Getting Your Spouse Into Drug Rehab Do’s & Don’ts

Substance use disorders affect biological functioning, dominating the brain’s reward system, affecting emotional regulation, motivation, impulse control, and pleasure-seeking behaviors. The brain and body become dependent on an outside substance to create feelings of happiness and well-being—and, at advanced stages of the disease, to simply maintain the ability to function. These groups meet weekly to provide support for those affected by a loved one who is struggling with addiction. Support groups provide a safe space to healthily cope through negative emotions. This can lead to a toxic pattern in which the codependent partner cares for and enables the loved one’s challenges. Thus, making it easier for the loved one to continue partaking in destructive behavior.

For Spouses

Whether you’re addicted to drinking or technology — whatever your vice is — you can overcome it. Sitting in a room with other people who feel overwhelmed by their own or someone else’s addiction is a different experience from sitting home alone with the same problems. Shared suffering creates a power greater than ourselves that restores sanity. The insane perspective is that you are alone in your suffering, that your problems are unique. In reality, you are one of very many suffering in exactly the same way. You can choose to suffer alone (which is a good way to add self-pity to your problems), or you can choose to enter a wider community of similar souls.

Tips for Living Life with a Spouse in Recovery

To shed some light on this, we took this question to our experts. Authors John Gray and Charles J. Orlando, former Relationship Help Doctor Rhoberta Shaler, Shannon Rios Paulsen LMFT, and Jennifer Maddox LCSW discuss ways that you can you can actively fight this feeling. They stress that even if your situation seems bleak at the time, you can beat your addictive behavior. Reoccurrence of use may happen to people who use drugs and can happen even years after not taking the substance. More than anything, reoccurrence of use may be a sign that more treatment or a different method is needed. A routine review of one’s treatment plan may be necessary to determine if another method could be more effective.

Coping When You’re Married to a Recovering Addict

The ultimate goal is to encourage and facilitate your partner’s recovery and health, without shielding them from the repercussions of their addictive behaviors. While you’re learning about addiction, detaching with love, and setting and enforcing boundaries, you can stage a drug intervention for your spouse, as well. An intervention is a carefully planned process designed to help your spouse realize they have a problem using and abusing drugs. You can plan a one-on-one intervention by yourself, but the most effective interventions are usually led by a trained intervention specialist. The interventionist can help guide the conversation and make sure everyone communicates with respect and honesty. An interventionist can also answer questions you may have about drug rehab programs and addiction treatment.

• Many people who complete drug rehab and return home still face challenges as they transition from a life of addiction into a life of recovery and sobriety.
• Thankfully, there’s a lot of support out there for people living with an addicted spouse.
• The spouse of an addict or alcoholic can play a number of different roles not only during the active substance abuse and addiction stage, but also during recovery.
• Here, we will explore tips and strategies to communicate effectively with your addicted partner.
• Before turning away from exploring a twelve-step program, consider that belief in God is only one form of spiritual experience.

As with any marriage, it’s essential that you take time to be together and reconnect. Encouraging your partner to pursue their dreams, hobbies, and interests is a great thing to do at any time, but especially when they are in recovery. These changes can be long-term or short-term and also expose the person to various physical complications like cardiovascular diseases, death, etc. “Put your own oxygen mask on first before helping others.” You won’t be able to help your partner if you can’t help yourself. Call 24/7 to have a discussion with one of our treatment professionals the call is completely free. Admission Line and explanation of convenient private phone and free prescreening.

Don’t compound their self-doubt

There is a very fine line between supporting the partner and enabling them. It is human nature to provide care and support, especially to the ones close to us. Drug addiction, in the simplest terms is the strong compulsion to get and use substances, even though a number of undesirable and dangerous consequences are likely to occur.

Many people stumble when they hear Alcoholics Anonymous and Al-Anon are spiritual programs. The word “spiritual” is misinterpreted to mean a requirement to believe in God. This misconception reduces their interest in exploring whether these programs could relieve their suffering. Before turning away from exploring a twelve-step program, drug addiction recovery consider that belief in God is only one form of spiritual experience. Motivational enhancement therapy uses strategies to make the most of people’s readiness to change their behavior and enter treatment. Opioid use disorder (OUD) is defined as a problematic pattern of opioid use that causes significant impairment or distress.

Of course, studies have also shown that substance abuse and marital unhappiness can feed off one another, causing a cycle that will continue unless someone makes hard choices. Understanding the nature of addiction helps you focus on the problem rather than the person. This way, you know that it’s not your fault when bad things start happening (old, harmful habits, and even relapse). Addiction is episodic, which means there may be a few bumps along the way.