How to Provide Healthy Support to a Loved One in Recovery
If your loved one is on the path to recovery from addiction, you may be wondering how to best support that person, while also avoiding enabling or codependency. How can you provide the right kind of support in order to promote your loved one’s health and recovery?
The Effects of Social Support
A study reported on NCBI showed that social support is linked to a higher quality of life among substance users, and that the desire for a better life is often what drives them to seek recovery. Just the outlook and opinions of the individual’s social network can make a drastic difference in the path they take to recovery.
It is important that the people they surround themselves with are positive and uplifting about the idea of rehab and recovery, as an individual in a negative atmosphere might not feel so incline to seek recovery. As their friend, you can provide a positive and optimistic view of recovery.
You may not even realize the impact that your supportive words can have on their future choices, but it does make a tremendous difference.
Keep Up with Goals
Be positive and optimistic about your loved one’s recovery.
The second thing you can do is remind them of their own individual goals and the reasons they chose to better their life in the first place. NIDA suggests that you remind your loved one how much courage it takes to undergo the recovery process, and that you will be there for them through all the hard work that lies ahead.
You can help them stay focused and on track by reminding them of what their life can be like after recovery, and how much they can gain from a healthier lifestyle. It may take a lot of time, and several attempts, but remind them that this is okay, as any step towards recovery is incredible progress. Just as long as they keep trying, they can make it through in the end.
Avoid Codependence
It is important that while you support the recovery of your loved one, you avoid becoming codependent. What this means is that their addiction should not dictate your life as well, and you should not begin to live your life catering to their needs.
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If you allow their lifestyle to shape yours as well, then this can make them slip into further dependency and hinder their recovery. You can be loving and supportive without catering to the addiction, which is tremendously important for their health as well as your own.
This may be a difficult balance to figure out, but it is something that should be taken into great consideration when a loved one is suffering from addiction.
If you are walking through this process with a loved one and have questions or concerns, just call 800-481-6320Who Answers? to speak with a caring specialist who can guide you through the next steps. As you provide support and encouragement to the addict, it is just as important that you are receiving support and advice through this time, in order to maintain your own well-being.
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