The decision to get help is often difficult to make, but with moral and emotional support from friends and family, getting past the most difficult days and weeks of recovery from an opiate addiction become a bit easier. Here are some ways that your support system of friends and family can help you in recovery.
1. Family Members can Help you Find Treatment
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, “Trying to locate appropriate treatment for a loved one, especially finding a program tailored to an individual’s particular needs, can be a difficult process.” However, there are many ways to find opioid addiction treatment centers in your area, such as through our website.
2. Friends or Family can Provide Support
This is a wonderful way for friends to support you in treatment, as you may begin to feel isolated from your everyday life while attending residential care. You can also call your friends and ask them if there is a weekly time that works for them where you can talk on the phone.
3. A Friend or Family Member can Help with Transportation to and From Treatment
A friend or family member could help you get to and from your doctor’s appointments.
In addition, your friend can also drive you back and forth from a methadone clinic (or a doctor’s office if you decide to receive buprenorphine treatment) or merely make the trip with you, as it will often make you feel much more at ease and dread treatment less. You may be drowsy at certain points, especially during your early recovery and medically assisted withdrawal, so your friend can help take care of your children or support you in other ways.
4. Friends and Family can Encourage You
If you’re feeling down and out, like you simply can’t go on in recovery, friend and family can help. Not only can they offer encouragement and hope, but they also give you something to look forward to. Instead of focusing on the negative, focus on the positive—the fact that you have friends and family who care enough about you and your recovery to encourage you in all that you do.
5. Friends and Family can Help You Stay on Track
If you’re feeling off-beat, as if you may relapse, call on a friend or family member. Your support system will make a world of difference in recovery. Your friends and family members will help you to stay on track. Be open and honest with them about your recovery goals and any apprehensions you have along the way.
For more information on your support system or for immediate referral into a treatment program, call our helpline toll free at 800-442-6158 Who Answers? .
