Every addict who enters drug rehab is aware of their condition. However, ideal situations are uncommon when coping with addiction. When the person you’re trying to help doesn’t want to help themselves, it’s tough to achieve successful addiction treatment. It’s depressing to watch a loved one suffer from addiction, so you might be curious how to help an addict who refuses help.
There is no magic method for persuading a person to go to rehab. However, there are several things you may do to help them gain the confidence they need to attend willingly. Make sure to read this article so you can offer that slight push that might just make a real difference.
6 Tips to Help an Addict Who Refuses Help
It is normal to feel helpless, scared, and frustrated if your loved one suffers from addiction and refuses treatment. But don’t worry, this article is here to help. Even in the most hopeless situations, we have ways to encourage addicts into rehab that succeed, if not immediately, over time. Listed below are the tips on how to help an addict who refuses help.
1. Educate Yourself
Educating yourself is the first step you must take before approaching the person and encouraging them to seek help. Coming to them without even knowing what they are going through in the first place may make you look distant to them. Do the research and take the time to learn about addiction, withdrawal, detox, and the various treatment options. Knowing more means being able to approach the situation calmly. It helps in understanding what the person is going through and when the time has come when the person finally opens up their problem to you, you’ll be able to speak knowledgeably on the issue.
2. Consider an Intervention
While some may call this “tough love,” it’s one of the first and best options to take. It’s a challenging situation for all involved, as it is a turning point in the addict’s life for the rest of their lives.
Although mental healing may take time, the benefits and risks of intervention are essential. Consider hiring a professional intervention counselor to issue injunctions and provide a productive avenue for the family to communicate their worries and emotional distress. Interventionists are capable of encouraging an addict to rehab. After all, compelling them will not allow them to mend on their own. Even if it takes some force, an addict must enter into the recovery of their own volition.
3. Never Use Guilt
It’s all too easy to scold or guilt an addict into quitting their addiction. But it is a lot helpful to avoid using these words at all costs. It’s a no-no to use statements like “How could you do this to me,” or anything which may elicit guilt and humiliation from the addict.
Speak about how their addiction impacts you and those who are close to them. Instead of saying, “You’re ruining our family,” or, “You’re ruining your life, and you’re going to die from your addiction.” Use “I” words to describe how you feel about the situation, like, “I’m really saddened with how the family is struggling. I’m scared about you and what will occur to your health and future if you don’t stop consuming drugs; I love you and want you to be here and healthy.”
Using the words blame or shame puts them in the offensive. It will only make things worst than it is and may even push them away from seeking treatment.
4. Encourage Healthy Boundaries
What appears to be and seems like love and support can be fostering their addiction. It doesn’t take hitting rock bottom to realize it’s necessary for drug rehab, but removing the mechanisms that make their addiction “easier” can be what they need to implement change. It’s also essential to keep the boundaries. Letting them get away by breaking the boundaries even once may mean that they are allowed to bend them.
Healthy boundaries may vary depending on your relationships with the person and their age, but some examples include:
5. Consider a Medical Approach
Another good way to help an addict who refuses help is to make a suggestion or schedule an appointment for a basic check-up. Notify the doctor of the addiction before your appointment. They’ll be able to spot the problems and see beyond the addict’s justifications. They will still maintain doctor-patient confidentiality, but they can also prescribe courses of action based on their medical and professional perspectives. They can provide facts in a manner that’s free of the emotions a friend or family member might bring to these discussions. They’ll examine their physical well-being and discuss the long-term consequences of their addiction. They can also recommend rehab if they find that the medical situation of the addict requires severe treatment. Their line of expertise may also encourage the patient from going.
6. Give Support
Let the person feel that you will always be there for them. Avoid conversations that directly express your anger. Don’t make them think that you are judgmental.
You may observe good improvements in behavior after enough of these modest, non-confrontational dialogues. If you continue to offer your support and they react accordingly, there may come the point when they readily admit to you that they have an issue with addiction and that they seek treatment.
To Sum Up
There is no easy way on how to help an addict who refuses help. But trying the tips listed above does not harm either. Educating yourself, seeking help from an interventionist, avoiding guilt and shame when talking, encouraging healthy boundaries, considering a medical approach, and constantly giving support might be the push they need to seek help. The reality is that you can’t do the work for them, but at least you can help do it for them.
