The war on drugs isn’t what many people think that it is. It’s not the government trying to stop a load of cocaine coming over from Columbia.
The war on drugs is inside of your living room. It’s in your house. It’s in your car and it’s at your job. It’s all in your family.
There are 120 million Americans that have addicted loved ones in their life, and they’re trying desperately to get them well. This makes the family the front line troops in this war. That’s the real war on drugs. And families haven’t even been to basic training yet. They need some help and help is out there. There is a solution.
Where do families turn to find help?
It may seem hopeless if you have an addicted loved one in your family. But, there are so many people who were once deemed hopeless living a great life in recovery today. And the way that they got there is that their families got trained in combat with the war on drugs. They sought the help of professionals who guided them, educated them, encouraged and supported them and most importantly, the families followed the advice from these trained professionals.
And you know what happened? Their addicted loved one went to treatment. But the war isn’t over at that point.
What should families do once their loved one is in treatment?
The battle with addiction is only halfway over at this point. Many families think that once their loved one is safe inside the walls of a treatment center surrounded by trained professionals then their work is done. But in reality, families must remain a united front and continue to firmly uphold their boundaries because their loved ones brain will take at a minimum of a year to heal. Decision making, processing, emotions, impulse control, pleasure constructs are, simply put, broken. The brain has been rewired by years of substance abuse, and it will take time for this brain to begin functioning at level of normalcy again. Add this ‘faulty circuitry’ into the mix with shame, low self-worth, pain, anger, trauma, victim mentality, and self-limiting belief systems and what’s left is a mess. On top of all this, the addicted loved ones only solution to all of the above has been taken away.
So, what should families do once their loved one is in treatment?
Frankly, follow the advice of the professionals. They have years of professional experience working with addicted individuals and their families. They also have you and your loved ones best interest at the forefront.
