When Your Loved One Refuses Rehab

Discovering that a loved one or family member suffers from drug addiction can be shocking and disheartening. Many people wonder what to do — how can they best help their loved one recover? Unfortunately, there really isn’t a simple answer.

Addiction is very personal. Despite your best efforts to comfort, support and encourage your family member, the onus is ultimately on them to change. Drug rehab can mean the difference between success and failure, but not every addict accepts the option. Sadly, some people just aren’t ready to recover yet.

Denial

One of the major problems that addicts experience is denial. In a nutshell, they refuse to acknowledge that they have a problem; regardless of how obvious it is to everyone else. Many rehab centers use a version of the 12-step program made popular by Alcoholics Anonymous many years ago. The first step of this program is for addicts to admit that they have a problem.

You can’t take the addiction away from your loved ones, but you can help them realize its consequences. If someone in your family clearly suffers from drug abuse but doesn’t acknowledge addiction, take the time to sit them down and talk. Help them look at the facts of their habit in an unbiased light. Hopefully they’ll begin to realize the truth.

Misconceptions

Some people resist the idea of attending drug rehab because they don’t really understand how it works. From reading the news, one could very easily draw the conclusion that rehab is only for the rich and famous, or for those who have absolutely hit rock bottom. Neither of these assumptions is true.

Rehab is available to help anyone in need. Waiting until you have no other options is foolish — clinics are able to help prevent disasters as well as repair them. If your loved one has misconceptions about what rehab entails, take them online and do some research. Most clinics have consulting staff that would be delighted to answer their questions and assuage their fears.

Tanner Wadsworth is a health writer for Fusion 360, an SEO and content marketing agency. Information provided by Odyssey House. Follow on Twitter