Mistakes That Families Make When It Comes To Addiction Recovery
Recovering from drug addiction is a difficult and long journey. Many people don’t consider addiction a disease. They hold misconceptions about addiction. Family members and friends can detach from their loved ones after they develop the addiction problem. That’s because they don’t know the best way to deal with the situation or the person.
Conversely, a relative or friend may want to assist an addict but do it wrongly. They can also think their actions will save the addict when they are just covering up for them. Unfortunately, this will only compel the addicted person to continue abusing addictive substances through their enabling habits.
Family members and friends can make several mistakes that will lead to the relapse of the recovering addict. Identifying these mistakes can enable individuals to avoid them and help their loved ones overcome addiction and even prevent relapse.
Failure to Participate
Enrolling in a couples’ rehab (check at AddictionResource) can mark the beginning of a new life for lovers. This is a facility that allows partners to participate in the addiction treatment process. Essentially, this facility encourages family members to participate n the recovery journey of their loved ones.
Such a program can strengthen the entire family. Professional counselors work with family members to support and help the addict. They can also help in repairing damaged relationships. Nevertheless, not every family member might participate in this program. That’s because they might not be prepared to forgive. As such, recovering addicts are advised to be patient.
Failing to Understand Addiction
Research has described addiction as substance dependence. An addict is a sick person because they can’t control their substance use or abuse without professional assistance. Substance abuse becomes a compulsive action when a person becomes dependent on it.
Unfortunately, many people don’t seek addiction treatment due to the stigma that is associated with it by family and friends. Addiction stigma occurs because many people don’t know that this condition is a disease like cancer or diabetes. A common misconception is that people choose to be addicts. They fail to understand that addiction is a mental problem.
To support and help a person that is recovering from addiction, friends and family members should learn about addiction and the recovery process. A partner can learn more about addiction from rehab for couples. Online resources can also provide more information about addiction.
Blaming the Addict
Research has shown that substance abuse and addiction are stigmatized across the world. As such, nobody wants to be associated with a drug addict or anything that can be attributed to the substance abuse problem. Therefore, family members can easily blame and point fingers at each other when one of them is battling addiction.
But, this blame game doesn’t help. It can even trigger a relapse. The best approach is to address past issues and get healing. That’s because blaming an addict will not add value to the recovery process.
The goal is to assist the loved ones in their recovery journey. To achieve this, family members should forgive the past mistakes of the addict. If unable to do this, they can call a drug rehab for married couples to seek guidance. This will even hasten their healing process.
Expecting Overnight Results
Recovering from drug addiction is a long process. Therefore, families should not expect addicts to beat this problem overnight. Being a challenging and long process, recovery requires understanding and patience.
To overcome addiction, a person must heal the body and mind. And, this takes time. As such, families should not expect fast results when their loved ones are recovering from addiction.
Not Maintaining Open Communication
In some cases, a family member is not ready or open to discussing the past issues they had with an addict. But, this is the only way most issues can be addressed and resolved fully. An addict can understand and know how their loved one feels through communication. Similarly, family members can understand how an addict feels through communication.
Making it about Sober Family Members
Addiction affects relationships and families negatively. Family relationships can easily be ruined by family members. That’s why drug rehab for families is the best option when some members feel hurt by the addictive behaviors of a loved one. Professionals at this facility can help in addressing such feelings.
But, sober family members should bear in mind the fact that recovery is not about them. It’s about the loved one that is struggling with a substance abuse problem. Recovering from drug addiction is challenging. Therefore, sober family members should not burden the recovering addict with feelings of shame and guilt because this won’t help their recovery.
Not Acknowledging Success
Recovering from drug addiction requires determination and success. So, if a loved one has recovered, sober family members should encourage them and celebrate their success. This will motivate the loved one to continue regardless of how small their progress seems.
Neglecting Yourself
Sober family members should support the recovery of an addict. However, they shouldn’t neglect their needs. Essentially, sober family members should be physically and mentally well to support their loved ones through the recovery journey.
Failing to Plan
After leaving rehab for couples on drugs, recovering addicts need support and help to maintain sobriety. Aftercare programs can help these individuals to come up with a plan that will help them achieve lifelong sobriety. Family members should be part of the team that formulates this plan. They should also support the recovering addict to stick to this plan.
The Bottom Line
Recovering from drug addiction is a lifelong process. It also requires support from loved ones. Family members play a crucial role in supporting a loved one to overcome addiction after rehab. Avoiding these mistakes can hasten the recovery process of a person.
