There is power in numbers and in having others to lean on. When I lived with the addiction of my son, Andy, I found myself embroiled in a world of craziness. He was suffering, and, believe me, I was suffering too. Addiction impacts the whole family, not just the addict. I have never felt as powerless in my whole life as I did watching my beloved child slowly slip away from me. I tried to handle it on my own by loving him into recovery. I mistakenly thought my love for him could cure him.
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Why are these words so powerful? It’s because they break your life down into manageable pieces. In the chaos of living in the world of addiction, whether it is with someone you love or if you are the one with an addiction, looking at the long haul can feel overwhelming. When you break it down into a finite and manageable amount of time, things seem possible.
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To all those suffering from addiction, you are a beautiful person of value. You have an important reason for being here and you have the right to live a happy life. Please don’t give up. There are many people rooting for you with all their hearts, myself included. And I know Andy cheers for you from heaven. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. And never give up! Never!
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One of the best definitions of stigma that I have found is, “An unfair label that associates a person to a set of negative characteristics that form a stereotype.” Is this any more true than in the case of addiction? Ask any number of people on the street what words come to mind when you say the word “addict.” You will likely hear words like “lack of willpower,” “morally deficient,” “poor,” “bad family,” “lazy” and “worthless.” Why is this the case, despite the fact that the mental health community largely accepts addiction as a complicated, multi-faceted illness? I have some thoughts about that.
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