Ask For Guidance First
Go to a health expert such as a counsellor, therapist, psychiatrist, or social worker. You will need guidance on how to do the intervention. You may even ask them to be in the intervention so that theres someone who can act as a mediator and can control the situation if people start becoming too emotional.
Symptoms Of Drug Abuse
There are many signs both physical and behavioral that indicate drug use. Each drug has its own unique manifestations, and symptoms of abuse vary from drug to drug. However, some general signs that your loved one may be addicted to drugs include:
- Sudden change in behavior
- Problems at school or work
- Lack of energy or motivation
- Becoming careless about personal grooming
- Loss of interest in hobbies, sports and other favorite activities
- Changes in sleeping patterns
- Sudden requests for money or a spike in spending habits
If you or someone you love is struggling with substance use or addiction, The Recovery Village can help. Contact us today to learn more about addiction treatment programs that can work well for your needs.
Medical Disclaimer: The Recovery Village aims to improve the quality of life for people struggling with a substance use or mental health disorder with fact-based content about the nature of behavioral health conditions, treatment options and their related outcomes. We publish material that is researched, cited, edited and reviewed by licensed medical professionals. The information we provide is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider.
Discuss Concerns When They Are Under The Influence Or Their Emotions Are Running High
Nothing meaningful or helpful can be discussed when someone is under the influence or the people involved are upset. No one thinks clearly when theyre overwhelmed by their emotions. It can feel uncomfortable to hold onto what you want to say for a later time, but waiting for the right moment to discuss serious issues is important. Otherwise, you risk using harsh language that increases hurt and shame and lessens the chances theyll respond positively.
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Dealing With An Opiate Addict Effectively
If you have landed here at this blog it is likely that you have a loved onea teen, a young adult child, a spouse, a sibling, or a parentwho is struggling with an addiction to opiates. Ormaybe that person is you. Seeking out information about how to help someone overcome an opiate addiction is the first productive step toward recovery, including if that someone is you.
Opiate addiction, including heroin, prescription pain medications, and fentanyl, has become so prolific in the U.S. that it has been called a national opioid epidemic. The statistics regarding overdose deaths to opiates are staggering, with an estimated 90-115 individuals losing their lives to opiates and opioids daily, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control. No one is spared from the serious consequences of the opioid/opiate epidemic, as friends and relatives on daily Facebook news feeds regularly post notices of overdoses.
As alarming as the drug epidemic is, there is hope for those in the grip of addiction. Knowing how to help someone overcome an opiate addiction starts with getting informed about treatment options and what to expect in rehab.
Getting Them The Right Kind Of Help
At Acquiesce, we provide a discreet, highly supported and safe environment within the community for your loved one to recover in. Without being hidden from the real world, our urban recovery model allows individuals to gain all the tools and experience necessary whilst maintaining a carefully monitored level of autonomy and responsibility over their own recovery. This makes the transitional period from treatment a much smoother process, resulting in a more sustainable recovery journey.
Book a free consultation with Acquiesce today to discuss the options available for your loved one with one of our recovery practitioners.
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Our Family Support Services
At Gladstones Clinic we understand the complexities of dealing with addiction. We have over 15 years of professional experience in helping people to deal with substance and alcohol abuse. We also understand the impact that addiction can have on families and friendships.
Gladstones Clinic is dedicated to working with families struggling with addiction. We have policies, practices and a residential rehab programme in place that both encourages family involvement in their loved ones recovery and also provides support and counselling to families who are struggling to cope themselves.
Why notcontact us today to find out more about our family support services.
S You Can Take To Help Someone With A Gambling Problem
If you suspect someone you know has a gambling problem, ways to help are available however, the most important thing you can do is to encourage them to get help from a professional. We can assist you in finding help for a loved if you call . Its important to remember that even though a persons gambling has affected you to the point where youre ready for them to change, they might not be ready yet. You can offer support and seek professional help with how to proceed, but you cant make someone ready to change.
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How To Find Drug Or Alcohol Addiction Help
You can start looking for help for a drug or alcohol addiction by speaking with a doctor, doing research on what help is available, and discussing these options with your friend or loved one. Factors that can play a role in your choice of a treatment program include the reputation of the facility and the type of care you are seeking.
Typically, when an individual enters treatment, it will occur in stages that include:14
- Medical detoxification, where a person clears substances out of their body in a safe, supervised atmosphere. Detox alone is rarely sufficient in achieving long-term abstinence from a substance, but it is an important first step.
- Treatment, or rehab, addresses a personâs motivation to change, helps a person identify triggers that lead to substance use, and teaches people ways to cope with stress or other triggers that do not involve turning to substances. Treatment typically includes counseling, group therapy, peer support programs and, in some cases, medication.
- Aftercare provides continued support for a personâs recovery after formal treatment. This can include attending mutual help groups , individual counseling or therapy, and continuing medications that were started during treatment.
How To Talk To An Alcoholic: Reaching Out Connecting And Offering Help
This article will help you understand alcohol use disorders, how to approach someone you think may have a drinking problem, how to offer them assistance, and how to take care of yourself during this process.
Remember: it may take more than one conversation with a person who has an alcohol use disorder to encourage them to seek help. However, by showing your support and concern, you may be able to help them to see they have a problem with alcohol and would benefit from addiction treatment.
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Am I Overreacting To A Substance Use Problem
If you are noticing problems in friend or family members work, health, family, finances, relationships, social functioning, legal issues, self-esteem or self-respect, you are not overreacting.
Continuing to use substances in spite of the fact that such behavior is causing problems, is a problem in and of itself. It shows that substance use has become more important than the problems it causes. Someone who is unwilling to discuss the issue or consider whether there might be a problem is a strong indicator that a problem exists.
Helping Someone Get Into Rehab
I am here for Alcohol | Drugs | Other addiction
If you know or suspect that someone in your life suffers from alcohol or drug addiction, you will probably want to help the one that you love, but this can be met with hostility or denial. Addiction is a chronic, relapsing brain disease, and the path to recovery for someone who is addicted is often a long and difficult one.
This inevitably impacts those closest to them, and professional help may be needed to get them to treatment and into recovery.
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Allow Them To See How Using Impacts You And Others
Without being overly emotional or angry, tell your loved one how using impacts you. It is common for family or friends to try and act stronger than they are in order to shelter the addict. However, this actually enables them. Allow the addict to experience the consequences of their actions, first hand. Not to punish them, but to open their eyes to the reality of the situation. If they have stolen from you, its okay to let them know how its hurt you. If they have caused problems for your other relationships, you can let them know how this affects your life. Again, this is not an effort to make them feel bad but just an honest conversation about the effects of their drug use.
How To Talk To Someone About Their Drug Abuse
Starting a conversation with someone about their drug addiction is never easy, but its important you come from a place of compassion and understanding. Remember, no one sets out to become an addict. Drug abuse is often a misguided attempt to cope with painful issues or mental health problems. Stress tends to fuel addictive behavior, so criticizing, demeaning, or shaming them will only push your loved one away and may even encourage them to seek further comfort in substance abuse.
Discovering someone you love has a drug problem can generate feelings of shock, fear, and anger, especially if its your child or teen whos using. These strong emotions can make communicating with a drug user even more challenging. So, its important to choose a time when youre both calm, sober, and free of distractions to talk. Offer your help and support without being judgmental.
Dont delay. You dont have to wait for your loved one to hit rock bottomto get arrested, lose their job, suffer a medical emergency, or publicly humiliate themselvesto speak out. The earlier an addiction is treated, the better.
Express your concerns honestly. Emphasize that you care for the person and are worried about their well-being. Offer specific examples of your loved ones drug-related behavior that have made you concernedand be honest about your own feelings.
Staging an intervention
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Tips For Helping Someone With An Addiction
The challenge with addiction is that the addict is not the only one impacted by this disease. Family and friends can have difficulty with the addicts behavior, financial problems, legal problems and the daily struggle of supporting a loved one. Here are seven tips that family and friends can reference to support an addicted family member or friend.
How To Talk To Someone About Their Addiction
Lets have a conversation, about a conversation. More specifically, lets talk about how to talk to someone about their addiction. To the outside observer who has never had to deal with this challenge, this might sound like an overly simplistic topic of discussion. But in actual fact, those of us who have dealt with having a family member or loved one who struggled with an addiction know just how difficult it is to try and help that person get better.
Wise men have said that communication is the universal tool, the ultimate metaphorical duck tape of the universe. When utilized properly, communication is the best practice and the right tool that can help us overcome even the most ruthless of problems. No matter how bad an interpersonal relationship gets, the right levels of communication done properly and at the right times can usually resolve it. When somebody has a family member or loved one who is addicted to drugs and alcohol, often all it takes is knowing how to talk to them, at the right time, and in the right way to convince them that they need to get help. Unfortunately, communicating about addiction is never straightforward and hostility can and usually does develop with repeated failed attempts. The key is Proper communication, which is not always easy.
So what is the Proper way to communicate with someone suffering from addiction?
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Creating A Plan & What To Say
Now that youve learned more about AUDs, you may be able to better understand what your coworker, friend, family member, or other loved one is experiencing. However, you might not be ready for the emotionally taxing part of your conversation. This is where making a plan and writing down your ideas can be helpful.
Writing down the main points you want to talk about can help you to formulate and remember your ideas during the conversation. Points you may want to consider when writing your conversation plan include:4
In addition to these considerations, there are some concrete actions you can take before and during confronting the person you know who is struggling with an AUD.
A Treatment Strategy Unlike Any Other
Making the hospital a place where people with addictions feel welcome was the first step, the other big change has been the treatment itself.
Brian Tomagatick lies on a hospital bed and holds a freezer pack against his belly. Tomagatick, a long-time opioid user, is getting his “shot” his eighth.
The Timmins approach is to give a monthly injection of a drug called Sublocade, which delivers an extended release of buprenorphine. Once injected, the drug forms a small lump under the skin near the abdomen and lasts for a period of 30 days.
Each injection costs between $550 and $650. The goal of the treatment is to control the intense cravings that opioid users experience, and allow them to stop chasing their next high.
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Dr. Julie Samson preps the syringe and asks if he’s been experiencing any cravings. Tomagatick shakes his head.
“All right. Is it nice and frozen?” asks Dr. Samson.
Tomagatick nods.
It took courage, but Dr. Samson and the Timmins team decided to start a treatment method that nobody else in the country was doing.
“WhenI’m giving the injection I’m so happy for them, because they’re doing so well and they haven’t died,” Dr. Samson said.
The regular protocol is to give a patient daily doses of buprenorphine, and only after a week start them on the injectable. But Dr. Samson says patients would almost never wait the week, and instead would leave the hospital and drop out of the program.
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When you suspect that someone you love has a heroin addiction, it can be a difficult thing to process. You may find yourself afraid for their wellbeing and wish to confront them about their addiction all be it, with good reason.
Heroin, according to the DEA, is highly addictive and has a severe and potentially fatal effect on the body. Please seek help for your loved one by calling and learn what can be done for them, including steps for how to approach someone about his or her heroin addiction.
How To Spot A Cocaine Addiction
Cocaine is undoubtedly addictive, especially if smoked in crack form. Even frequent cocaine users, who think they know their limits, are at risk of overdose.
One of the biggest side effects is developing a cocaine dependency. Most individuals go to great lengths to get their hands on cocaine. Some will even risk putting themselves in dangerous or life-threatening situations. This is why it is crucial to be aware of the signs of cocaine addiction and know how to get someone the help they need.
The first step towards helping your loved ones is to identify the physical, psychological, and behavioral symptoms of cocaine abuse.
Here are some of the most noticeable symptoms to look out for:
- Being unable to stop using cocaine, despite it negatively affecting their lives.
- Paranoia and lying about drug use, spending, and whereabouts.
- Appearing agitated or irritable for no discernable reason.
- Borrowing or stealing money from friends and family members.
- Avoiding activities or events that they previously enjoyed.
- Frequent nosebleeds, reduced appetite, insomnia, and rapid heart rate.
- Socializing only with other users.
- Acting impulsively, being overly energetic or confident when under the influence.
If you notice these signs, it may suggest that the individual is struggling with cocaine addiction and needs professional support. Harm Reduction Center is a private healthcare service provider that offers highly personalized services for those struggling with substance abuse.
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Dont Rely On Shortcuts
Many addicts will wind up in jail or institutionalized, and sadly some will die, thinking they can fix the addiction on their own with medication or self-will, despite all the evidence to the contrary.
They attempt to figure out alternative ways to stop, but the only successful approach is complete surrender with an entire change in their thought process.
The problem isnt the drugs its them and their behavior. Drugs are merely the symptom of the problem.
In the lives of drug addicts, these individuals view drugs as a shortcut and a quick fix to their problems, so why would their approach to sobriety be any different?
Sadly, families succumb to the same mindset regarding ways to help their loved ones. Many think there are alternatives outside of an intervention, failing to understand that a form of intervention is inevitably coming, either on the familys terms or on societal terms. Either way, it will occur, and if we let the addict control the kind of intervention, it wont end well. What a family is expecting their loved one to do cannot be achieved without professional help and guidance.
Addiction is the only fatal illness where people do not surrender themselves to the professionals, believing they can fix the problem on their own and denying that their family knows best.
Drug addicts and their families display almost identical behavior in the sense that both seek to fix the addiction in an easier, soft manner with as little confrontation as possible.
