Millions of people in the United States have an addiction, but the disease affects millions more. From friends to coworkers to bosses, most of those you surround yourself with will face the harsh realities of addiction. You may find that many of these individuals will choose to walk away. However, when it comes to addiction and family, loved ones need to help each other.
Addiction and Family: The Effects
Addiction has far-reaching effects on families and relationships. One person in a household with the disease can impact parents, children, and siblings. Even grandparents and others who are part of the individual’s life can feel the effects.
For starters, addiction creates tension and leads to miscommunication between loved ones. These issues cause frequent arguments, which increase stress and establish a negative, unhealthy living environment. Those with addiction can develop anxiety and experience loss of trust, stress, and emotional pain. However, their family members can go through the same things.
Addiction also damages families by leading to late nights out, abnormal and erratic behavior, and job loss. These and other problems can damage the foundation of the families. Resentment, anger, fear, blame, and hate can fester, driving the members apart.
How Families Can Cope With Addiction
Some of the above issues develop because the family members don’t know how to help their loved ones. Some of them think that completely disowning them is the answer. However, it can just drive loved ones to abuse drugs more because they feel alone.
On the other hand, some families enable the addiction because they want to help. They might call into work on behalf of their loved ones when they’re drunk or high. They may give them money for fuel to drive to work even when they should have money for it. In reality, these actions enable their loved ones to maintain their addictive behaviors.
Instead, families can use a couple of tips to cope with addiction. First, they need to make sure that they take care of themselves. Dealing with loved ones who have an addiction can drain family resources. The other family members need to make time for each other without talking about the addiction and maintain their relationships.
Getting professional help is also essential for the people with addiction and their families. Everyone should learn about the disease so that they can understand what their loved ones experience. They also learn that their job as families is to guide their loved ones rather than change them.
For this reason, many rehab centers offer family therapy services. The counseling sessions help families rebuild the relationships that addiction has damaged. All of the family members learn how to support each other and resolve conflicts in healthy ways as well.
Addiction Treatment for Families
Do you need drug rehab for yourself or a loved one? You can get help at Woodlands Recovery Centers. Along with family counseling, we offer a range of addiction therapy services, including:
- Experiential therapy
- Trauma therapy
- Art therapy
Don’t let drugs or alcohol lead your family into ruin. Learn more about addiction and family coping mechanisms. Call us today for help at 855-752-3377.
