Many people know what’s up with addiction. We are mostly aware of what addiction looks like and what some of the treatment options are. However, what about the recovery process itself? When someone has finally given up their addictive substance, what is to stop them from going back to that substance? This is something that many of us probably don’t think about because we assume it’s easy to stay sober once you are sober. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Once someone is addicted to a substance, it’s very easy to fall back into that cycle of addiction and start the whole process over again. That’s why it’s important that you learn how to be an assistance to those people in your life who may be trying to recover from addiction. Keep reading down below to learn some more about how you can do this.
- Be Curious and Ask Them Questions
You might think that it’s best to avoid the topic of addiction and sobriety altogether. However, one of the worst things you can do is completely shut off the topic of conversation altogether. Sure, there are going to be times that the person in recovery doesn’t want to talk about drugs or their addiction – that’s fine! You should let them know that the door is open for conversation on the topic if they would like to speak about it. And when the time is right, you can ask them questions about what happened and how they are feeling. This is a serious help in the recovery process as it allows them to process how they are feeling and be more open about the topic.
- Do What You Would Always Do
This is one of the most important tips on this list. No person who is in recovery wants to feel like things are weird or different, just because they are in recovery. You should strive to do what you always do whenever you’re around this person. Just be normal and act like you would if addiction were not in the picture. This will help things get back to normal. And that sense of normality is a crucial part of a healthy recovery process for any past addict.
- Be Willing to Have Misunderstandings
If you’re afraid of saying or doing the wrong thing about a person who’s in recovery with the help of Ibogaine or any other treatment, then don’t! You’re only going to come off as awkward or indifferent if you avoid a topic of conversation or avoid doing something if you just don’t want to tread on the addiction territory. Everyone is human and it’s completely fine to have misunderstandings about the concept of addiction or what is happening in your loved one’s life. It’s best to make these mistakes and have them correct you than seem like you don’t care at all.
- Don’t Get Codependent
Next, you should not think it is your fault if your loved one relapses. It’s true that upwards of 90% of former addicts are going to relapse to some level in their first four years of sobriety. However, this is most likely not going to be your fault. As we mentioned above, we are all humans. This means that even addicts are going to have trouble with their sobriety and could find it easy to go into relapse. This has nothing to do with you and is completely personal to them, so you should not blame yourself.
- Be Flawed Too
One of the most important points to understand is that someone who admits to you that he or she is addicted or recovering is admitting a deep flaw. He or she is getting super personal with you and that means you should be willing to get super personal with them. Be sure to let them know that you have your flaws as well. Nobody is perfect and it’s much more comfortable when you’re around other people who have similar flaws.
And there you have it! The recovery process from addiction is nothing easy. In fact, it’s probably one of the hardest things to go through in life. However, with a proper support system, recovery from addiction can be much more manageable and can build very strong relationships.
