The 12 Palms rehab blog publishes weekly addiction related articles directed to help and guide families and addicts on the addiction treatment and recovery.
For many people, what starts as casual use can lead to drug and alcohol abuse. It may seem unfair -- as others may be able to casually use drugs or alcohol without the loss of control. And while the causes of addiction are not entirely known, what we can recognize are the habits that lead you to abuse drugs or alcohol.
Stages of Alcohol & Drug Addiction
According to the National Institutes of Health, there are several stages of drug use that may lead to dependence.
What can you do when someone you love is abusing alcohol or drugs? At first, you may just want to wish the problem away. But addiction is a chronic and progressive disease, and doing nothing can be a dangerous decision. For many, confronting the problem means confronting an addicted loved one – and an intervention is a way to show just how devastating their problem is to family and friends.
An intervention is a professionally directed process resulting in a face to face meeting of family members and friends of someone who abusing alcohol or drugs. Intervention helps the person make the connection between his/her substance abuse and the problems he/she are having in life. The goal of intervention is for him/her to accept help -- and begin the road to recovery.
Addiction and Codependency: Breaking the Cycle of Enabling
Drug and alcohol addiction affects the addict and everyone around them. It’s this circle of influence that plays a key role in either enabling the drug or alcohol addiction, or encouraging recovery. That’s why it is crucial to understand the fine line between encouraging your loved one to get help – or becoming codependent and helping to maintain the addict’s destructive behavior.
What is Codependency?
A ‘codependent’ is someone who has developed an extreme dependency on someone else – in this instance, on the addict. They are often spouses, children or other relatives of the addict.
“When an addict is finally willing to admit that they are completely powerless over their addiction and need help recovering, they are left with a choice.”
