7 Common Characteristics of Adult Children of Alcoholics
Data shows that more than 11% of children live with an adult who is addicted to a substance, nearly one in four U.S. children know an adult addict, and about 28 million children live with alcoholics. While levels of substance use, and their impact on family hierarchy and relationships vary considerably, Children of Alcoholics
How to Maintain Your Sobriety Over the Holidays
For most of us, the holidays are a time of celebration and spending time with family and loved ones, or simply enjoying life with friends. But, for those of us recovering from an alcohol use disorder, the holidays, from Christmas to New Year’s and all the parties and events in between, can be more
What to Say to an Addict in Denial
Watching someone struggling with an addiction is a difficult and painful thing, especially when their substance use is hurting family relationships, study, career goals, and finances. This is even more true when that person fails to even realize they have a problem, instead either ignoring setbacks or attempting to push the blame for failure
7 Steps to Take After Finding Your Kid’s Drug Stash
Whether you’ve suspected it for some time, or discovered it by accident, finding evidence of your child’s drug use is never pleasant, or easy. However, the steps you take after finding your kid’s drug stash are crucial to their future health and happiness. Your approach to their mistakes and possible addiction could mean the
How to Deal with the Grief of a Loved One’s Overdose
I had slept in that Saturday morning. When I got up, I saw that my husband hadn’t come to bed at all, again. As I made my way downstairs to get some coffee, I noticed that the house was strangely quiet. He should have been awake by now or had at least been awake
Emotional Sobriety – Do I Have It?
I had no idea that sobriety was anything more than getting clean. I thought, “I stop drinking, and I get my life back.” I quickly realized, however, that abstinence was only the first step towards my happily ever after. Suddenly, I was being repeatedly slapped in the face with all of these emotions that
When a Child and Parent Share an Addiction
More than 24 million Americans suffer from some form of substance use disorder, and as a result, nearly 25% of children are exposed to substance abusers and addicts at least once during their childhood. These children then go on to become more prone to developing addictions themselves, either as a means of coping, lashing out at
Substance Abuse and Divorce
Substance abuse has become an epidemic in the United States, to the point where over 24.5 million people struggle with some form of addiction. While addicts suffer from an illness, the people in their lives including family and children suffer as well. Studies show that nearly 25% of American children are exposed to substance
7 Symptoms of Codependency
Codependence is a dysfunctional relationship in which one person is unhealthily reliant on caring for someone else – pushing them to enable that person in drug or alcohol use. While almost no one plans to be codependent, it works much like an addiction in that it slowly builds up until a small thing becomes
How Do You Forgive an Addict?
Whether you live with an addict, a friend is addicted, or a close family member, you have likely been hurt by them. Addiction causes people to lie, cheat, steal, and manipulate to get money and leniency for their substance use, and this can be harmful to everyone around them. If you live with the