| How can we best help drug addicts to overcome | | | | addict is to encourage them to get professional help. |
| addiction? | | | | This will usually involve encouraging them to go to |
| The real secret lies in empowering the drug addict to | | | | treatment of some sort. While treatment is not a |
| take control of their own life. But how do we go | | | | magic bullet, it might be the break that they need in |
| about doing that? It is a hard lesson to learn, but we | | | | order to start a new life in recovery. Sometimes it is |
| cannot directly control another person, no matter | | | | even possible to call around to a few treatment |
| how badly we want for them to not self destruct. | | | | centers and find an opening for someone in advance. |
| Addicts have a tendency to do that and it can be | | | | If the person agrees to go to treatment then you |
| extremely difficult to help them when they are | | | | have some options for them and can direct them |
| resistant to change. | | | | towards the help that they need. |
| The first thing you will want to do when trying to | | | | Sometimes the best you can do for a struggling |
| help an addict is to examine your own behavior. Are | | | | addict is to let them know that help is available and |
| you enabling them to continue using drugs in any | | | | that you will help them when they are ready. Make |
| way? If so, then you need to change your own | | | | sure that you both understand that any help given |
| behavior first, so that you are not sabotaging their | | | | will be on your terms, not on their terms. If you allow |
| recovery efforts. For example, if their drug use lands | | | | them to make their own terms then it is not really |
| them in jail, and you automatically bail them out of | | | | "help" at all, they will just manipulate and try to |
| jail, then you are probably enabling them. How? | | | | continue using or getting money. The moment of |
| Because you are denying them the natural | | | | surrender is when the addict is willing to accept help |
| consequences of their using. If you are protecting | | | | on someone else's terms. This is how you know |
| them from the consequences that they should be | | | | when they are truly ready for change and are no |
| experiencing then you are not helping them, you are | | | | longer just manipulating and playing games. When |
| actually making things worse. Another example is if | | | | they ask for help and also ask for direction, then |
| they are up all night partying and you call in sick to | | | | they are ready to make a real change in their life. |
| work for them so that they do not lose their job. | | | | Getting the addict to this point is not easy and there |
| Doing things such as this might seem helpful at first, | | | | isn't much that you can do that will directly push |
| but you are actually enabling them to continue to use | | | | them towards the point of surrender. The important |
| drugs. If they are going to change their behavior in | | | | thing is that you stop enabling them and this will allow |
| the long run then they are going to have to fall down | | | | them to reach the point of surrender on their own. |
| and skin their knee a few times. Don't deny them | | | | The less you enable them the faster they will get |
| these natural falls. | | | | there. |
| The second thing you might do in order to help an | | | | |