Navigating codependency can be daunting and complex. This is because many family dynamics can come into play. This includes adult children of parents with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and/or substance use disorder (SUD) who have trouble confronting them. It can also be complex when parents of children with addiction worry about their well-being and thus enable them.
Addiction as a Disease
It is important to understand addiction is a “disease.” According to the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), “Health professionals too often think and behave negatively toward addicts and addiction. In this, we share the attitudes of our society, in which substance abuse is one of the last remaining socially acceptable targets for public discrimination… If we are to succeed in treating addiction as a disease — which it is — we need to acknowledge and overcome our negative attitudes so that we can help patients with addiction and guide how the public perceives them.”
However, many families don’t approach addiction as a disease. They would rather approach it as some form of moral struggle. This can lead to animosity and distrust.
Another way that families and close friends approach loved ones with addiction is via codependent tendencies. This means a lack of boundaries, and with this lack of boundaries often comes unfortunate emotional pain and struggle. This is also why addiction is considered a family disease.
Addiction as a Family Disease
Navigating codependency is different for each family member. According to the peer-reviewed journal Social Work in Public Health, “The family remains the primary source of attachment, nurturing, and socialization for humans in our current society. Therefore, the impact of substance use disorders (SUDs) on the family and individual family members merits attention. Each family and each family member is uniquely affected by the individual using substances, including but not limited to having unmet developmental needs, impaired attachment, economic hardship, legal problems, emotional distress, and sometimes violence being perpetrated against him or her.”
While these family dynamics can be difficult to navigate, the good news is there is help and hope out there. The key is reaching out for help rather than continuing the cycle of enabling.
Getting Help: Navigating Codependency and Addiction
Addiction is a family disease, and it is important that it be treated as such. This means getting the whole family help.
This often means that family members get treatment at the same time their loved one does. This may be treatment at a residential facility, or it may be a more outpatient situation that includes psychotherapy and other modalities like nature-immersion therapy, art therapy, and yoga and meditation.
Effective Treatments: Navigating Codependency and Addiction
One highly effective therapy for families trying to navigate codependency is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). This is because CBT can get to the underlying issues that each family member may be struggling with.
According to the peer-reviewed thesis, Cognitive Behavior Therapy, by Doctors Chand, Kuckel, and Huecker, “[CBT] has been extensively researched and found to be effective in a large number of outcome studies for some psychiatric disorders, including depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, substance abuse, and personality disorders. It also has been demonstrated to be effective as an adjunctive treatment to medication for serious mental disorders such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. CBT has been adapted and studied for children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families.” CBT can also be utilized together or separately.
Staying Recovered: Navigating Codependency and Addiction
It is not just enough to recover from codependency (though that is an incredible accomplishment); it is important to stay recovered. One of the ways that this is done is by maintaining a connection to therapy and other modalities.
For example, yoga has been shown to be highly effective in keeping individual family members healthy and centered. According to the International Journal of Yoga (IJOY), “Regular practice of yoga promotes strength, endurance, flexibility and facilitates characteristics of friendliness, compassion, and greater self-control while cultivating a sense of calmness and well-being. Sustained practice also leads to important outcomes such as changes in life perspective, self-awareness, and an improved sense of energy to live life fully and with genuine enjoyment.”
It is also important to set strict boundaries regarding post-treatment. While this may feel difficult, it is important to remember that setting boundaries is not a punishment; rather, it is a form of tough love to keep a loved one safe and on the right track.
The Importance of Long-Term Success at Lantana Recovery
Here at Lantana Recovery, we believe in long-term success over short-term “fixes.” This is why all of our recovery plans are individualized and comprehensive.
Recovery is about the journey, never the destination. This includes a journey for the entire family because recovery is never about the “me.” It is about the “we.”
Codependency is often a big component of addiction in the family. That is why it is important to know what codependency looks like and how to recover from it via individual, group, and family therapy. It is also important to set boundaries and to have a relapse prevention plan moving forward after treatment concludes. If you feel like you or a loved one are struggling with addiction, mental illness, codependency, or a combination of issues, we can help get you on the positive path toward long-term recovery. You don’t have to do this alone. For more information about recovering from issues of addiction and codependency, please reach out to Lantana Recovery today at (866) 997-2870.
