Can You Help A Loved One With A Substance Abuse Problem?

Alcohol drinkers and drug users rarely see their habits as a problem. It's the people around them who have the problem: the ones who love them who must indure their irrational behavior and unpleasant personality distortions, their unreliability and unpredictability, the embarrassment and disappointment, and the constant apprehension of wondering when the next episode of drunken, drugged out behavior will hurt, shame and humiliate the family. When women suffer from substance abuse, it is often an outgrowth of depression from some unhealed wounds from childhood, frequently sexual assault, physical abuse, verbal abuse, or abandonment. But when the family nurturer, the mother, is herself hurting, the whole family experiences her pain, and they too, grow up emotionally scarred. Pamela Frazier, A National Certified Addiction Counselor, operates N' The Spirit Transformational Living, a licensed recovery home for women. Today she shares with us the challenges and triumphs of women striving to overcome addictions and what loved ones can do to help.