How Family Members Of Addicts Benefit From Family Therapy

Family members of addicts often suffer their own battles. They experience a wide array of emotional stress and pain when struggling with the gambling, drug or alcohol addiction of their loved ones. Sadly, the family members' feelings and struggles are often overlooked when help is being provided for the addict. However, this doesn’t have to be the case. Family therapy is available for all involved in the addicts' life. Family therapy can help to heal the wounds that the addictive behavior has caused, as well as provide tools for day-to-day life moving forward.

Spouses

Spouses are often on the top of the list when it comes to those negatively impacted by an addict. They struggle with seeing their previously loving and attentive partner and parent to their children become depressed, unreliable, and withdrawn, finding it difficult to spend time with them.

Children

Children are also negatively affected when a parent has an addiction problem, often suffering more than anyone in the addict's life. They see the behaviours and love of their parent change, and begin to feel neglected, unloved, and unwanted. In many cases, a child of an addict goes on to become an addict themselves, especially if they don’t receive the counselling they need and deserve.

Parents

It is difficult for parents to watch their children struggle with addiction. They worry, they stress, and they often blame themselves.

Help for the Whole Family

Each of these groups of individuals has complicated feelings to contend with when their loved one is an addict. Fortunately, there is help for these family members. With family counselling, they are able to bring their thoughts and concerns to the table, discuss their own feelings, and gain the strength to move on with their own lives in a healthy way, regardless of what the addict is doing. The counselling work everyone does during family therapy can be inclusive and the benefits go well beyond the therapy sessions.