiding criticism or accusations. If you feel like arguing, walk away instead. Avoiding confrontation is better for both you and the addict.
Encourage Your Loved One to Take Responsibility
Before someone can get help for their addiction, they must first take responsibility for it. It’s easy to blame others, but this path will never lead someone to get help.
When you encourage responsibility, you are neither aiding nor hindering your loved one’s addiction. Instead, you are merely setting your boundaries and ensuring the addict sees what their problem does to their lives. It can be hard not to step in and intervene, but this rarely (if ever) works to solve the issue.
A good example is when your loved one has gotten high and is unable to go to work. When encouraging responsibility, you wouldn’t call out sick for them. At the same time, you wouldn’t intervene if the addict decided to do it themselves.
Try Staging an Intervention
Drug and alcohol addiction tend to spiral out of control very quickly. They lead to a downward spiral that slowly envelops the addict’s life. One way to bring the real issue to the addict’s attention is to try staging an intervention. Keep in mind that the addicted person will likely be defensive or angry at first. This is why it helps to have a trained intervention specialist with you.
During an intervention, several people who are (or were) close to the addict come together as a united front. They explain what they’re seeing and how the addiction has changed things. They also provide their support to the addict and ask them to get help before things get worse.
Get Professional Help
One of the best things you can do for your loved one is to help them get professional help. If your loved one is hesitant to go to a drug rehab center, a professional may be able to convince them.
Professional assistance may be in the form of an intervention specialist or therapist. A drug or alcohol counselor can also help. If you have questions, call a rehab center to find out what assistance they offer.
It can be difficult talking to a loved one about going to rehab. But, the information above can help make the situation a little easier.