Supporting Yourself While Supporting A Spouse In Treatment
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Watching a beloved spouse go to treatment for a drug or alcohol addiction is both a blessing and a burden. Now that you have helped them, it is time for you to help yourself as well.
Seek Treatment Personally With A Counselor Or Therapist
Watching the love of your life and legally committed partner fall under the grueling pressure of addiction is heartbreaking. Addiction never affects only your spouse, it affects you too. Physically, mentally, and spiritually exhausted, you are in need of rest and restoration as much as your spouse. Taking all the necessary measures to get a spouse for treatment leads them to a path of healing and you at a standstill. Make use of that momentum by starting a program of recovery for yourself and any children which might be involved in the situation.
Working with a counselor or a therapist is helpful in sorting through the many emotions of grief which come up during these times. Grieving the loss of your loved one as you knew them, your marriage and family as it once was, is hard. Addiction is traumatizing and shocking to experience. A therapist can help you sort through deep issues and confront underlying causes of pain, anger, and sadness, in addition to confronting the current issue with your spouse. Counselors are helpful for short term life transitions, like a loved one going to treatment and seeking recovery.
Create A Community Of Support
Supporting your spouse in treatment and supporting a family at home who is less one parent can be a full time job. If there is one overarching message in recovery it is that you are never alone. Al-Anon is a wonderful resource for family members, especially spouses, of addicts and alcoholics. Your children, if old enough, can attend Ala-Teen, which is a similar program for the children of addicts and alcoholics. Additionally, inform your closest most trusted friends and family members on whom you will be able to rely for help and support.
Listen To What Others Have To Say
You know your spouse better than anyone else, because you are their spouse. However, addiction and alcoholism can turn a beloved spouse into a different person whom you don’t know that well. Addiction alters the mind, body, and spirit. It is important to listen to the sage and frequently scientifically backed advice of treatment providers, therapists, and other doctors, as well as members of your recovery community. During these highly emotional times, the perception of others will be less dramatized and more focused on what is truly best for your spouse in their time of greatest need.
Everyone is capable of recovery at Design For Change. Our long term residential treatment programs support family healing through family therapy, marriage counseling, and family programming weekends. For information on our recovery services, call us today at (877) 267-3646.
