You want to help a loved one who is struggling with alcoholism, but maybe you don’t know how. You can be a real asset to your loved one as they enter and work through addiction recovery, but only if you know how to be properly supportive. Sticking with some basic dos and don’ts will steer you in the right direction.
Thanks to the internet and advancements in addiction research, there’s a lot of information about the disease floating around out there. While having open access to addiction education is great in most cases, getting a hold of the wrong information can be damaging to recovery. Debunking common addiction myths is a necessary part of addiction education.
Although addiction is an isolating disease for the addict, it affects everyone close to them as well. Addiction becomes a disease of the family unit as it progresses, harming everyone in its path. We can better understand how addiction harms families if we picture the addict as a person stuck in quicksand. They are being pulled down by their disease and they can’t find a way out. Family members who try to help them are often caught by the quicksand too, and soon find themselves sinking down with their loved one. Families need a lifeline of help to pull them out and to give everyone some stable footing again!