How to Help an Alcoholic Family Member

According to a survey from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, almost 30 million people over the age of 12 struggle with alcoholism, which is about 10.5 percent of this population. This makes alcohol use disorder (AUD) one of the most prevalent substance use disorders in the United States.

Many of these people will have friends and family who care about them and want them to recover from their addiction. But many of them won’t know how to help them. At Twilight Recovery, we know how to help people who are struggling with addiction, and we know how to help people help their loved ones.

How To Get Help For An Alcoholic Family Member

While most people’s first instinct when it comes to offering help and support to a person with alcoholism is to get them into a treatment center, doing so immediately may not be the best course of action. First, not everyone’s addiction is severe enough to need inpatient rehab. Second, just putting someone with alcoholism into rehab may not help, especially when they’re not ready for treatment.

Some of the things that a person can do to help a loved one get ready for recovery include:

Educate Yourself About Alcohol Addiction

One of the first things that you need to do is to educate yourself about alcohol addiction. All too often, many people think that an alcoholic can just make the choice to stop drinking, and that’ll be the end of the problem. 

The reality is that alcohol use disorder (AUD), also known as alcoholism, is a complex disease that can be incredibly difficult to treat and will typically require professional alcohol rehab to recover from.

Talk To Someone, Preferably a Professional

Building on the above, you can also talk to a professional addiction expert. They’ll be able to help devise a way to talk to your loved one about their drinking problem as well as some of the ways to help that are available to you.

In some cases, they can even help you stage an intervention so you can implore your loved one to get the help they need for their alcohol misuse.

Rehearse What You Need to Say

Related to the above, when you do need to talk to someone with an alcohol use disorder about their drinking, you should ideally practice what you’re going to say. This will help you speak clearly and concisely.

Practicing will also help you in that you can list specific instances of when their drinking was problematic. This specificity can often help people realize just how bad their addiction has become.

Listen and Withhold Judgment

When you talk to your family member or friend about their drinking, they may become defensive. Your instinct may be to argue with them, but you shouldn’t. Instead, you should listen to what they have to say. Withhold judgment and avoid placing blame.

Take Care of Yourself

While you’re trying to help a friend or family member with their drinking, do not forget to take care of yourself. See a mental health professional or reach out to groups such as Al-Anon, which is a mutual aid organization for people who have been impacted by another person’s alcoholism.

Force Someone Into Rehab

In certain countries, a person is legally allowed to force a loved one into rehab. This may sound like a drastic move, but there are cases when a person’s substance use becomes so dire that the only way to help them is to force them into treatment,

How To Support Your Loved One Without Enabling Their Alcohol Use Disorder

Many people with an alcoholic loved one may enable their family member’s alcohol abuse. Sometimes, this is unintentional. They may think they’re helping a loved one by covering for them or helping them drink alcohol, but what they’re really doing is pushing them deeper into addiction.

In rare cases, this enabling is intentional. Some people have an alcoholic loved one and want to keep them that way because it makes them feel needed. 

Being educated on the nature of alcohol addiction is crucial because it teaches people how to help someone with an alcohol problem without enabling their addiction.

It’s important to set boundaries when trying to help a family member or friend who is addicted to alcohol. You can encourage them to get sober by telling them to look at their treatment options or go to support groups.

But what you shouldn’t do is support their addiction by covering for them or making excuses for their drinking. You also shouldn’t help them acquire more alcohol and if possible, try to keep them away from situations that may trigger their drinking.

How To Identify Alcoholism in a Loved One

It can be hard to tell if someone you love drinks too much. Some people may be willfully ignorant and blind themselves to a loved one’s drinking problem. Some people with alcohol addiction also become proficient at hiding their addiction. That said, there are some signs that a person has become an alcoholic.

While many people who develop alcoholism may drink noticeably more alcohol, a surefire sign that someone’s an alcoholic is if they have an increased tolerance. They may drink more but won’t be as drunk as they should be.

Another sign that you can look out for is if you notice your loved one becoming irritable or agitated if they, for whatever reason, can’t drink alcohol. This is likely because they’re going through the early stages of withdrawal.

A telltale sign that someone is an alcoholic is you can smell alcohol on them. Alcohol, whether beer, wine, or other beverage, has a distinctive smell. While a single instance of someone smelling like alcohol may not be cause for concern, if it becomes a regular occurrence, then it may be time to encourage your loved one to seek treatment.

What You Can Do To Participate in Their Rehab Treatment

Many treatment centers have family programs to help those receiving treatment repair their relationships with their loved ones. By participating in these programs, you can repair your relationship with an alcoholic friend or family member.

You can also support their recovery by creating a supportive environment at home and helping them avoid their triggers. You can also accompany them to outpatient treatment if that is something that they need you to do. 

We Can Help You Help an Alcoholic Family Member

It’s natural to want to help a person that you love if you see them struggling with an addiction. You may feel as if there is nothing that you can do to help them.

But that is simply not the case. There are some things that you can do to help a loved one seek help, and you may even have to force them into help. At Twilight Recovery, we can help you help someone you love. Contact us now, and we can get started on their recovery.