If your Loved One Refuses Addiction Treatment
You're aware that your loved one is abusing drugs or alcohol, however he or she refuses to get addiction treatment or even worse, refuses to acknowledge that a problem with drugs or alcohol exists. It's heartbreaking to watch a person you love destroy himself or herself with drug or alcohol addiction. Although addiction is a devastating and illogical disease, your loved one is not outside the possibility of a full recovery. There are actions you can take to help them get on the path to addiction treatment and lasting recovery.
Set Boundaries and Consequences
You can threaten the addict or alcoholic relentlessly but unless you follow through, those threats will not motivate the addicted person to seek help. Setting up boundaries lets the addicted individual know what type of behavior you expect and that you're serious about steering them into rehabilitation. The consequences will vary for addicts but actions such as removing drugs or alcohol from the home or refusing contact with addict when he or she is high or drunk is a start. Depending on the severity of the addiction, you may have to implement even further drastic measures like:
- moving out if you share a home with an addicted person
- if you have children together, taking away visitation rights until the addict or alcoholic accepts treatment
- in some severe cases, contacting the authorities
The boundaries that you set should be drastic enough to want to motivate your addicted loved one to enter drug or alcohol treatment by relaying the message that their drug or alcohol abuse isn't only damaging to themselves, but to the people that love them as well.
Stop Enabling their Drug or Alcohol Use
You may be indirectly enabling an addict or alcoholic by supporting or covering up for them. You could be providing cheap housing and in turn, the addict spends their leftover money on alcohol or drugs. You may be giving them small amounts of cash here and there when the addict claims that funds are tight. Are you doing work that the alcoholic or addict can no longer do? This could something as simple as laundry or cleaning their room.
When you continue enabling the addict, he or she cannot recognize the consequences of their addiction. Withdrawing your help or support makes the addict or alcoholic have to work harder to support their habit and then they can finally recognize that their addiction is unsustainable.
Anticipate Emotional Manipulation
The vicious disease of addiction is all encompassing and irrational. The addict or alcoholic will make emotional appeals when their enablers or support system collapses. Addicted individuals will lie and exaggerate, claiming they were never "addicted," or only used drugs "once in a while."Alcoholics or addicts could resort to threats, demanding that you help them or they will cut all ties with you.
As devastating as emotional manipulation and fallout can be, once you have resolved that your loved one needs to receive inpatient treatment, you cannot falter. A drug addict or alcoholic will use all the emotional pull they have to continue to feed their habit. You can interrupt the cycle of addiction by refusing to offer the addicted person your help until they have entered rehabilitation.
The life of drug or alcohol addiction is not easy -- especially when a loved one is addicted. You must understand that even though the addict or alcoholic refuses to get treatment at this moment in time, that somewhere down the line when the consequences are too harsh the addicted loved one will commit to a full recovery.
Getting Addiction Treatment
Contact a member of our Drug Treatment Centers Phoenix team today at (877) 804-1531 to discuss your drug or alcohol concerns.