Around 35 million people worldwide suffer from substance abuse disorders. Being addicted to drugs is a terrible thing for the addict and the addict’s family. If you know someone who is addicted to drugs, you might wonder how you can get that person some drug addiction help.
Getting help for an addict can be difficult at first. But there are ways you can accomplish this. Keep reading and learn more about what you should do below.
What You Need to Know about Drug Addiction
Before you can help a person who is addicted to drugs or alcohol, you should first learn how addiction works. Addiction has genetic and environmental roots. It is believed that some people are more genetically predisposed to develop addictions than others.
Some people have addictive personalities. This makes it easy for them to become addicted to things like cigarettes, food, gambling, drugs, and so on. People without this genetic trait may not get addicted to anything, no matter what they do.
It can be difficult to live a normal life with an addictive personality. Many people rely on addictions to get them through their lives. People often abuse different substances to escape certain feelings or problems.
Suppose that a person often feels depressed or anxious. The person may abuse alcohol to escape these feelings to feel better. But this would not make a person feel better for long, and it could easily turn into a serious addiction.
Other people may use drugs and alcohol to escape their lives. They may be unhappy with how their life is going. But drugs and alcohol are not a good way to cope.
Many people become reliant on their addictions. This makes it difficult for them to live without them. Quitting an addictive substance will cause the person to go through withdrawal symptoms.
The Details
Withdrawal symptoms are very unpleasant and may also be dangerous. Withdrawal symptoms occur when the body tries to function without the presence of the addictive drug. This is difficult for the body since the drug has acted as a crutch.
The brain also has a hard time functioning without the drug. This is because addictive drugs change the brain’s natural chemistry and hormone levels. This may cause severe mood swings and feelings of depression and anxiety as the brain recovers.
Some addicts may also refuse professional treatment because they think they don’t have a problem. They may insist that they have everything under control. But this is never true with substance abuse.
Many addicts also risk overdosing. An overdose is when a person consumes too much of a drug, and it becomes toxic in their system. This can lead to complications like seizures, heart attacks, and death.
It is important to think about helping an addicted family member long before this happens. But helping an addicted loved one can be difficult if you don’t know where to start. There are certain things you can do to reach out to your loved one and help them.
But you have to be careful not to enable them or push them away at the same time.
How to Get Drug Addiction Help for a Loved One
The first step to helping an addicted loved one is offering support. But do not confuse support with enabling. Many people become enablers without realizing it.
Enabling comes in many different forms. You may give your loved one money to buy drugs. You may accept that they have a drug addiction and not do anything about it.
You may let them live in your house while they abuse dangerous drugs. These are all signs of enablement. Enabling a drug addiction will never stop the problem.
It will only make it worse. But how can you support someone without enabling them? Make sure the person understands that you are there for them.
If they need help, you should be there to support them. But helping does not mean helping them continue their addiction. If your loved one asks you for money to buy more drugs, you have to say no.
This is a difficult thing to do, but it is the first step in helping an addict. You may need to remove your loved one from the house if their addiction does not stop. This is also true if their behavior is disrupting or endangering other members of the household.
This is a hard thing to do. But it is often necessary for those who refuse to stop abusing dangerous drugs. It makes them understand that you are serious about them stopping their addiction.
What You Need to Know
You may also choose to let the person stay in your home, but they have to pay their expenses. Paying for an addict’s rent, food, and other expenses is enabling them. This keeps them from taking any responsibility.
They live in your house for free and abuse drugs however and whenever they want. But by imposing new rules, you can lay the foundation for change and action. It is important to establish boundaries as well.
Once you set your boundaries, you need to follow them. You need to show that you are serious about them. There is no point in setting up boundaries if you are going to forget about them soon after creating them.
Make sure the boundaries are realistic too. They can help you keep your family safe. Setting boundaries can be very difficult and painful.
But it is necessary if you want to see any change in your loved one’s behavior. You shouldn’t let your loved one’s addiction take over your life either. It can be tempting to constantly worry about your loved one’s behavior and drug abuse.
But you have a life outside of these worries. It is important to remember that. Keeping your life together is necessary if you want to help your loved one.
Taking care of yourself will also help you care for your loved one.
What Else Should You Consider?
There are certain things you should avoid when helping an addicted loved one. You should avoid putting guilt on the person or intimidating them. Making the person feel ashamed or guilty rarely works.
These negative feelings often backfire and can make a person’s addiction worse. They may use more drugs to avoid those negative feelings. It is instead better to have a more supportive and loving approach.
It is also important to explain to your loved one what options they have. They may not know what to do or where to go to stop their addiction. They may not want to know about their options or they may not care.
But it is still important to tell them. Drug rehab centers are the best choice.
Addiction rehab centers are equipped with all the necessary staff and equipment to help addicts. They have medical professionals that can help a person go through withdrawal symptoms.
This is important because withdrawal symptoms can be dangerous without any support. Rehab centers also have trained therapists. Therapy is very important for overcoming addiction.
What to Know
Therapy allows an addict to get to the root of their addiction. It helps them understand why they do what they do. Addictions usually arise when a person feels the need to escape certain emotions or problems.
A therapist can also help your loved one learn how to cope with different things. Therapy can teach a person about self-control. Drug addicts and alcoholics often have poor self-control skills.
They may resort to drugs and alcohol whenever something bad happens. This is in contrast to handling the problem healthily and productively. But therapy can also help with that.
Therapy allows an addict to learn new skills and new ways to think. Many addicts have a negative way of thinking. This makes them more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol.
But a more positive way of thinking can prevent this. Cognitive behavioral therapy aims to help people think more positively. This allows them to think and behave healthily.
It also makes it easier for a person to overcome their addiction and get their life back.
All about Professional Drug Addiction Help
Drug addiction help is important, but it can be hard if your loved one is unwilling to seek help. You need to support your loved one without enabling them. This involves setting boundaries and not allowing the person to get away with their behavior.
A drug rehab center is an addict’s best bet. To learn more about how it works, check out our services.
