Whether you are currently a recovering alcohol addict, or you’re thinking about talking to someone about alcohol addiction treatment, you know you’ve hurt a lot of people who love you. How do you restore the trust that has been damaged by alcohol addiction? Is it even possible?
Like most people addicted to alcohol, your addiction likely began with alcohol abuse. Perhaps you were dealing with some challenges at work, or maybe you had some problems within your marriage, but either way, you felt you couldn’t cope. You turned to alcohol as a way to relieve your stress. Or perhaps it began because it was the cool thing to do with your friends or it was the only way you were able to be social at a party. You did that too many times, and what was once alcohol abuse because an alcohol addiction. Now you’re interested in getting help and mending some of those relationships you’ve ruined, but you have no idea where to begin.
Alcohol Addiction Help
Alcohol addiction treatment has worked for many people, and it can work for you as well. Contemplating stopping to drink can be a difficult decision for anyone to make because you’ve spent so much of your life believing that alcohol was just like an old friend. The truth is that alcohol has, very slowly, been stealing your life away from you. When you get alcohol addiction help from a professional, you’ll begin to learn the right ways to handle the issues and the feelings you experienced because of the issues in your life without the use of any kind of substance.
In a sense, you’ll be relearning your life, but the end result is worth it. One reason is because you’ll have the opportunity to work on restoring trust with the people you’ve hurt.
How to Restore Trust After Alcohol Addiction
Many people think that as soon as they begin an outpatient alcohol addiction treatment program or even once they start going to an inpatient treatment facility, their relationships will all go back to normal. Unfortunately, this is usually never the case.
Keep in mind that you have probably hurt several people in your life because of your addiction to alcohol, and those hurts are not easily healed. You may be fortunate to come across a friend or a relative who is able to move on quickly from the pain, but most people will take some time to adjust to the fact that you’re actually getting help for your addiction. It’s also important for you to remember that you may have some former friends or even relatives who don’t wish to reconnect with you at all.
The best things you can do to restore trust after you start your recovery from alcohol addiction are:
- Be patient
- Be honest with people you’ve hurt
- Own your actions and admit that you know you’ve done wrong
- Communicate a desire to restore the trust and the relationship
- Be understanding of their need to take their time and process the information on their own
If you can do these five things, you might find that you are able to regain trust with the people you love the most, even if it takes time to do so. Just remain committed to your recovery and concentrate on doing what you need to do to heal.
Are you looking for someone to help you through recovery from your alcohol addiction? Professional addiction counselling can assist you with every step of the process of your recovery journey. It’s not always an easy road, but it is always a road that’s worth taking.
Please contact me today if you would like to make an appointment.
