saintmdterps
Falling feels like flying til you hit the ground.
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That point is one of the biggest obstacles for an addict to overcome; Society's perception that he/she is simply "weak-willed", which is not true.ETA: I'm really late to this conversation, so don't be too hard on me if you guys have already discussed this ad nauseam.
I've had a few family members and friends addicted to alcohol. I'm not a mental health professional at all, but hear me out.
I think too many people looking at the problem all wrong. When folks look at those who have these addictions as simply "not wanting to change" or "being stubborn", etc., they narrow it down to a "will" problem. As in, he/she doesn't have the will to quit but it's because he/she's selfish, or greedy. I know it's really easy to get frustrated with people like this but ultimately it's up to people without these DISEASES (because yes, addiction IS a disease) to realize that they don't have a clear mind to work with when they're doing these things. They can't just abstain from something because there is a real, physical chemical imbalance in their brain that will make them suffer if they do not feed that addiction.
What this particular person needs is HELP, not isolation IMHO. Of course if they are endangering someone, yes, by all means one would want to distance themselves from that situation. But being there for a person through this tough time and not kicking them out or giving the "tough love" treatment (which seldom works, btw) is IMO the best way to fix this. Throwing someone out will only make the problem worse and the person will not ONLY feel as though they are a raging, uncontrollable pillhead who doesn't have control of themselves BUT one that is all that AND has a family that has given up on them.
Nobody should be kicked to the curb or given up on because they have a problem they can't attack with a full arsenal. You see time and time again more success stories than not from people that go to rehab and are surrounded by people who genuinely care about their well being, peers that share many of the same (or worse) hardships and family or friends that make themselves available to them for support. This is how people recuperate.
I'm not claiming to know some means to an end way of dealing with addiction because I don't. There are so many people with so many complex and varying issues it'd make my head spin. I acknowledge that and respect that I don't know half of what many are experiencing. But I've seen a family member and a few friends given the "tough love" treatment, and i've seen all of them regress rapidly during that time.
just my .02