An alcoholic hitting bottom doesn’t happen often. Preparing for when they decide to get treatment is critical. To get them in recovery fast, a prepared plan of action for this moment will be helpful. When a problem drinker finally hits bottom you must be able to move quickly.
Research Local Treatment Centers-Every medium to large sized city has some types of recovery programs for alcoholics. Organizations such as the Salvation Army will help people get sober by admitting them into long term programs. You must know what your options are for treatment prior to the problem drinker crying out for help.
Have Money Put Aside-If you don’t find a free program, it’s going to cost several thousand dollars to get them into a good recovery program. If it is a spouse who supplies the main source of income for the family, then you’re going to have to live off of savings for a while. You may even have to find employment if you are not working.
Understand Your Insurance Policy-Not all treatment centers will accept your insurance policy and not all insurance agencies will cover your choice of treatment center. Know before the alcoholic hits bottom where and how your loved one will get treatment so that the insurance covers the expenses.
Research What the Government Will Cover-The government oftentimes has programs that will help cover the expenses when an alcoholic hits bottom. Many treatment facilities have government funding that will help lesson the cost of your spouse, or child getting the help they need. Ask them if they can help with the expenses.
If You Have Young Children-Obviously with an alcoholic spouse in a recovery program, when you have small children the workload is going to increase on you. Think through how you will handle getting the children to daycare or school once the alcoholic hits bottom. You will be responsible for paying the bills, cooking all the meals, doing all the laundry, providing a living for the children and you will have to temporary play the role of the mother or father. IF you have a lawn or pool to care for it’s now your responsibility. Talking to friends or family members in advance about them helping you when they hit bottom is a good idea.
Always Have A Back-Up Plan-How will you handle things if they drop out of the treatment center or finish the program and start drinking again? An alcoholic hitting bottom is a wonderful thing, but this is just the beginning of learning how to live a completely different lifestyle. Alcoholism recovery stages can have intense ups-and-downs. Just because there is hope of them getting better doesn’t mean the problems will be solved. Sure difficulties in life will be lessened, but the alcoholic is going to have to learn how to deal with things that they used to escape from by drinking. If they fail, you must be prepared by attending group meetings to learn how to recovery from the disappointment.
Why not start today by finding local meetings for family or friends of alcoholics?
What Will You Tell The Children-It’s embarrassing for the family who suffers from a person being addicted to alcohol. If the kids know about it, then all of their friends will find out somehow. It could be like a deadly cancer spreading around town. Should you lie or tell the kids the truth? I think it’s always the best policy to tell the truth about the situation. Alcoholism is a very common disease. The sooner your children learn how to not be embarrassed over the family problem drinker, the better off they will be. Al-anon has a program called Ala-teen which can help your teenagers understand better what is happening.
When your loved one finally hits bottom, just know that you’re going to be riding a new set of emotions. The day my spouse decided to get help, I locked my keys in the car and ran out of gas. Thank God I didn’t end up hitting someone with my car that day. My mind was so far removed from the present moment that I did many stupid things. There’s really no way of preparing for the emotional rush you will experience when the alcoholic decides to get help. Just hold on to faith in God and enjoy the ride to recovery.
Leave a Reply