Over
20 million people are struggling with drug- or alcohol problems, but
only about 2 million of them receive treatment. Why?
One of the reasons has to do with our view of the person with an addiction.
Many people put labels on the person; he/she has a bad character and
ought to straighten up. This label is also transmitted onto the
families; “what kind of family let this happen?” Relatives are
often questioned by outsiders, like friends, colleagues or neighbors.
These “third parties” may also have a variety of advices for the
families, for example: "Make sure he obtains a hobby in order to
be detached from the alcohol/drugs!" Yes, if only it were that
easy to make someone recover from an illness. The stigma of addiction
prevents so many people from seeking help, just because of the fear
of being labeled by others!
Addiction is defined by the American Society of Addiction Medicine as a "primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory, and related circuitry." Addiction changes the structure of the brain and its ability to function. Despite this, many people still look at alcohol and drug addiction as a moral dilemma.
Karen
is 62 years old and the mother of the now sober 39-year-old Marcus.
He's been clean for many
years, but it's not until now that she've begun to talk about what
she experienced during the time of his addiction. She was always
afraid of what others would think of her. It made her quiet and she
suffered a lot more than she had to. For there is help to be given
out there.
Denial, blame, anger and bitterness are all common attributes in families that are affected by the disease of addiction. It is often uncomfortable for families to talk to their friends and/or relatives about the problem, and they are often afraid to seek support. But talking about it is very important when it comes to their own well-being, provided that they get the opportunity to talk to non-judgmental people. If a person is judged during the conversation, there's a risk that he/she feels even more shame and therefore gets even more isolated.
Denial, blame, anger and bitterness are all common attributes in families that are affected by the disease of addiction. It is often uncomfortable for families to talk to their friends and/or relatives about the problem, and they are often afraid to seek support. But talking about it is very important when it comes to their own well-being, provided that they get the opportunity to talk to non-judgmental people. If a person is judged during the conversation, there's a risk that he/she feels even more shame and therefore gets even more isolated.
Karen
felt, like so many others, a strong shame in talking about her sons
addiction with others, especially with all the rumors going on about
him. She thought that they would judge her as being a bad mother, and
it happened many times that she defended him in front of others or
denied that he had a problem. This
further strengthens her isolation and the feeling that no one
understood; she was alone to live in a situation like this.
People form opinions based on the information that they have on hand. If we don't educate people about the nature of addiction, what causes it and research in order to find better treatments, nothing is ever going to change. No one will benefit on clinging on to old stigmas and rigid beliefs. If these beliefs are maintained, it'll take longer time for people suffering from addiction to seek help, or they may not even get to that point, and in the worst cases, they will die due to the disease. And many close relatives, like Karen, will always be afraid to seek support for their own sake, although there's millions of people around them who are suffering, just like them.
Do you have any questions or thoughts on the subject? Or anything else you want to talk about? Please write a comment below, or contact me at: info@carinabang.se
TAKE CARE!
/Carina
Source:
http://www.drugfree.org/new-data-show-millions-of-americans-with-alcohol-and-drug-addiction-could-benefit-from-health-care-r/
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