Forming Healthy Relationships in Addiction Recovery: What You Need to Know
Whether it occurred before addiction began or once it’d already developed, damaged relationships can impact the way a person views themselves and their life. Friend and family relationships can involve ups and downs over time, especially as different situations arise. Unfortunately, families can harbor toxic relationships which only perpetuate miscommunication and unhealthy dynamics; in many other cases, relationships can be broken because of the changes that are displayed in a person when active addiction is involved. If you’ve lost important relationships throughout your life – which many people have – it can feel nerve-wracking to start over in building new relationships. We can’t always get by on surface level conversations – to build a truly meaningful life, we have to develop a strong support system which we can lean on in both times of celebration and need.
How Toxic Relationships Form
In 2018, Buddy T. founding member of the Online Al-Anon Outreach Committee, explained to Very Well Mind the two types of toxic relationships that can take place: Codependent Relationships – these relationships can form when partners come to believe that love, security and acceptance are based on taking care of their addicted loved one in the way they wish. In these relationships, a negative cycle can perpetuate which undermines a person’s sense of individuality in the relationship. When addiction is involved, loved ones may feel extremely uncomfortable voicing their concerns or saying “no” to their addicted loved one if that’s not acceptable to them. Enabling Relationships – many friends and family members struggle with this particular type of relationship, as they find it hard to confront their loved one and express that they have a problem. Enabling can take place in the form of making excuses, lying, and covering up for a person who wants to continue abusing substances; some individuals may even supply their addicted loved one with money for alcohol or drugs. These relationships are clearly not beneficial to either party’s side – and that’s why addiction recovery is the time to rebuild relationships in the best ways possible.
What Healthy Relationships Look Like
The New York state government website explains that healthy relationships: “…involve honesty, trust, respect and open communication between partners and they take effort and compromise from both people.” If you were to assess the relationships you currently have or have had in the past and compare them to this definition, could you truly say that you’ve held healthy relationships? Addiction recovery is more than simply treating an addiction; it’s also about helping people restore their sense of purpose in life along with creating a network of people through building strong, healthy relationships. The following are some important components of every healthy relationship:
- Respecting one another’s privacy and space
- Encouraging one another to spend time with friends and in activities that uplift them
- Feeling a sense of comfortability in expressing one’s thoughts, concerns and opinions
- Physical safety in all aspects of the relationship
- Respecting one another’s wishes and compromising when disagreements arise
- And more
When these types of characteristics are present, relationships can blossom and those in recovery can feel more confident and secure of themselves.
Applying Healthy Strategies to Relationships
The American Psychological Association (APA) emphasized that communication style is more important than commitment level, personality traits or stressful life events when it comes to whether or not intimate relationships will succeed or fail. In family and friend relationships, open communication is still vital – and those in recovery can learn healthy strategies towards creating and maintaining a healthy dynamic with those in their social support system. Individual therapy and group therapy are both components of recovery where people can develop healthy strategies for relationships. Common topics in therapy include:
- Self-esteem
- Mental health concerns like anxiety and depression
- Guilt, shame, anger and other difficult emotions
- Abusive relationships
- Establishing boundaries
- Friendships
- And more
12-Step programs, such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA), along with other types of groups can propel social support by giving those in recovery a safe space to get to know others who’ve gone through similar situations. Group discussions can open up many doors for people to feel comfortable in knowing they’re not alone; through peer recovery-related activities and sponsorship, individuals can build relationships that add to a more fulfilling life.
Building Support at Avalon Malibu
Anne Frank once stated, “Everyone has inside of him a piece of good news. The good news is that you don’t know how great you can be! How much you can love! What you can accomplish! And what your potential is!” Having people around you to support you is what will be one of the most influential factors of your recovery. At Avalon Malibu, you will be supported in all aspects of your mental, physical and spiritual healing. Don’t wait any longer to seek help – recovery is possible.
Avalon Malibu is a world-renowned, California state-licensed mental health and substance abuse recovery center. If you are ready to seek treatment to develop the tools you need to overcome life’s obstacles and be on the road towards happiness, health, and well-being, call us today at 888-958-7511 for a consultation. It’s never too late, and there are people here ready to help you.
