The truth is, overcoming addiction isn’t just an addict problem. It is a disease that affects everyone involved. From friends to family, to co-workers, active addiction disrupts and mangles the health and fluidity of every home and workplace activity that it interacts with. While addicts learn to distance themselves from the expendable people, places, and things, that don’t support their recovery goals, it is common within the non-expendable family relationships that there is the most work to be done. Sober family members and friends have a large role to play in recovery too. This not only helps heal the dysfunctional roles that they likely wound up playing during a loved one’s active addiction cycle, but it allows everyone within the family or social system to grow in new ways.
Embrace The Truths
Having someone detox off of drugs alone does not equal being in recovery. Being sober is a blessing. Transitioning into a lifestyle of recovery is what supports long-term change. If you, or someone you love, has recently gotten sober, there are some things that are helpful to know. Living in recovery represents a state of being where there are active lifestyle activities and changes that become evident. In other words, recovery is visible in daily action, mindset, and communication. In order to support long-term recovery goals for yourself or someone else, it’s a solid strategy to equip yourself with understanding. First, take time to realize that just like the chaos of addiction took time to build up and weave into your life, healing works in much the same way.
Treatment and Perspective
Residential treatment programs are incredible catalysts for sparking the desire to change and providing the initial time and tools to do that. Even so, the completion of a treatment program isn’t a guarantee that you, or they, will experience a complete restoration of happiness. Recovery is a process, not a cure. And we all serve ourselves best when we can understand that process and apply it to ourselves first. What I mean by this is that even if you’ve never touched a drink or drug in your life, treatment offers a lot of beneficial insight and life skills that apply to everyone. Overcoming addiction, in any form, begins as an inner journey.
Recovery And Relationships
While sobriety and treatment are important strides towards recovery, we must acknowledge that addiction rarely takes root in what we call a “vacuum”. What this means is that, more often than not, the relationship systems that exist around addiction have usually adopted some maladaptive coping mechanisms that are just as disruptive to healing as the use of substances. This isn’t anyone’s fault, it is just a part of the natural progression of the systemic disease that addiction is. In order to overcome these maladaptive mechanisms, we need to draw our attention to discovering which ones affect us. This way, we empower ourselves by healing the entire system in an effort to support ourselves and our loved ones, no matter what happens next.
Family Dynamics
Families are social systems. Each person in the system is like a gear either contributing to or hindering, the larger operation. Together, let’s learn how to ensure the family system runs smoothly. Any time that an individual experiences a major change, all of the corresponding gears are impacted. This requires transitional work to ensure that the system fits together in a new way. In effect, as one person re-adjusts, their companions must do the same. This is the only way that relationships grow and evolve. At the end of the day, each individual family member requires a little self-work. Learn to support the group as it embarks on a new migration towards healing. Healing together calls for changing existing thoughts, behaviors, and coping dynamics. Healthy, supportive relationship interactions supercharge recovery. To do this, everyone starts by stepping back and taking an honest inventory of themselves. Working with the needs, habits, and feelings of self, strengthens both the individuals and all of their corresponding relationships. This is the work that supports long-term change, healing, and prosperity for everyone.
The More You Know
The journey of life takes you in many unexpected directions, and that’s okay. When you find yourself facing something difficult, learn to set guilt and shame aside. Only then, can you find the people and tools to help you evolve. Overcoming addiction and the ways that it impacts your life doesn’t have to be hard. And even when it feels like it is, there is hope. If this is something that you’re interested in exploring further, tune in next work for Unwrapping the 9 Paths of Co-Addiction.
In the meantime, I invite you to browse the other articles included in the Mental Health Addiction Section. Topics include a variety of information like 12 SMART Tips For Breaking Bad Habits, The Stress of Crisis & Survival, and more.
Recovery is Possible.
You are worth it.