Text us Call us

Family Support Groups for Addiction

Because addiction affects the entire family, family support groups for addiction are helpful for the mental state of the entire family.

Millions of people in the United States struggle with addiction. Addiction is a life-threatening disease that may cause different physical and mental health conditions. Sometimes, a family member is fighting addiction. It becomes difficult to see our close family members in pain.

Treatment facilities offer treatment for drug or alcohol addiction where an individual is under specialized care. There are family support groups for addiction that help your family members in overcoming addiction.

Key Takeaways

Family support groups are helpful if your family members are facing addiction. This post will tell you:

  • The importance of family support groups in overcoming addiction.
  • Various family support groups will help with drug addiction.
  • Family members can attend meetings of family support groups.

Seek professional help from Indiana Center for Recovery. Contact us at (844) 650-0064 to know more about our treatment programs and service charges.

Importance of Family Support for Drug Addiction

Millions of Americans and their families are impacted by chronic drug addiction, which has environmental, psychological, and biological components. Often, and for various reasons, those closest to the people who abuse substances struggle the most. 

Family and friends watch with unease as their loved ones change under the influence of dangerous substances. Family members may therefore find support groups helpful.

Coworkers, friends, and family watch their loved ones’ bodies and minds transform. They deal with trying circumstances at home when people’s moods shift. Communication and trust are harmed.

Unfortunately, when parents feed their opioid addiction, they jeopardize their marriages, employment, education, mind, body, and health. They may lose the respect and care of their children. The body, health, and family ties are in peril while supporting a drug addiction.

Arguments and misunderstandings have become common communication techniques. A pleasant home eventually devolves into confusion, hopelessness, and despair.

How Family Support Groups Help 

Families with a member who uses drugs could feel alone and resentful of themselves. Additionally, they could believe they have failed as parents and look for comfort in their misery.

Understanding a family member’s substance use disorder (SUD) and relieving parents’ worries and frustrations are both crucial. Since one family member’s addiction ultimately impacts the entire family, addiction is frequently referred to as a family disease.

Family members’ attendance at support groups inevitably impacts the entire family. It can be quite helpful in aiding a family’s recovery from the discord that addiction brings. Additionally, it enhances the likelihood that their loved one will seek assistance and continue to recover fully.

Parents who are seeking support after losing a child to opioid usage may feel more comfortable being vulnerable in support groups. Members support the group by communicating about shared struggles, sources of courage, and rays of hope.

 Last but not least, family members can learn coping mechanisms for emotions such as anger, shame, melancholy, and anxiety brought on by a family member’s substance use disorder.

Family Support Groups

Because addiction affects many family members, support groups for loved ones of drug addicts are very active in most towns. The following are a few examples of support groups that are accessible across the United States:

Nar-Anon Family Groups

Narcotics Anonymous was founded to assist family members of addicted persons. It was founded because relatives of addicts need recovery just as much as their addicted loved ones do.

Families can freely express their experience, strength, and hope in a safe and private setting while still feeling supported.

Each member of Nar-Anon is urged to find a sponsor or someone who has finished the 12 steps and is working on step twelve, which involves spreading the message to others.

Family 12-Step support groups are spiritual but are not connected to any one faith. When family members attend the Nar-Anon meetings, then they learn about the addiction. Moreover, the group members tell them how they can help their loved ones overcome drug addiction.

Al-Anon Family Groups

Al-Anon Family Groups are a lot like Nar-Anon groups in that they provide a secure setting for people with family members who are addicts to get help. Like Nar-Anon, it is a twelve-step program that is free to attend and anonymous.

The primary distinction is that Al-Anon Family Groups are designed exclusively for people who have family members who abuse alcohol.

SMART Recovery Family Program

A program is available for families in need of help comparable to the SMART program for those recovering from substance abuse disorders.

An alternative to Nar-Anon and other 12-step-based programs that is science-based and secular is called SMART Recovery Friends & Family.

The SMART Recovery (Self-Management and Recovery Training) and CRAFT tools are the foundation of their approach (Community Reinforcement Approach & Family Training).

CRAFT therapy strives to equip the loved ones of addicts with self-defense and non-confrontational techniques so they can support their recovery.

 The 4-point SMART Recovery Friends & Family structure sets it apart from a 12-step program like Nar-Anon. Each program offers a wealth of learning, speaking, and coping resources.

Family Anonymous

The target audience for this group is those who have relatives who are abusing drugs or alcohol. It follows the same 12 steps as Al-Anon and Nar-Anon.

It was initially developed in 1971 for parents worried about their kids using drugs. It is now more inclusive and aimed at anyone with a family member battling addiction.

Support Groups Meetings for Family Members

Support groups are a valuable asset for those individuals if their family member is going through addiction. It can feel like no one else is experiencing what you are as a family member of an addict, which can be pretty alienating.

Addiction, however, has an impact on not just the substance abuse victim themselves but also their families. 

Fortunately, there are a number of anonymous organizations accessible to make you feel less alone. You can also search for family support groups on the internet. Addiction support groups and online support groups are of great help in the recovery process for substance abuse.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What can families do to cope with a loved one’s addiction?

Family members of people who are facing addiction play an important role in the recovery. When you want to support alcoholics, try to find out the nature of addiction of the individual.
 There are different ways through which you can help an adult child or young adult to overcome addiction. You can encourage them for different treatment programs offered by a treatment facility.
Moreover, the family members can attend family therapy sessions in family therapy. These sessions help them in supporting their family member’s addiction.
Addiction-affected families don’t have to travel the road to recovery by themselves. Many top-notch treatment centers offer assistance to the addicted person’s family as well.

What mental illness is most associated with addiction?

A rigid or warped worldview characterizes a group of disorders known as personality disorders. Personality issues greatly increase your chance of acquiring a substance use problem.
According to studies, individuals with personality problems may be up to 72 percent more likely to become addicted throughout their lifetime.
The second-highest risk of addiction is associated with borderline personality disorder, one of the most prevalent mental illnesses.
An antisocial personality disorder is the personality disorder with the highest risk of addiction. Still, people with that disease rarely seek treatment and, when they do, rarely complete it.
Dialectical behavior therapy, or DBT, is a successful approach to treating borderline personality disorders and other difficult personality disorders, despite being complicated and challenging.

Find Addiction Support at Indiana Center for Recovery

Drug addiction harms physical and mental health. The good news is that drug addiction can be managed. There are now family support groups for addiction that help family members how they can support their loved one to beat addiction.

Indiana Center for Recovery provides drug addiction treatment and some other treatment options. It provides rehabilitation services for those who abuse alcohol, drugs, and other substances. One of the best addiction treatments is detox, which we provide.

You can heal with the support of the residential and outpatient treatment programs we provide. Additionally, our EMDR and CBT therapies aid in our clients’ return to recovery. 

To learn more, call (844) 650-0064 today!