Advice on Living with an Alcoholic

Suffering from alcoholism, on a personal basis is very difficult. Yet, this can also be testing for family members and friends. Are you witnessing the damages caused by excessive alcohol abuse? Are you worried about the wellbeing of your loved one? Do you believe that you are living with an alcoholic?

Living with an alcoholic can be extremely difficult, draining and daunting. Your aim is to offer support, to guide them from alcoholism. However, understanding how to achieve that, while remaining level-headed, while also caring for yourself can be difficult.

You may feel alone, you may feel overwhelmed with information and steps to follow. You may even feel like it’s your fault that alcohol consumption has developed into an excessive alcohol addiction. While it’s easier said than done, it is important to remember that an addiction is an uncontrolled illness. This encounter is at no fault of your own, or your loved ones.

Many factors can contribute to an addiction diagnosis, some internally and some externally.
While it may feel easier to blame yourself or enable excessive alcohol consumption, this will get you or your loved one nowhere, fast. It’s time to support them through this while understanding how to live with an alcoholic moving forward.

Here’s our advice at Rehab Clinics Group on living with an alcoholic, along with how we can support your entire family through this challenging time.

Understanding alcoholism

Before attempting to support your loved one through alcoholism, it is important to raise your awareness of alcoholism as a whole. Many individuals unfortunately believe that excessive alcohol consumption is a choice. It in fact is an uncontrollable illness, fuelled in the brain.

Of course, in most cases, alcohol consumption has been enabled. It has been used as a coping strategy, as an escape or as a motivator. Yet, somewhere along the way, the addictive tendencies of alcohol have taken control, turning its presence into a habit, into a necessity, into physical and psychological cravings.

Overcoming alcoholism can be extremely challenging. There is more to it than stopping consumption and avoiding ongoing exposure. A comprehensive rehabilitation programme must be completed, including detoxification and psychological realignment.

With that said, telling a loved one to stop and recover from alcoholism is easier said than done. Dealing with it negatively can also add fuel to the fire, heightening alcoholism. Down to this, you must understand alcoholism, along with the most supportive way of living with an alcoholic. By doing so, their motivation to recover may heighten, rather than their consumption.

Are you living with an alcoholic?

If you are concerned about your loved ones drinking habits, it is important to gauge common signs and symptoms of alcoholism before rushing into an intervention or conversation. The way that you approach the topic of alcoholism can either help or hinder impending steps of recovery. With this in mind, increasing your awareness on whether you are living with an alcoholic is encouraged.

Common symptoms of alcoholism include:

– Excessive alcohol consumption, commonly alone

– Withdrawal symptoms in between consumption

– Constant feeling of being hungover

– A disconnect from reality, responsibilities and loved ones

– Agitation if alcohol cannot be purchased or consumed

– Mental health side effects such as anxiety or paranoia

While above are some common symptoms, there are many other indications of alcoholism. It’s also important to remember that there are a number of different influential factors, from genetics and early age drinking, to stress, pre-existing mental health issues and social influences. Down to this, it’s important to consider the normalisation of drinking for your loved one. If this is becoming excessive, causing negative relations, it’s time to offer support.

What to do when living with an alcoholic?

Your next steps can dictate the end outcome of alcohol recovery efforts. To protect a successful intervention, follow our below advice on living with an alcoholic.

– Self-care for all family members
You must be in a positive mindset yourself. If you are struggling with anything, this could impact your approach to your loved one. Self-care should be activated for all family members, ensuring that you are healthy, happy and ready to grow together.

– Disenabling excessive drinkingSo far, you may have enabled excessive drinking in your home. You may have justified consumption which has ultimately fuelled alcoholism. Instead of dwelling on this, instead of dealing with the negatives of living with an alcoholic, you must do your best to disenable alcohol consumption.

– Approach with caution
You must approach the topic of alcoholism with caution. Follow a compassionate attitude by offering a helping hand, an understanding shoulder to lean on. By increasing your awareness of alcoholism, this should come natural to you, offering support rather than judgment.

– Stage an intervention
If you are struggling to overcome alcohol problems, alone, staging an intervention is a proactive step. With the support of professionals, you can share your concerns with your loved one, while also increasing the desirability of alcohol recovery.

– Offer support no matter what
Tackling alcoholism can be a draining, long-winded process. Yet, you must offer support no matter what. At some point, the idea of alcohol rehab will hopefully click. Doing whatever you can up until then will be beneficial, while also easing your experience of living with an alcoholic. Yet, remember to avoid the enablement of alcohol consumption. This will set you two steps back.

– Promote the idea of alcohol rehab
Ultimately, visiting an alcohol rehab will be necessary to overcome alcoholism for the long-term. This can be discussed via an intervention. Yet, by promoting this idea yourself, the prospect of alcohol recovery can advance.

Addiction treatment will be available via a rehab clinic, such as ours here at Rehab Clinics Group, helping to alleviate physical and psychological connections. The aim is to reach the sober status, only possible by completing a rehab programme.

If you are struggling by living with an alcoholic, we can also support you through therapy and through additional advice. Reach out today to benefit from the support of one of our recovery centres in the UK, specialising in addiction recovery.