A friend texted me yesterday in absolute distress bc her brother is using heroin and refusing to go to treatment. The sheer desperation in her voice was palpable and brought me right back to that soul-crushing place where I had no idea how to help the person I loved the most.
I wrote her a novel but figured I’d summarize it here for anyone who’s also struggling. Latest overdose rates suggest there’s lots of us.
Firstly: This is the hardest thing to navigate. It sucks all the air out of the room and it’s exhausting and maddening. That is real.
Firstly: This is the hardest thing to navigate. It sucks all the air out of the room and it’s exhausting and maddening. That is real.
2) Your loved one isn’t doing this to you and they're certainly not doing it on purpose. Addiction is a chronic illness. They're doing everything in their power to keep using bc that’s the disease. The symptoms of SUD present like “I’m I selfish asshole.” BUT: It’s the disease.
3) So how to treat it? Complex question! Treatment isn't one-size fits all, it takes a long ass time (5 yrs min) and the approach has to be holistic. So those 30 day programs you find on Google? Most often, they're a quick fix (pun intended) and frequently lead to relapse.
4) Instead, put on your seatbelt, tap into your compassion place, and navigate from there. As hard as it is, it’s super important to (try to) love them through it. Don’t ostracize, ultimatum, or reenact A&E’s Intervention. It just doesn’t work. And it makes you feel shitty.
5) Rather, meet them where they’re at. The name of the game is harm reduction, not abstinence. So medication assisted treatment, Narcan, not using alone, etc. Find an addiction medicine specialist in yr area. They can help! It's their job!
6) Also for the love of God, find a good therapist. FOR YOU. Find a therapist you love and visit them regularly. Forever.
7) That’s what I would do if I could do it again. Buuut having said all that, it’s not easy, and there’s no magic bullet, and it still might not work. This is a collection of pro tips I learned talking to very smart people that I wanted to share.
8) Resources! @ShatterproofHQ has tons of good resources: shatterproof.org
ATLAS is another good resource for finding evidence-based treatment: shatterproof.org/find-help/loca…
Check out harmreduction.org.
Listen to 26 eps of Last Day Season 1 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/las…
❤️
ATLAS is another good resource for finding evidence-based treatment: shatterproof.org/find-help/loca…
Check out harmreduction.org.
Listen to 26 eps of Last Day Season 1 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/las…
❤️
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