Addictions create a number of challenges, not just for the addicted people themselves but for those that they love and care about.
If you have been in a relationship with somebody struggling with addiction, you may be interested in learning how to repair any damage that was done by the addiction. Conversely, if you yourself are in recovery at a drug rehab San Diego, it is vitally important to learn how to build back the relationships that you may have damaged.
How Relationships Can Be Damaged By Addiction
Many different aspects of addiction can adversely influence a relationship.
- Addiction can lead to trust issues. People with serious addictions may lie to their partner or even steal to fund their addiction.
- Addiction can cause people to behave unpredictably. This can lead to dangerous or unpredictable behavior which can impair your ability to form solid relationships.
- Addiction can lead to health problems which can make it challenging for someone to care for you.
How to Heal Damage Done By Addiction
Whether you’re going at it alone or with the help of drug rehab San Diego, it’s important to learn how to build back your relationships.
Here are some of the best things that you can do to help repair damage done by addiction.
- Be patient. Whether you are a recovering user or somebody interested in repairing relationships with someone in recovery, you are going to have to be patient.
- On the side of the person in recovery, it’s important to be patient because trust takes time to build back up. If you have damaged your trust with someone that you care about, they may not be able to build it back up immediately.
- On the other hand, you will also have to be patient if you’re trying to repair a relationship with someone who was addicted to drugs. In recovery, they will be foregoing their primary relationship with drugs or alcohol. This is a time of tremendous change and challenge. It will take time for them to adapt.
- Get educated. It’s important to understand addiction, addictive behaviors, relationships, and other factors related to your addiction. Educating yourself about how and why addiction changes the brain can be instrumental for anybody hoping to repair damaged relationships.
- Practice communication. Communication is one of the most important parts of any relationship. People who are living in active addiction often struggle to communicate effectively. Their addictions often influence the way that they think and act, and in an effort to remain stable, they often compromise their true feelings. Learning how to communicate effectively is the only way that you can repair a damaged relationship.
- Seek support. Both recovering users and people who love and care about them could use support when they’re trying to repair relationships. For recovering users, addiction support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous can be very useful for helping restore life to a higher standard quality.
- There are also support groups for the loved ones of recovering addicts. Groups like Al-Anon help people cope with the addictions of their loved ones. They can teach you how to properly and effectively communicate in a way that will build your relationship back to a healthy level.
- A therapist can help you learn how to build up your communication skills.
Conclusion
Addiction is no easy demon to conquer, even with the help of drug rehab San Diego. Learning how to overcome these challenges and repair relationships is important for anyone who wants to rebuild a happy, healthy life.
