How to Help Someone with Addiction: Guide to Supporting
Clinical Review by:
Published:
Oct 6, 2024
,
06:54 p.m.
ET
Being a support system for someone who is suffering from an addiction can be emotionally taxing and bring up complicated feelings. You may not know how to approach someone regarding their addiction or what steps can be taken to help them get the treatment they need. Therefore, this article can be used as a guide for friends and family who want to support someone in their addiction recovery process.
Helping someone realize their addiction problem
Sometimes a person realizing that they have a problem is the hardest step of helping someone with an addiction. Addictive actions and behaviors may seem obvious or problematic to us as an outsider, but harder to identify when someone is living this way on a daily basis. When approaching someone about their behaviors, it is important to convey empathy and a desire to help, rather than judgmental about their addiction.
There are also tools available that can be recommended to someone to help evaluate their behavior and bring the reality of their addiction to the forefront. Birches Health offers multiple free self-assessments that cover a multitude of potential addictive behaviors. Some of the assessments include:
Discussing treatment options with someone addicted
After someone has recognized that they may have an addiction, the next step is to determine what kind of treatment may be necessary for them. While someone may be willing to admit they are struggling with an addiction, entering treatment can be an intimidating and scary step to take.
As a support in someone's recovery process, remaining firm and persistent that formalized treatment is necessary can help encourage someone to get the help they need. Being knowledgeable about what types of treatment are available for their addiction can help them feel less overwhelmed about their options. Offer to help them research what support is available in their area and ask what role they would like you to play in their search for treatment.
Treatment type and length will depend on the severity of someone's addiction. Speaking with a medical professional can help narrow down what level of intervention is necessary. Treatment types can include:
Inpatient
Partial Hospitalization
Intensive Outpatient Programs (IOP)
Outpatient services
Individual, group or family therapy
Mutual support or self-help groups
Virtual therapy services
Supporting throughout the addiction treatment process
Helping someone who has an addiction may be difficult but having a plan for this process can make you feel more prepared to support them through the treatment process.
Empathize Through Educating
Educating yourself on what an addiction entails, is the first step in supporting someone through addiction treatment. It is important to recognize the signs of addiction and what someone's experience may be like through an addiction. This can help you remain empathetic through the recovery process.
Offering Support
Many times someone with an addiction may feel like they have no one on their side or rooting for them. Letting someone know that you care about them and will support them through their recovery journey can be a motivating factor in their treatment.
Be Encouraging
While your loved one may be hesitant to get help for their addiction at first, it is important to remain encouraging and persistent about them getting help. This should be done with kindness and patience to show that their well-being is your main priority.
Taking Care of Yourself
It can be easy to forget about your own needs when you’re supporting someone who is going through addiction treatment. It is important to prioritize your own needs so that your emotional and physical health are maintained as well.
Helping someone avoid addiction relapse
Having a relapse prevention plan is a crucial part of addiction recovery. Most addiction treatment programs will help someone come up with a plan that identifies the triggers for their addiction and a plan to address what to do when that happens. As someone's support in their addiction recovery, be aware of their triggers and relapse prevention plan. It is not your responsibility to babysit someones every move during recovery, but offering your continued support will be a critical part of long term recovery. Helping someone avoid relapse can look like frequent check-ins, joining them in therapy or meetings, or offering other support like childcare or meals while they are focusing on recovery efforts.
