The Importance of Family Education in Addiction Recovery and Support
Addiction and substance abuse are heavily stigmatized in our society. It’s to the point that many don’t want to talk about these topics, as if speaking of it will cause it to manifest in their loved ones. To spread awareness, the United States government launched quite a few programs to educate children about addiction and substance abuse. The takeaway from this, however, was that only “losers” or “bad people” use drugs. This further stigmatized addiction, making many afraid to reach out for help for fear of being judged or belittled. Such fear can be present in families, especially ones with a history of substance abuse and addiction. For them, it can feel like there isn’t anything that can be done.
There is something that can be done to improve the lives of yourself and your family, and that’s education. Education about why addiction happens, who is at risk, and how to get help are all vital in improving lives. This information doesn’t just help families understand what is happening, it can also prevent harm or death. The more we are educated as a society, the better we are at helping people who need it.
Understanding the Family’s Influence on Addiction Recovery
Families can greatly influence addiction recovery, good or bad. Some families work to change their home environment to support and encourage recovery in their loved ones. Others may refuse to change and even jeopardize their loved one’s recovery. It’s important to understand how powerful this influence can be and how to recognize if this influence is toxic or harmful.
The Interconnectedness of Family Dynamics and Substance Use
Substance abuse and addiction are conditions that often run in families. It’s estimated that 21 million children in the United States have lived with a parent who misused substances, with more than two million children living with a parent with a substance use disorder (SUD).
This is due to many factors, such as the environment the family lives in, generational trauma, and poor coping skills. As children grow, they look to adults in positions of authority to teach them life skills. This is usually the child’s immediate family members, such as parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles. When they see a parent abuse substances like alcohol to deal with stress, they will assume that this is the right stress reaction. Without meaning to, immediate family members can accidentally train their children to turn to substance abuse as a means to manage their mental health.
Recognizing Patterns That Contribute to Addiction
Some noticeable patterns have been observed to increase the likelihood of addiction within a family. These patterns are:
- Exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), such as neglect and abuse
- Living in an environment that is dangerous, stressful, or induces feelings of hopelessness
- Untreated familial trauma, which can become generational trauma
- Refusing to discuss or acknowledge problems in the family, such as untreated mental health disorders or substance abuse
- Demonstration of unhealthy coping skills (substance abuse) to deal with stress or other difficulties
- Serious chronic medical or mental health issues within the family, such as cancer, chronic pain, or depression
The Emotional Impact on Family Members
Those living in a family with a pattern of addiction often feel trapped or helpless. They may be convinced addiction is their future and there is little that can be done to change it. It creates an environment of fear as family members do their best to not acknowledge the problem. In extreme cases, it can reach a point where children feel obligated to take care of or cover for their guardians, which robs them of their childhood.
For families without patterns of addiction, having a family member who is struggling with substance abuse and addiction can feel like a shock. It’s common for these family members to blame themselves, or seek other avenues of blame, rather than accept their loved one’s addiction. They may even inadvertently enable the addiction in a misguided effort to “help” their loved one. This only makes the addiction worse, as the one with it is shielded from consequences. If allowed to continue, the breakdown of the family unit is a real possibility.
Benefits of Educating the Whole Family About Addiction
Addiction education is so important because it can inspire real and lasting changes in one’s family. It can open up one’s eyes to the problems in their families and show them what healthy support looks like.
Empowering Families With Knowledge and Resources
Many people don’t seek help because they simply don’t know where to start. Addiction education fulfills this need by teaching them what to do should they or a loved one struggle with addiction. Remember, many people get their views of addiction treatment from movies, which often exaggerate or outright spread misinformation. Exposing the truth reduces the anxiety around seeking treatment, and encourages families to be open-minded.
Addiction education teaches families what the early signs of addiction are, and when it’s important to reach out for help. The more a person knows, the quicker they can seek help.
Enhancing Support Through Shared Understanding
Addiction can be isolating, even when you are surrounded by loved ones. For someone who has never experienced addiction, it can be difficult to understand or empathize with someone who does. Addiction education bridges this gap and helps people mutually understand each other. Through this understanding comes support and encouragement, which are vital to keeping someone in recovery.
Promoting Healing for All Family Members
The most important aspect of addiction education is that it proves that healing is possible. For those who have been trapped in the cycle of addiction, proof that they too can overcome their struggles can be just what they need to try.
Addiction is not just hard on the individual; it’s also hard on the family. It can be traumatizing to watch a loved one struggle with addiction. For that reason, the family unit needs to get the help they need to heal. With addiction education, they gain the knowledge to do just that and hope that anything is possible.
Core Elements of Effective Family Education Programs
Addiction education is not just reading a book or listening to a lecture. It’s a dynamic program that utilizes several elements to be effective. Those who choose to participate in addiction education find themselves on a course to not just improve their skills, but bolster their families as a whole.
Communication Skills and Strategies
Being able to effectively communicate is a skill that isn’t often taught in schools. How to properly argue without being hurtful, for example, is just as important as calmly communicating your needs. If a family cannot communicate with each other, then they can’t express when something is wrong or ask for help. A lack of communication skills can also make it easy to not notice when a family member is struggling until it’s too late.
Learning communication skills involves training in listening as well. The power to listen is often the catalyst in convincing someone that they need addiction treatment. Families are taught the best strategies to improve their communication skills based on their needs as a family unit.
Setting Healthy Boundaries
Boundaries are important not just for those in recovery but for life in general as well. Nobody likes having their rights and feelings walked all over. The lack of boundaries can result in hurt feelings at best and being completely cut out at worst. People in recovery may need specific boundaries to be upheld to protect their recovery, such as not bringing them around substances or pressuring them to use again. Violating these boundaries puts the individual at risk of relapse.
Sometimes the lack of healthy boundaries is a catalyst behind addiction, especially if the individual was a target of beratement or harassment. To allow for healthier and supportive families, learning how to set and maintain healthy boundaries is a critical part of addiction education.
Coping Mechanisms for Stress and Triggers
Those who recover from addiction may continue to experience cravings long after treatment is complete. When paired with stress or other addiction triggers, it can be difficult to resist giving in. Relapses often happen because the individual was overcome by stress or was confronted with a strong addiction trigger. Part of the treatment involves learning what these triggers are and developing appropriate coping mechanisms.
Families that often turn to substances to “relax” in response to stress are actually self-medicating. Self-medicating has a high risk of developing into SUD and addiction. So families are taught how to manage their stress and mitigate addiction triggers as part of addiction education. Instead of turning to alcohol to deal with stress, they may go exercise or paint a picture. Those confronted by triggers such as smells and environments can gain the power to leave and enjoy a walk or contact a friend.
Steps to Involve Your Family in the Recovery Process
The best way to involve your family in the recovery process is to contact an accredited mental health and addiction treatment facility, such as Alpha Behavioral Health. Having the guidance of mental health care professionals can ease the burden of trying to go at it alone. These professionals can offer advice and help your family come together. Therapies such as family therapy only serve to help strengthen bonds, air out problems needing to be addressed, and foster understanding.
Initiating Open Conversations About Addiction
Having neutral ground is important for opening conversations about addiction. Choose a time or place that is comfortable for all participants, such as the living room after a good meal, or at the office of a mental health care professional. Reiterate that this is not a place for judgment, only education and discussion.
Sometimes it can be hard to get family to gather for a conversation, but don’t give up. Let them know how important this is for you. If you are still struggling to get your family to be willing to sit down and talk, a mental health care professional can give you advice.
Encouraging Participation in Support Groups
Support groups can be a wonderful way to get support and learn more about addiction. Remember to tell your family members that they don’t have to talk during support group meetings, but they must listen. For information about support groups in your area, check your local library, hospitals, mental health care clinics, and treatment facilities. Some support groups are even held online, which is inclusive for family members with mobility issues or social anxiety.
Seeking Professional Guidance as a Family Unit
It cannot be overstated just how important professional guidance is for families. Without it, it can be difficult to know where to start – and how. At Alpha Behavioral Health, families can contact us for advice on how to proceed or to find resources when it comes to families with teens and young adults. It is always okay to seek professional help, no matter how big or small the problem is.
Overcoming Challenges in Family Education and Support
Attempting to get families to participate in addiction education and support is not without its challenges. Understanding how to meet or mitigate these challenges is important to encourage participation. Though some members of the family can be stubborn, there are ways to deal with the problem without causing unnecessary strife.
Addressing Resistance to Participation
Some family members will choose not to participate for several reasons. They may expect that admitting that they have a problem will get them locked up, like a horror-movie mental institution. Others may simply convince themselves that there is no problem because it’s too painful to admit that they do. Some might just not know what to do and fear that they will look like a fool in front of family or mental health care professionals. This is especially true for teens and young adults, but they also fear having their thoughts and feelings ignored and invalidated.
The best thing to do is to be patient, even with the most stubborn of people. Meet their resistance with love and acceptance. In some cases, it can be helpful to educate them on what happens in mental health care instead of allowing them to continue to fear. Teens and young adults may need individual counseling first before they gain the confidence to participate in a group.
Managing Relapse and Preventative Measures
To prevent a relapse, an individual must use the coping skills they learned to deal with their cravings and addiction triggers. Families can make their ability to cope easier or harder, depending on the approaches they take. One such approach is not using substances in front of a recovered family member or bringing them to places where substance use is encouraged. That may mean that family members will have to reduce their substance use, especially if they are around their recovered family members.
Some can be resistant to such changes, and it’s important to instill just how vital they are in helping someone stay in recovery. This ties back into making and maintaining healthy boundaries, as they are important in knowing how your actions may impact your loved one’s life. If a family member refuses to respect boundaries or acts in a way that is deliberately sabotaging their loved one’s recovery, they need to know that they may be cut out to protect them.
Of course, the goal is to help the family work together to help not just their loved one but themselves. However, in some cases, there is little choice but to do what you must to protect your loved one’s recovery, especially if that family member is no longer safe.
Sustaining Long-Term Recovery as a Family
Anyone can have a long-term recovery if the family is willing to work together. The skills learned in addiction treatment carry over to daily life and can have a visible cascade effect. This effect is a positive one and teaches other family members the value of professional treatment and continuous mental health care. Of course, families don’t have to maintain recovery alone, as mental health care professionals are always available. Aftercare programs, like the Alpha Launch program, and transitional living programs exist to not just help the individual, but also their families learn to live with their new normal.
As our understanding of addiction grows, so too do we understand the people affected by it. By opening up our minds and hearts, we find ourselves prepared to give it our all for those most in need of help. Sometimes the help that is needed is within the family, and it takes courage to address it. However, with the right professional help, you can face any challenge.
Addiction takes a lot of effort and time to recover from successfully. Understanding the nature of addiction is essential to ensure long-lasting recovery. This understanding allows families to understand their loved ones better and take steps to protect their recovery. The more you know about addiction, the better prepared you are to provide compassionate and encouraging support. That’s why at Alpha Behavioral Health, located in Austin, TX, family participation is essential to helping teens and young adults recover from addiction. Education about addiction isn’t just a way to help your loved one. It also dismantles stigma and encourages those most needing help to seek it. To learn more about our addiction treatment programs, call (833) 257-4218 today.
