Living With a Lesbian Person Struggling With Alcohol Addiction: Hard Truths to Accept

Living With a Lesbian Person Struggling With Alcohol Addiction: Hard Truths to Accept

If you’re living with a lesbian individual struggling with alcohol addiction, you probably have more than a few horror stories to share. Your life has undoubtedly been filled with stress and uncertainty as you watch your lesbian loved one spiral into addiction. Living with a lesbian person struggling with alcohol addiction can seem hopeless. Many times, lesbian people come out on the other side of addiction into a better, more fulfilling life. Until that time comes, here are some tips for living with a lesbian in alcohol addiction as well as some hard truths you need to face.

Truths About Living with a Lesbian Loved One Struggling with Alcohol Addiction 

Here are five truths you should know about a lesbian person living with you and struggling with alcohol addiction.

• They Might Not Be Honest

  Your lesbian loved one might deny the truth about their alcohol struggle to themselves and to everyone else. They won’t be honest about where they’ve been, what they’ve been doing, or who they’ve been doing it with, and they also won’t tell you the truth about where the money you've been giving them is going or why they were late getting home. Most worrisome of all, your lesbian loved one will repeatedly lie about their intentions to get clean and sober because alcohol is their priority. They’ll tell you what you want to hear to get you off their back.

• They Have a Treatable Condition

  No one wants to struggle with drug addiction. Your lesbian loved one made the initial choice to try alcohol, but as addiction sets in, changes in the brain make it very hard to stop. Although it is understandable for lesbian loved ones to feel angry and resentful, the only approach that improves the situation is to love the lesbian person struggling with the addiction and hate the condition, not the other way around. They are sick and need treatment, and oftentimes if they try to quit on their own, they may not succeed. Because alcohol addiction is no one’s fault, there is no place for judgment, guilt, punishment, or blame in the recovery process.

• Relapse is a Common Part of Alcohol Addiction Recovery

  With all the effort you may put into getting your lesbian loved one into treatment, it can be devastating if the loved one slips back into alcohol use. But with a serious condition like alcohol addiction, there is no quick fix. It takes time for the brain to heal and for new thought and behavior patterns to take root. A clear understanding of the chronic nature of alcohol addiction can prepare you to take swift action if the lesbian individual relapses. Relapse can be a valuable learning opportunity that sets lesbian people on the path toward long-term addiction recovery. This understanding not only feels better in the short term but also grants loved ones the lasting peace of mind of knowing they are doing all they can to help themselves and the lesbian struggling with alcohol addiction.

• You May Have to Leave

  When you’re living with a lesbian loved one struggling with addiction, you can only hope and put your needs aside for so long. If your lesbian loved one stubbornly refuses to seek help or is in and out of alcohol addiction treatment centers with no intention of staying sober, there may come a time when you’ll have no choice but to leave. You might need to hit rock bottom before they’re finally ready to admit the truth. If you've done everything you can for them to seek help and they've refused to do so, you might decide to leave before things get out of hand and in doing so you’re justified. Leaving a lesbian loved one struggling with alcohol isn’t easy. Sometimes it’s for the best.

• They Need Your Help and Support

  You can’t cure your lesbian loved one’s alcohol addiction, but you can facilitate their recovery. This is because your lesbian loved one may feel conflicted about getting treatment. You may have to urge them as a friend or family member to get help. The help or intervention can be an effective way to help them recognize the seriousness of their problem and agree to treatment. During treatment, stay involved through their therapy and any other programs offered for the lesbian loved ones. Learn all you can about alcohol addiction as well as any unhelpful behaviors they may have adopted that contribute to the addictive pattern.

Get Treated Today For Alcohol Addiction at Pride Detox

Alcohol addiction is a real thing, and it's something that you should take seriously. You can get help for alcohol addiction if you or another lesbian loved one you feel needs it. With the right treatment and support, it is possible to overcome this addiction and live a healthy, happy life as a lesbian person. At Pride detox, we understand that everyone is fallible and that mistakes happen. If you're struggling with alcohol addiction, we want to help you recover and get your life back on track. Our attentive staff will work with you one-on-one to create a recovery plan that is targeted towards your needs and goals. If you or a fellow lesbian person you love is struggling with alcohol addiction, know that help is within reach. Call 1-562-525-5121 or visit Pride Detox to connect without our support services designed specifically for LGBTQ+ people.