Help For Moms Of Addicts

Parent Of Drug Addict Help: Top 10 Truths To Help Parents

My sons addiction started in high school, with what at the time I considered to be normal experimentation with alcohol and marijuana. I never expected then that his alcohol and drug use would escalate into full blown addiction and that it would progress over the years all the way to intravenous drug use, near death, and a prison conviction. I have learned so much along this journey of my sons addiction and recovery. From that I have compiled a list of truths to share with others who may find themselves seeking answers and help.

Mothers With Recovering Children

Being a mother to a recovering child can be a difficult situation, but theres always hope. If the child is truly trying to recover, a mother can provide valuable help and support. Its important to remember, however, that you cant change your childs behavior they have to change it on their own. Here are some resources to help you provide that support.

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Resources Available To Friends And Families Of Drug Addicts

Most family support groups will provide you with valuable resources that will help you through this delicate time. Addiction education is the most crucial resource, as it can teach you how to understand and communicate with your child. Other resources may include counseling services, rehabilitation references, and recovery education. Furthermore, these resources will help you through your childs dependence and provide your family with valuable information to help fight addiction.

Recovery from drug addiction can be a long, hard road. However, you are not alone. There are thousands of parents in the same circumstances that are fighting the same battle. Support groups for parents of drug addicts provide hope, healing, and the resources you need to help your child recover from addiction.

Create And Reinforce Consistent Guidelines

Establishing guidelines will set clear expectations for your child regarding acceptable and unacceptable behaviors. Clear, consistent rules are related to improved outcomes with addiction. Not only will guidelines help your child, they will help determine your reactions to situations as they present.

Guidelines work best when they are developed in collaboration with your child. This way, all parties have a say regarding the consequences of their behaviors before the behavior is completed.

The best guidelines will read like a list of cause and effect statements if occurs will be the consequence. Since it is concretely established, there will be no surprises later. Of course, it will be impossible to cover every contingency, but by establishing guidelines for the most common events, you can reduce the odds of emotionally fueled reactions that have less-than-productive outcomes.

No matter how strong your guidelines, poor consistency will render them ineffective. If your child has been driving under the influence and you take their keys in some situations but not others, you are reducing the efficacy of your guidelines. This inconsistency will diminish the relationship with your child as their respect for you decreases.

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Support Groups For Families Of Drug Addicts Near Me

• Access to licensed treatment centers
• Information on treatment plans

Drug addiction affects the entire family, from parents to children, brothers to sisters, and sometimes even close friends. While substance abuse affects each family differently, there are many common adversities among families facing drug addiction, including financial difficulties, legal issues, emotional distress, and domestic violence.

Loving someone struggling with addiction can be incredibly difficult, painful, and chaotic. Because drug addiction impacts the whole family, treating the addicted person may not, on its own, result in any lasting changes within the family unit.1

Support groups can be a vital resource for the family and friends of those struggling with addiction. Family members may experience a variety of emotional responses to their loved ones drug addiction, including guilt, shame, anxiety, grief, and anger.1,2 Support groups may be facilitated by a licensed social worker, psychotherapist, or addictions counselor. They will often include peers working through similar family struggles and provide a safe, supportive environment in which family members can process and heal any emotional wounds theyve sustained as a result of addiction.2,3,4 They can help validate these normal emotional responses and share what theyve done to deal with them, including getting their own therapy and setting healthy boundaries with their addicted loved one.5,6

Convincing A Parent To Seek Treatment

Talking to a parent about getting help for substance abuse can be extremely intimidating. To some kids, addressing the problem seems like a betrayal of the parents trust to others, it might be a frightening violation of authority. One of the most important things to remember about addiction is that it can distort the users sense of reality, hiding the true impact of the disease. Many parents may not be aware of the effects of their drug use on their kids. They may be so deep in denial that they dont realize how chaotic their childrens world has become.

Listed below are seven steps you can take to make a conversation with your parent more successful, whether youre a young person whos still dependent on your parent or the independent adult child of an addicted person.

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Mother Of Drug Addicted Son Shares Her Story

The statistics are out there. The highest level of substance abuse occurs in those 18 to 25 years old, our most at-risk population, according to the 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. These young adults are in danger of becoming the drug addicted sons or daughters of parents across the nation. Sadly, its very likely that some of those who are now addicted to drugs started as young as 12. In fact, nearly two million of children ages 12 to 17 reported using illicit drugs in the previous 12 months .

Behind every statistic, though, there are real people who are struggling. And its not just the addict. Everyone their lives touches particularly those closest to them is affected by the addiction.

Today, Debbie L. shares her experience with her only son, Joshua. Starting at 13 with an opioid prescription, Josh went on to harder drugs like heroin. Now, at 25, he is still addicted, although there have been many moments of hope. Debbie agreed to do this interview because she wants to share her story with other parents of the addicted. She wants them to know that they are not alone.

Anything Josh did physically, he excelled at.

The only thing that concerned me about Josh was that he was fearless. He would just charge into physical activities without first assessing the situation.

I loved his spirit he was a spirited little guy.

Q: What was the first sign of trouble ahead?

Does it make them a failure? No.

Dealing With Adult Alcoholics: When Parents Need Help

Parents face a number of challenges when dealing with their addicted adult children. While finding the best way to provide support without enabling or estranging their children is often a parents top concern, it is also essential that parents practice self-care. Part of dealing with a loved ones addiction means recognizing that it is their battle, and theirs alone. Letting go and setting boundaries is necessary for this.

However, it is also important that parents work to treat any of the negative mental health consequences they face themselves as a result of their childrens addictions. Outpatient psychotherapy and support groups like Al-Anon can provide invaluable assistance, allowing parents to receive emotional support and work together with communities of individuals facing similar challenges. Ultimately, the best way to help addicted adult children is for parents to help themselves.

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Go To Family Therapy Sessions

Spouses, siblings and parents of people with addictions often absorb many of the consequences of their loved ones substance use. Many people have a hard time talking openly about the behavior thats harming them, so they say nothing. Family members can also become distant if theyre tired of fighting with their loved one. They may blame themselves when the addiction persists or blame the addicted person for their unhappiness.

These silences and blame games can hold a family back from getting help. Family members may not have the tools on their own to assist someone in active recovery, and they may not have the energy to help themselves.

Family therapy programs are designed to break down distrust and guilt by giving everyone a chance to feel heard. These programs can help family members understand themselves and each other, and work through conflict in a healthy way. Families once defined by anger and addiction can grow into tight-knit units that are able to support one another through honest communication and healthy boundaries.

Family therapy sessions can take time, and it can be tempting to skip a session particularly for families with a number of conflicting appointments and agendas. However, this work is vital to the mental health of everyone involved, so meetings should be attended whenever possible.

Support Groups For Parents Struggling With A Childs Addiction

Watching a child suffer through addiction can be incredibly painful for any parent. Parents are natural protectors who are biologically wired to help their offspring and protect them from harm. It is no surprise that many parents with good intentions end up enabling their childs addictive behaviors when what they truly want is to simply end their childs pain and suffering.

There are many resources and support programs available across the country for parents of addicted children including:

Parents of Addicted Loved Ones : PAL is a resource for parents struggling to cope with a childs addiction. Not only do they offer face-to-face support groups across the country, but they have a wealth of online resources and educational information that parents can access 24/7. PAL helps parents deal with the pain of loving an addicted child and teaches them how to change the way they relate to their childs struggles. Michael Speakman, founder of PAL, states, When we focus on changing the way we help our loved one, rather than trying to change them, it gives us realistic hope.

Al-Anon for Parents: Al-Anon also offers support groups specifically for parents in some locations. They also have a collection of online support stories available on their website, written by parents of addicted people for other parents of addicted people.

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Dealing With The Behavior Of Adult Children With Addiction

Addiction changes peoples personalities in negative ways. Most parents see the best in their children, so it can be tough to witness the moody, self-destructive, and sometimes cruel behavior that addicted adult children engage in. Children can be selfish, and it is common to expect that adults will behave responsibly. People with addiction, however, act like children. Dealing with narcissistic adult children can be difficult.

They may be unwilling to listen to parental advice, unable to hold down a job, and they may push people away. Addiction also affects moods, behavior, and cognitive abilities. Parents may be shocked to interact with their uncannily disrespectful or abusive adult children. It is important to understand that your child is acting this way not because they are bad or because you did a poor job parenting them. Try to understand that they are behaving erratically because it is one of the side effects of a substance use disorder.

At Northpoint Washington We Want To Offer You Our Services We Know This Is An Incredibly Difficult Time For You We Know It’s Hard To Fathom The Idea That The Most Important Woman In Your Life Is An Addict

Sometimes you can’t even believe you’re in this situation. It’s understandable that right now, you feel helpless. However, we want you to know that you don’t have to continue to feel that way.

Drug and alcohol rehab can make such a difference in your mom’s life and in your family as a whole. When your mom goes to addiction treatment, she’ll be able to work through the issues that led to her addiction. She’ll have the opportunity to meet with you and other family members during family therapy meetings. This will only help to strengthen and heal your relationship with one of the most important people in your life. It may take an intervention to help your mom see the need for professional help. We can provide you with that service too.

Do you have an addicted mom? Are you looking for help to encourage her to go to alcohol or drug rehab? Please contact us today so that we can assist you.

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Your Moms Drug Rehab Experience

If your mother has never been to a drug rehabilitation center before, she might be nervous. You might be a little bit concerned as well. Itâs important to know what you can expect.

Outpatient Addiction Treatment Programs

Your mom may also want to consider going to an IOP close to home. This would allow her to still live at home while she gets the help she needs. This type of program is a great option for many people who canât get inpatient care. You should talk with her and find out if this is a method she might prefer.

Why Did Your Mother Become A Drug Addict Or An Alcoholic

Moms work incredibly hard to care for their families, even when their children are adults. When they have small children at home, they spend their days cooking, cleaning, reading stories, etc. They help with homework, and they make sure their families are being taken care of. Mothers work hard and even more so when they work outside of the home too. Their place within the family is immeasurable and incredibly valuable.

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Tips For Families Dealing With An Addict

Addiction can happen to anyone even in loving families. When an addiction develops, family members and friends are also often directly impacted by the addiction. Thats why, in addition to taking steps to help get your loved one into a treatment program, its important for family members and friends to have a good understanding of addiction while also continuing to take care of their own health. This helps you provide the love and support the addicted person needs in order to heal. Here are 10 tips that can help.

Never Underestimate The Resolve And Love Of A Mother Fighting For Her Child

From their kitchen tables to the Roosevelt Room in the West Wing of the White House On September 19, 2016 The Addict’s Mom Executive Director Leisha Underwood and TAM Marketing Director Michelle Jaskulski met with Drug Czar Michael Botticelli, who called the meeting to listen firsthand to the voices of parents battling substance use disorders within their own families.

Upon meeting with Director of the Office of National Drug Control policy Michael Botticelli at the White House, Underwood described how important the opportunity was to her. Nobody is more determined or more affected by the disease of addiction than a mother,” she said. “Nobody will ever fight harder to save a child. The societal stigma and misunderstanding experienced by mothers simply trying to save their children can be crippling. We are proud and honored to be heard by this administration.”

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Expert Advice For Parents Of Addicts

At Turnbridge, we recognize that addiction is a disease that not only affects a user, but also his or her entire family. Living with an addicted son or daughter is in no way easy. Perhaps that is why you are here. As a parent, youve probably spent most of your nights sleeping with one eye open prepared to jump out of bed to go find your daughter, get your son out of trouble, or catch your teen sneaking out. Youve had to hide your cash, your jewelry, your prescriptions from your child. Youve also had to hide your worry and inner turmoil from outside family and friends. Its been a long time since youve been able to breathe.

Now, its time. In this article, we outline our best advice for parents of addicts: not only on how to help your son or daughter into and through recovery, but also on how to help yourself through this difficult time:

• Get educated.

Finally, educate yourself not only on the signs of addiction, but also on how you, as a parent, can address them. By reading up on addiction and talking to addiction specialists, you can also prepare yourself for what to expect. One great resource is the NIDA website. If you just caught your son or daughter using drugs, you may also read our What to Do article here or view our infographic on early addiction and intervention.

• Stop enabling.

As a parent of an addict, you must ask yourself, Am I helping or am I enabling my childs addiction? Because there is a very fine line between the two.

• Establish trust.