Why Is Communication Important for Families When It Comes to Addiction?

Addiction can take a toll on not only you but everyone around you. Family, friends, colleagues, and even strangers can all be affected by your addiction and related behaviors. It can isolate you from those who want to help you and even make them out to be the enemy. This isolation can make it even harder for you to seek treatment and feel supported in your decision to do so.

Why Is Communication Important?

Creating these communication lines between you and your friends and family will give you more support on your recovery journey. They give you strength when you are struggling to stay sober. Further, they can be the reminder you need when you are close to giving in to your addiction. 

Communication allows you and those around you to reach closure, healing, and restoration following your behavior and actions resulting from addiction. Reaching out to people does not mean you will form a new relationship with them. However, it may allow you to reach an amicable end to the one you used to have, which can allow both parties to move on and form other healthy and safe relationships. 

How to Reach Out

Communication should commence when both parties are willing and able. Maintaining safe and healthy relationships should be a priority as doing so helps support you during recovery. Do not feel bad if you aren't ready to initiate or continue communication with someone. This is especially true if this person has or will negatively affect your recovery.

When you are ready to reach out to friends and family, be prepared for adverse emotions regarding who you were before starting treatment. Certain people may hang on to the version of you they remember while you were in your addiction. As you are not that person anymore, you can prove to them you have changed through your actions.

Before Treatment

When you are ready to seek help, send a text, email, phone call, letter, or any other form of communication to a loved one who may be willing to help you find treatment. Let them know you have recognized your struggles. Tell them you have reached the point that you want to seek treatment but need their assistance in doing so. This can be a friend, family member, or a treatment facility like Next Level Recovery.

During Treatment

Whatever stage of treatment and facility you're in can dictate how communication can be initiated. Some programs may bring friends and family in for family therapy while others may have you write letters to them. Treatment programs are individualized to keep you healthy, safe, and on the right track. Therefore, everyone is going to have a different time frame for when communication should begin. 

Some treatment programs make contacting individuals that you may have isolated or hurt during your substance use part of the process. They may have those individuals join in a group therapy session. Joint therapy creates a safe and controlled environment that facilitates honesty alongside the benefits of being face to face. This reduces the risk of miscommunication through written communication.

Things can get lost in translation without vocal inflection or the ability to observe each other's facial expressions. People can easily misread or infer tone when all they hear from someone is on a page or a screen.

However, there are some benefits of using letters, texts, or emails. Some programs may have you write letters that you may or may not send. The purpose of writing such a letter is to help you communicate your feelings about what happened and what you would like to happen after your treatment. This might take the form of an apology, a request, or anything you wish.

Recovery does not end once you complete treatment. After you've graduated from your treatment program, it's just as important to stay in contact with your friends and family. They can provide continuing support to help you stay on the right path throughout recovery.

Using Recovery Associates

Next Level Recovery provides recovery associates to support you through these difficult times and can act as a communication bridge between you and your friends and family. Recovery associates are trained individuals who are chosen to be the best fit for you during your recovery journey. They act as a support system full of compassion, empathy, and professionalism. As an advocate for your healing, they can come with you to treatment and therapy sessions. This includes group sessions with friends and family members as you learn to communicate and make amends. 

Your recovery associate will be there as someone you can lean on. They are meant to help you through the difficult, high-pressure situations that can affect your ability to move forward in your recovery.

Addiction can take over your world and become the thing you are living for. This means it can also be the thing that isolates you and keeps you from the people that want to help you the most. Reaching out for help from the people you pushed away before treatment and/or reaching out while in treatment to repair that relationship can be a daunting and terrifying task. You are not alone. Fortunately, there are people who want to help you initiate communication and build bridges with your friends and family. At Next Level Recovery Associates, we want to be the reason you reach out and start a safe and healthy communication line. We at Next Level can provide you with a personalized experience to ensure you get everything you need to thrive in your recovery journey. For more information, email us at consult@nextlevelra.com.