Do you support someone in recovery? If so, you can’t bail when it gets ugly. When you decided to do that, you had to know it might not go well at some point and that person might relapse. You don’t have to give them money or things but it’s never wrong to tell someone who suffers from addiction that you love them.
In fact, that’s how more people will be able to find and stay in recovery. You have to realize that those who have relapsed feel shame. They feel they failed. The truth is, it’s part of the disease of addiction.
It’s all about support and connection. You can do that for someone.
This one to our friend, Chris, whom we’ve not heard from in a while. We still love you dude. As does Andy dog– who should be in this video but he’s camera shy.
I am an emotionally naked mental health speaker, and author of the Book, Diary of a Broken Mind and co-author with Kim O'Brien PhD, LICSW of Emotionally Naked: A Teacher's Guide to Preventing Suicide and Recognizing Students at Risk. I raised two boys, Richard and Charles, and lost my younger son, Charles to addiction and suicide on June 5, 2015. I help people foster a culture of connection to prevent suicide, reduce substance misuse and find life after loss. My motivational mental health keynotes, training and workshop topics include suicide prevention, addiction, mental illness, anxiety, coping strategies/resilience, and grief.
As talented and funny as Charles was, letting other people know they matter was his greatest gift. And now the legacy I try and carry forward in my son's memory.
Mental Health Speakers Website. Trained in ASIST and trainer for the evidence-based 4-hour training for everyone called safeTALK.
View all posts by Anne Moss Rogers
8 thoughts on “We didn’t sign up just for the pretty part”
We are living through it right now so your words are especially poignant this morning. Thank you!
Just the reminder I needed. My son is still sober and living in a long term treatment facility but sometimes I struggle with what to do when I see him. Thanks to your posts, I make sure to ALWAYS tell him I love him. There are no guarantees with recovery. I try to be grateful that he is alive and to keep the focus on my recovery.
I love what you said Brooke. The self care piece in there, too. I need to add a link in this post to resources like families anonymous and al-anon. But I know how hard this part is. I have not and will never forget that feeling. And FA saves me. I am so grateful I had that family outside of family.
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We are living through it right now so your words are especially poignant this morning. Thank you!
It’s so hard. I remember. I think in the end with Charles’ relapse my self care lapsed and with that so did my judgement about what to do.
The best support you can give someone in recovery is to get help for yourself. The Alanon Program,
al-anon.org
So true Maribeth. I need to add links to those resources here.
Just the reminder I needed. My son is still sober and living in a long term treatment facility but sometimes I struggle with what to do when I see him. Thanks to your posts, I make sure to ALWAYS tell him I love him. There are no guarantees with recovery. I try to be grateful that he is alive and to keep the focus on my recovery.
I love what you said Brooke. The self care piece in there, too. I need to add a link in this post to resources like families anonymous and al-anon. But I know how hard this part is. I have not and will never forget that feeling. And FA saves me. I am so grateful I had that family outside of family.
Beautiful! Pray he sees this!
I will make sure he sees it!