Despite what many believe, addiction affects far more than individuals with a substance use disorder. It can affect friends, communities, and families. A family therapy program can help start the healing process for these damaged familial bonds. You can start family therapy with Insight Recovery Center by calling 828.826.1376.
Addiction and Relationships
Substance use disorders have a wide range of physical health effects, but they can also affect relationships in many ways. People with substance use disorders often experience wholesale personality changes, which may result from how addiction creates lasting brain changes that influence behavior.
When living with an addiction, people can begin to show many symptoms that affect the people they care about the most, including:
- Anger or irritability
- Refusal to talk about their substance use
- Spending an inordinate amount of time using drugs or alcohol
- Financial and legal challenges as a result of substance use
- Becoming overly defensive of their addiction
These are just a few of the ways that addiction and relationships are interconnected. A number of other factors may negatively impact a relationship as well, such as growing mental health concerns or declining physical health.
How Family Counseling Can Help
When a person with a substance use disorder decides to seek addiction treatment, family counseling is one of the best ways to ensure a lasting and meaningful life in recovery. Family therapy programs cannot reverse the past, but they can help people develop the skills to grow closer in the future.
A typical family therapy session involves the person suffering from addiction, their significant other, and potentially any children they may have. The therapist guides the discussion, makes sure that everybody has a voice, and endeavors to prevent any emotional blowups or conflict.
Family therapy focuses on several different goals:
- Helping families understand addiction and what their loved one is going through
- Holding a space for loved ones to share their concerns and frustrations
- Teaching families healthy communication skills
- Developing plans for how the family will strive to prevent future problems
This can also be a space for people who have lived with substance use disorders to make amends and show their families how they are behaving differently now that they’ve achieved sobriety.
Going to family therapy consistently can demonstrate a commitment to recovery and rebuilding meaningful relationships.
Benefits of Family Counseling
The benefits of family counseling extend into several different domains. They can help the person struggling with addiction maintain their recovery and help family members heal from the conflict they experienced during their loved one’s addiction.
A few benefits you could expect to receive by attending family counseling include the following:
- Learning new and effective coping mechanisms
- Increasing your capacity for empathy and understanding
- Improving the relationships between yourself and your family members
- Reducing conflict in the home
- Building support for recovery within the family
- Learning effective communication skills to last a lifetime
- Developing problem-solving skills that can be used at home
Family counseling is one of many different treatment options used to produce lasting sobriety at an evidence-based treatment center. Together, the treatments form a comprehensive recovery plan that addresses your needs. Family counseling is a powerful piece of the addiction treatment puzzle.
Find Help with a Family Therapy Program at Insight Recovery Center
If you or a loved one has been struggling with drug or alcohol use, reach out to the team at Insight Recovery Center by calling 828.826.1376 or contacting us online. Our comprehensive outpatient treatment options can help them to build lasting sobriety, help you and your family heal from the trials of addiction, and build meaningful and productive lives in recovery.