What if my addicted loved one refuses help?
Waiting for your loved one to reach their ‘rock bottom’ in a hope that they will ultimately acknowledge that they have a problem and be willing to ask for help is a huge gamble. Cravings for drugs and drug seeking behaviours persist despite devastating consequences caused by substance abuse.
Prolonged substance abuse causes extreme damage to the body and especially the brain. Substance abuse can lead to criminal activities, prison and death. The chaos caused by their addiction is often felt far more intensely by the family (parents, siblings, and spouse) than the addicted person.
Two of the primary reasons people seek drug treatment are because the court ordered them to do so, or because loved ones urged them to seek treatment. Scientific studies have shown that those who enter drug treatment programs in which they face "high pressure" to confront and manage their addiction can benefit from treatment, regardless of the reason they sought treatment in the first place.
Understand that most addicted persons:-
Stop ‘cutting them slack’. The family cannot continue to absorb the consequences of a loved one’s addiction indefinitely. The damage to the non-addicted family members is devastating. The family also needs to heal and recover from the affects of living with an addicted loved one.
Putting the negative choices of the addicted person above the needs of the family is reckless. Tolerating their substance abuse with all its negative consequences will NOT help them or the family.
The family has a choice, whereas the addicted person is a slave to their compulsion. Families must make unity a priority and avoid division and strife which is often caused by the stress of living with an addicted person.
Caring, loving families will insist on treatment.
Prolonged substance abuse causes extreme damage to the body and especially the brain. Substance abuse can lead to criminal activities, prison and death. The chaos caused by their addiction is often felt far more intensely by the family (parents, siblings, and spouse) than the addicted person.
Two of the primary reasons people seek drug treatment are because the court ordered them to do so, or because loved ones urged them to seek treatment. Scientific studies have shown that those who enter drug treatment programs in which they face "high pressure" to confront and manage their addiction can benefit from treatment, regardless of the reason they sought treatment in the first place.
Understand that most addicted persons:-
- Claim that they can stop abusing substances whenever they want to and that they are not ‘addicted’.
- Claim that they hardly use at all. Minimise the problem.
- Blame stress, other people or situations for their substance abuse.
- Claim to have their own plan to stop and do not need treatment.
- Justify, rationalize and manipulate.
- Will abuse the love of people to get what they want.
Stop ‘cutting them slack’. The family cannot continue to absorb the consequences of a loved one’s addiction indefinitely. The damage to the non-addicted family members is devastating. The family also needs to heal and recover from the affects of living with an addicted loved one.
Putting the negative choices of the addicted person above the needs of the family is reckless. Tolerating their substance abuse with all its negative consequences will NOT help them or the family.
The family has a choice, whereas the addicted person is a slave to their compulsion. Families must make unity a priority and avoid division and strife which is often caused by the stress of living with an addicted person.
Caring, loving families will insist on treatment.