Drug addiction is often called a ‘family disease’ by addiction specialists and medical professionals alike – and this is not simply because the disease, like many others, is largely hereditary. Addiction is referred to as a ‘family disease’ because all family members are gravely affected by the symptoms of the affliction on a spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical level. Drug addiction completely destroys healthy family functioning, forcing members to step outside of their normal roles and accommodate the destructive and disturbing behavior of their addicted loved one. Because the family members of addicts often stifle their own anger, fear, and grief, they are often in need of intensive therapeutic care in order to work through these harmful, deep-seated emotions. We take the emotional and mental health of the family into careful consideration, offering a comprehensive program of recovery to each family member who has been directly affected by the devastating disease of addiction.
In our family therapy sessions, we focus largely on several key components of therapeutic healing, geared towards restoring healthy family functioning and improving individual mental and emotional health. Take a look at several of the things we focus on:
– Healthy communication.
Communicating effectively can be difficult, but it is vital skill. In order for family functioning to be mended, family members must learn how to effectively communicate with one another.
– Boundary setting.
Setting healthy boundaries is tricky, but maintaining the boundaries you set can be extremely difficult. Your therapist will teach you how to both set and maintain healthy boundaries that will protect you from unnecessary emotional trauma.
– Supporting without enabling.
It is possible to support your addicted loved one without enabling him or her. You will learn the importance of tough love and learn why enabling an addict is detrimental to everyone involved.
– Self-care.
Many family members of addicted individuals will compromise self-care while caring for their afflicted loved one. We do our best to re-instill a vital sense of self-love and self-care.
– Support groups.
We work to introduce the family members of our clients to support groups such as Al-Anon and Nar-Anon.
If you have a loved one who is suffering at the hands of an unrelenting and life-threatening addiction, it is important to recognize that the only thing you can truly control is your own behavior and the actions you take. Taking care of yourself and your own emotional and mental health will help to make you more readily available if your loved one ever does decide to reach out. For more information on our family program, or to learn more about the steps you can take to best help your addicted loved one, please feel free to contact one of our trained representatives today. We look forward to hearing from you soon!