It is rare that someone would go to treatment once and then never drink again. More often, people try to quit or cut back over time, experience recurrences, learn from them, and then continue on their recovery journey. For many, continued follow-up with a treatment provider is critical for overcoming alcohol problems. The provider can help adjust the treatment plan and aid long-term recovery. More often than not, someone with a drinking problem will choose alcohol over any other option they are given, resulting in more stress, frustration and pain.
Don’t offer an ultimatum.
Your loved one’s addiction may even be so overwhelming that it seems easier to ignore it and pretend that nothing is wrong. But in the long run denying it will only bring more harm to you, your loved one with the problem, and the rest of your family. If you’ve been covering up for your loved one and not talking about their addiction openly for a long time, it may seem daunting to reach out for help. However, it’s important to make sure you’re getting the support you need as well.
Alcohol Rehab Aftercare and Ongoing Support
- If you relapse after completing 90 days of treatment within an AAC program, they can return for 30 days of complimentary treatment.
- Remember that relapse is part of recovery for many individuals, and your loved one may be one of them.
- As well as reducing their sense of isolation, your loved one can receive advice on staying sober and unburden themselves to others who understand their struggles firsthand.
- When helping an alcoholic stop drinking, making them feel shame or lowering their self-esteem will do no good in a situation such as this.
- Gather resources from doctors, counselors, inpatient alcohol rehab, and outpatient centers.
Treating alcoholism isn’t easy, and it doesn’t always work the first time around. Often a person has been contemplating abstinence for some time, yet couldn’t get sober on their own. Don’t blame yourself if the first intervention isn’t successful.
Anyone with a desire to stop drinking is welcome, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, income or profession. People can also make contact with an AUD counselor who is local to their area and can provide therapy and support. The main goal of an intervention is to help the person start treatment. If during the conversation, the person becomes violent or they make threats to harm themselves or others, the person with them is best calling 911. It is important that the conversation happens when the person a friend or relative wants to help is sober. They are best to pick a place that is private, safe, and comfortable for both parties.
As well as reducing their sense of isolation, your loved one can receive advice on staying sober and unburden themselves to others who understand their struggles firsthand. Studies suggest that the social connection what are whippets drugs provided by these groups can help your loved one build confidence in their own ability to avoid alcohol in social situations and support their sobriety. Recovery from alcoholism or a drinking problem can be a bumpy road. About half the people who complete alcohol abuse treatment for the first time stay alcohol-free, while the other half relapse and return to drinking at some point.
Treatments Led by Health Care Providers
While the addict is the only person who can stop their own alcohol use, loved ones can still take certain steps to try and curb addictive behaviors. If you’re exploring how to help an alcoholic stop drinking, the following methods may help bring light to your loved one’s drinking or drug problem. Here are some tips on how to help an alcoholic stop drinking. Before you do anything, it’s important to know whether your friend or loved one has an alcohol addiction. Alcohol use disorder, or alcoholism, is more than just drinking too much from time to time.
All you can do is encourage the person to recommit to overcoming their drinking problem and support them as they try again. If you recognize the warning signs that your loved one has a problem with alcohol, the first step to helping them is to learn all you can about addiction and alcohol abuse. Just as some people with diabetes or asthma may have flare-ups of addiction art therapy ideas their disease, a return to drinking can be seen as a temporary setback to full recovery and not as a failure.
In some cases, advisors may also be individuals who’ve gone through treatment themselves, such as the admissions navigators at American Addiction Centers (AAC). AAC admissions navigators are available day or night to discuss treatment and provide a safe and comforting space for you to share your experience with substance abuse. As a subsidiary of AAC, Alcohol.org is committed to making recovery accessible to everyone in need, while offering further insight into this chronic disease.
Not only do you not understand it firsthand, but you may also do more harm than good. Shaming an addict will only make them turn to what coats their emotions, which is likely drinking. The approach of judgment and shame does nobody good in the end. Unfortunately, you can’t control your loved one’s actions, but you can control your own behavior towards someone struggling can alcoholics eat food cooked with alcohol with an AUD. In doing so, you might be able to help them see the need for and seek treatment for alcoholism. The type of treatment someone may need will depend on personal circumstances, such as underlying mental health issues, current alcohol use, and any previous attempts to quit.
While someone is seeking treatment for alcohol abuse, you can offer in-person support while they search for the right provider. Your loved one may be worried about issues such as the pain of detox or logistics like childcare when they attend treatment. Ideally, before approaching your loved one with treatment options, you’ve thought through some of these issues. We publish material that is researched, cited, edited and reviewed by licensed medical professionals. The information we provide is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.