Gregory L. Jantz Ph.D. - When a Loved One Is Addicted: How to Offer Hope and Help

Created for the Houston chapter of Al-Anon by Sara Wartes (2010).

What Is Addiction? American Psychiatric Association. www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/addiction/what-is
-addiction.

.

Seyyed Salman Alavi, et al., Behavioral Addiction versus Substance Addiction: Correspondence of Psychiatric and Psychological Views, International Journal of Preventive Medicine 3 (April 2012): 290294.

.

Screening Tests, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. https://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh28
-2/78-79.htm.

Presentation by Nora D. Volkow, M.D. to the Senate Caucus on International Narcotic Control, Americas Addiction to Opioids: Heroin and Prescription Drug Abuse, May 4, 2014. https://archives.drugabuse.gov/testimonies/2014/americas-addiction-to-opioids-heroin
-prescription-drug-abuse.

Prescription Drugs and Cold Medicines, National Institute on Drug Abuse. www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/prescription
-drugs-cold-medicines (accessed December 5, 2017).

Lia Steakley, Report Shows over 60 Percent of Americans Dont Follow Doctors Orders in Taking Prescription Meds, Stanford Medicine, April 25, 2012, http://scopeblog.stanford
.edu/2012/04/25/report-shows-over-60-percent-of-americans
-dont-follow-doctors-orders-in-taking-prescription-meds .

.

(accessed January 8, 2017).

Vera Nezgovorova et. al., Problematic Internet Use and Its Impact on Anxiety, Depression, and Addiction, Anxiety and Depression Association of America. https://adaa.org/learn
-from-us/from-the-experts/blog-posts/professional/problematic-internet-use-and-its-impact.

Meredith Somers, More than Half of Christian Men Admit to Watching Pornography, Washington Times, August 24, 2014.

Making the Connection: Trauma and Substance Abuse, The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN), June 2008.

Michael G. Pipich, The Bipolar-Addiction Connection, Psychology Today (September 10, 2018).

Dopamine and Addiction: Separating Myths and Facts, Healthline.com. www.healthline.com/health/dopamine
-addiction#motivation.

Genetics and Epigenetics of Addiction, National Institute on Drug Abuse. Last updated February 2016. www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/genetics-epigenetics
-addiction .

.

Definition of Addiction, American Society of Addiction Medicine. www.asam.org/quality-practice/definition-of
-addiction.

Dan Mager, Addiction as a Family Affliction, Psychology Today (May 2, 2016).

Ron Breazeale, Catastrophic Thinking, Psychology Today (March 25, 2011).

.

Family Disease, National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (February 24, 2016).

John Gramlich, Nearly half of Americans have a family member or close friend whos been addicted to drugs, Pew Research Center. October 26, 2017. www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/10/26/nearly-half-of-americans-have-a
-family-member-or-close-friend-whos-been-addicted-to-drugs.

Caregiver stress: Tips for taking care of yourself, Mayo Clinic. www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress
-management/in-depth/caregiver-stress/art-20044784.

Jeffrey Foote, Carrie Wilkens, Nicole Kosanke, and Stephanie Higgs, Beyond Addiction: How Science and Kindness Help People Change (Scribner, 2014).

Dos and Donts for Dealing with an Addict in Your Life, Narconon. www.narconon.org/blog/drug-addiction/dos-donts
-dealing-addict-life.

.

Drugs, Brains, and Behavior: The Science of Addiction: Treatment and Recovery, National Institute on Drug Abuse. July 2020. www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugs
-brains-behavior-science-addiction/treatment-recovery.

More Resources from
Dr. Gregory L. Jantz

Unmasking Emotional Abuse: Start the Healing

Six Steps to Reduce Stress

Ten Tips for Parenting
the Smartphone Generation

Five Keys to Dealing
with Depression

Five Keys to Health and Healing: Hope for Body,
Mind, and Spirit

Seven Answers for Anxiety

Five Keys to Raising Boys

40 Answers for
Teens Top Questions

When a Loved One Is Addicted: How to Offer Hope and Help

Social Media and Depression: How to be Health and Happy in the Digital Age

www.hendricksonrose.com

When a Loved One Is Addicted: How to Offer Hope and Help

2021 Gregory L. Jantz

Published by Aspire Press

An imprint of Hendrickson Publishing Group

Rose Publishing, LLC

P.O. Box 3473

Peabody, Massachusetts 01961-3473 USA

www.HendricksonPublishingGroup.com

ISBN 978-162862-988-0

All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

The views and opinions expressed in this book are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily express the views of Rose Publishing, LLC, nor is this book intended to be a substitute for mental health treatment or professional counseling. The information in this resource is intended as guidelines for healthy living. Please consult qualified medical, legal, pastoral, and psychological professionals regarding individual concerns.

Rose Publishing, LLC is in no way liable for any context, change of content, or activity for the works listed. Citation of a work does not mean endorsement of all its contents or of other works by the same author(s).

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
www.zondervan.com The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

Scripture quotations marked ( nlt ) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images used under license from Shutterstock.com: fizkes cover, p. 3, 5, 9, 34, 37, 57, 81, 101; laaisee p. 7; Tero Vesalainen p. 11; Elena Shashkina p. 22; alphaspirit.it p. 39; Olaf Holland p. 41; Prostock-studio p. 43, 79; Asier Romero p. 44; Olivier Le Moal p. 47; Ann Patchanan p. 48; Joel Everard p. 51; SvetaZi p. 52; lassedesignen p. 54; Pixelvario p. 60; Denis Belitsky p. 63; KieferPix p. 65; Bartle Halpin p. 67; Thapana Apisariyakul p. 69; Nic Vilceanu p. 70; Fotyma p. 75; rospoint p. 77; Antonio Guillem p. 83; fongbeerredhot p. 88; Svetlana Feofanova p. 99; Love You Stock p. 102.

Build: 2021-08-12 11:43:36 EPUB 3.0

Introduction

Anyone who has suffered the heartbreak of watching someone they love succumb to an addiction will agree that it feels like being trapped in a disorienting carnival hall of mirrors. Once you step inside, even your own reflection becomes distorted. Your footing feels treacherous, the way forward is confusing, and the way out begins to feel impossible to find. Every turn only leads deeper into a maze of dead ends and trap doors.

Thats how it feels but Im happy to tell you, its not the truth. Though there isnt a single map to guide us, every person can find a unique pathway through the fear, guilt, shame, and despair back into the light and fresh air of freedom.

How can I be so sure? The simplest answer to that question is also the most powerful: because God is the Great Healer, for whom anything is possible. As a Christian who has faced deep personal challenges of my own through the years, I know firsthand how true that is. As a mental health professional, Ive seen this marvelous fact demonstrated countless times in the lives of those Ive counseled. No matter what your story is, and no matter how convinced you are that there is no way out, Gods healing grace is undiminished. You can be free of the harmful effects of a loved ones addiction. By grounding yourself in a clear understanding of what addiction is, how and why it takes hold in someones life, and how to protect yourself while maintaining your love for them, youll be far better equipped to offer appropriate help.