Alcoholic Parents
It is never easy to have an alcoholic in the family. If you are the child of alcoholic parents, then you know the struggles of alcoholism in a special way. But even if your parents have been drinking all of your life, there is hope that they can change. Learn how to deal with an alcoholic parent appropriately and you may be the single most important factor in getting them the help that they need.
Helping Your Parent
Despite the problems they may have caused you because of their alcoholism, you love your parents and want to help them. Knowing how to help an alcoholic parent most effectively involves first dealing with yourself. If you are struggling with addiction, too, you will not be in a good position to help your parents overcome their addiction. The first and most important thing you can do in effectively dealing with alcoholic parent issues is to enter recovery yourself if you need to. Your parents may even be inspired by your example to get assistance themselves.
After you recover from your addiction, it is important to confront your alcoholic parent with the truth of their problem. Depending on your relationship with your parents, this can occur through a series of loving conversations or through a well-designed alcohol intervention. Explain how their addiction has affected you and them negatively, and encourage them to seek addiction counseling. At BetterAddictionCare, we can help you find a good treatment solution from our recovery network, as we work with many traditional or alternative rehab programs.
Facing the Consequences
Sadly, not all alcoholic parents respond to their children’s loving pleas to get help the first time they are uttered. If your parents are unwilling to listen and seek help, it may be necessary to impose certain consequences. Pledging to cut back your involvement with your parents can be a strong motive for them to get help, and many have found that doing so is the only way of effectively dealing with alcoholic parent issues in a way that finally motivates them to get help. Remember, you are doing this for their and your own good. Be gentle but firm and you may be amazed that they are suddenly willing to get sober. Once they’re ready, our addiction treatment specialists are here to help you find drug and alcohol treatment assistance for your parents. You can help your parents start healing when you call today or fill out our contact form for more information on the professional alcohol treatment programs that we work with.