They are no longer cheerful or happy. They are lying to you and distancing themselves from their friends and family.
They are short on cash and they have gotten into legal trouble because of their addiction. It is clear that your loved one has a problem, but what should you do? Helping a loved one with addiction is no easy task, but at Banyan Philadelphia, we want to guide you through this difficult situation.
How to Help an Addict
Knowing how to help an addict can be unclear, but our rehab center in Philadelphia has worked with the loved ones of many addicts who have worked through this same problem.
Educate yourself. If you suspect your loved one is abusing meth, look up the signs of meth use. The more you know about addiction, the better off you will be in getting your loved one help.
Recognize that they have a problem. It is easy to brush their bad habits off, but it is difficult to recognize that someone you love may have a problem. If you suspect that your loved one has a serious addiction, you are probably right. You know them best, so if you suspect something is wrong, it may be true. That being said, you need to identify all possible signs of addiction in your loved one before you reach the conclusion that they need help.
Do not enable them. Often the loved ones of addicts will enable this bad behavior without even realizing it. Do not make excuses for their behavior or try to hide their addiction any longer. While you may be trying to help, you are only hurting the addict more as well as hurting yourself.
Talk to them. While it may be tempting to yell at them because you are feeling frustrated, doing so may cause them to abuse drugs more. Addiction is often related to mental health problems so when the addict is feeling down, they are likely to turn to a bottle to cope. Try to establish an open means of communication so that they feel comfortable discussing their issues with you or turning to you when they are feeling tempted.
Most importantly, get them professional help. If they are constantly using cocaine, find them a cocaine addiction treatment center. If they are drinking alcohol at 9 in the morning on a regular basis, they need help. If they are popping pills and can’t seem to stop, PHP treatment is probably a good option for them. While many addicts may be resistant to the idea and you may not know how to help an addict who doesn’t want help, do not sit back and watch them spiral out of control. Do everything you can to get them help; they will thank you one day.
If you are worried about your loved one, call us now at 888-280-4763. We will answer your questions and give you more information about the various programs at our addiction treatment center in Philadelphia.
