| Drug addiction can affect nearly anyone because it | | | | What can really help the struggling addict in the long |
| has so many different avenues of attack these days. | | | | run is for you to change your behavior towards |
| You have kids and teenagers who are smoking | | | | them. What you want to do is act in a truly healthy |
| marijuana. There is alcohol everywhere in our society | | | | manner and to do this you must not enable them in |
| and the pressure to drink can be tremendous. Then | | | | any way. This means that you might have to take a |
| there are painkillers, which have taken over the world | | | | stand on some issues and put your foot down in |
| and become the new gateway drug among young | | | | cases where in the past you might have helped |
| people. Opiates have become more popular than | | | | them. For example, if a struggling addict has children |
| smoking dope among today's youth. So given that | | | | and they come over and beg for money so that |
| the problem is so widespread, what can we do to | | | | they can provide for their children - do you give it to |
| reach out and help others who are struggling? How | | | | them? Some people might think it is compassionate |
| can we help addicts who are caught up in a cycle of | | | | to give them money because it's for their kids but |
| addiction? | | | | this is actually hurting the addict and their children in |
| The first strategy is to confront the person. Of | | | | the long run. Because they are actively using drugs |
| course this can be difficult to do because many times | | | | and alcohol, the money you give them is actually |
| you will be treated as a threat instead of someone | | | | supporting their habit, even if indirectly. Just because |
| who is genuinely trying to help so you might have to | | | | they played the "kids" angle on you does not mean |
| decide if it is worth it. In some cases you might want | | | | that they are not still wasting money on dope. |
| to just maintain the peace but at other times if | | | | So there are usually codependency issues involved |
| someone is truly out of control or a danger to | | | | when it comes to a struggling addict and the best |
| themselves then you must set those fears aside and | | | | thing for the people involved is to get healthy and |
| confront them anyway. The goal is to see them get | | | | set some boundaries. Make it clear to the addict |
| help, not to stand by and watch them self destruct. | | | | what is not acceptable behavior and outline specific |
| There is no real way of avoiding a confrontation as | | | | actions that you will follow in order to not enable |
| there is no method to get them to ask for help | | | | them any more. If you need help with setting healthy |
| indirectly. If you want to see someone change then | | | | boundaries then you might want to check out an |
| you must talk to them about it. Formal interventions | | | | Al-anon meeting. The people there can help you with |
| can be useful in some cases but they rarely pan out | | | | dealing with a struggling addict and they can show |
| as well as planned. At best they might be a step on | | | | you how to behave in a healthy manner so as not to |
| the path towards recovery, but don't expect to see | | | | enable them at all. |
| instant success right away just because the whole | | | | Helping a drug addict can be counter-intuitive for |
| family confronted someone together in a loving | | | | some people because many times we need to show |
| manner. They can be useful and they might actually | | | | tough love and let them face the natural |
| help but don't think that an intervention is a magic | | | | consequences of their actions instead of bailing them |
| bullet - it's not. | | | | out of yet another problem. |