Have you ever heard the phrase “addiction is a family disease”? Well, this isn’t to be interpreted literally. Figuratively speaking, however, it couldn’t be more accurate. When you or a loved one is battling addiction, the fact is, it affects everyone around you. Those who are dear to you, such as family and close friends are impacted significantly. Treating not only the person suffering from addiction but also involving the family in treatment and healing can be very beneficial. Learning how to resume your role within your family whether that be as a father, sibling, or even a close family friend can be possible with the right tools.
Addiction can take a toll on family members in all stages. In the midst of addiction, family is impacted as relationships are often strained, trust is broken, and the person they used to know and love may seem as though they have taken on a completely different persona. During treatment, family members struggle to accept the fact that their loved one’s issues were significant enough to seek treatment, and oftentimes, many unresolved issues can surface. Following treatment and during recovery, the battle continues as accountability is established. Doubts can often still arise from time to time.
Getting Family Involved
The good news is, involving loved ones and family members in your treatment experience and journey can help them not only understand but support you along the way. Additionally, the benefit to including family while you are facing these challenges is that they can see your progress as time goes on and learn tools to cope with the situation and move forward.
Maintaining communication and involving the ones you love during your treatment experience can make all the difference. A few ways to ensure you stay connected with your spouse, children, or close friends could include involving them in therapy sessions when you are ready. Sometimes, this can happen early in treatment. Other times, this may not be an appropriate course of action until later in treatment due to tension, boundary issues, or negativity.
Inviting or encouraging loved ones or family members to attend educational or support groups is another excellent way to include them in your journey to recovery. Participating in educational groups designed to address things from their perspective can help them better address their own challenges and heal.
Let’s talk a little bit about healing and how to ensure the healing process is taking place for not only you but loved ones as well. Perhaps the first step in the healing process is acceptance and openness. Being honest about your struggles and your mistakes with your family can be difficult, but can often break that barrier to open communication and moving forward. Engaging in programs and services such as family therapies or couple therapies can be very beneficial to this. While you undergo your journey accompanied by healing, understand that your family members may require different methods or a different time frame for healing.
Resuming Your Role
Resuming a role as a father, spouse, sibling, or friend can be very difficult following addiction and treatment. There can be a lot of time lost between the present time and when your addiction started or when you chose to seek treatment. It’s important to remember that you have made the right choice and making a change in your life and things can only go up from here. Perhaps the reason for seeking treatment in the first place was your role as a spouse or a father. Knowing loved ones at home are counting on you can be largely motivating for many.
How do you go back to life after treatment? Unfortunately, the answer isn’t as simple as one might hope. It certainly takes work and effort each day to stay on the right track and work to rebuild those relationships and trust.
These very roles that can be so motivating and encourage us to seek treatment can sometimes be the same reasons we are hesitant to make the change and enter a treatment program. It can be difficult to temporarily walk away from your life and role as a father, spouse, or friend. It’s important to keep in mind, however, that these individuals you care so much about are the ones most deserving of the best version of yourself.
Encourage your family members or loved ones to get involved in your treatment and recovery journey. As mentioned, there are various ways to accomplish this. Taking advantage of educational groups and other resources specifically addressing the struggles they face can make all the difference.
Addiction is something that impacts those around you. Most significantly affected are close family members and friends. Often, these relationships can be strained as a result of your addiction, as trust is often broken and understanding may be lacking. Involving family members and loved ones in your journey to recovery can help them learn to cope with your battle and develop a process to promote their own healing and growth. Renaissance Ranch offers a variety of free educational groups specifically for family members, spouses, and close friends who may need to better understand your circumstances. We will provide them with tools to support you and work to move forward. Let us support you and your close circle by choosing to seek treatment at our facility. If you or someone you love is battling addiction, call Renaissance Ranch today at (801) 308-8898.