Monday, January 24, 2011

How Drug And Alcohol Abuse Affect An Addicts Ability To Parent

Many people wonder how a person like Britney Spears, who appears to have it all, would enter into the world of addiction. Non-addicts have difficulty understanding how Britney Spears can choose to get "high" over parenting her own children. Many non-addictive people think that parenting instincts come natural and nothing could interfere with a person's ability to love and raise their children appropriately. Britney Spears with the help of the media is showing the world how an addict loses all sense of purpose and what is truly important in life.

Drug and alcohol abuse often help fill a void in an addict's life

Addicts use drugs and alcohol for various reasons. Some addicts use drugs and alcohol due to suffering severe physical or sexual abuse; others cover up painful childhood memories and others have learned the behavior from their family environment. Drug and alcohol abuse often help fill a void in an addict's life. The drugs and alcohol become their best friend; always around to make them feel good.

Addicts will typically disregard family, friends and even court orders for drug and alcohol abuse treatment

Unfortunately the addict does not think about the people they are hurting the most. The addict does not see that their actions are not only hurting themselves but are often hurting the innocent people that care most about them. As we are witnessing with Britney Spears, the addict only thinks about themselves and their next high. Britney Spears behavior appears to show that she does not care about the consequences of her actions, or inactions. Addicts will typically disregard family, friends and even court orders for drug and alcohol abuse treatment.

The media is playing a pivotal role in Britney Spears Drug And Alcohol Abuse

The public has witnessed the spiral downfall of an addict. By broadcasting Britney Spears spiral downfall; the media is playing a pivotal role in her continuing downfall. The media is feeding into Britney Spears feeling that she is the center of the universe that is enabling her destructive behavior to continue. But to ask the media to stop covering the Britney Spears story is an unrealistic request and ultimately the responsibility for Britney Spears addiction lies with Britney Spears.

Getting an addict the drug and alcohol abuse treatment they need

But for an addict to seek help they need to hit rock bottom. The addict needs to lose everything to see how drugs and alcohol abuse has been the cause of everything they have lost. When addicts become aware of their behavior they can often feel guilt and shame. This is the crucial time for loved ones to help the addict get the drug and alcohol abuse treatment they need. Without drug and alcohol abuse treatment during this crucial time the addict will likely choose the drugs and alcohol to block the feelings of shame and guilt rather than choosing the difficult road to recovery.

After successful completion of a drug and alcohol abuse treatment program family and friends can help

While in drug and alcohol abuse treatment, addicts like Britney Spears can learn more appropriate coping skills and discover the reasons why they began using drugs and alcohol in the first place. An addict cannot enter drug and alcohol abuse treatment for their family, the court, their attorney or even their children. Britney Spears as well as other addicts need to seek help and want to recover for themselves. After successful completion of a drug and alcohol abuse treatment program family and friends can help an addict by loving, supporting and encouraging the desired behavior, but ultimately the desire and decision to stay clean lies with the addict.




Lisa Dunning is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Specializing in Parent/Child Relationship issues and the author of "Good Parents Bad Parenting: How To Parent Together When Your Parenting Styles Are Worlds Apart". She provides marriage, divorce and parenting advice phone sessions to clientele across the United States and Canada and provides expert marriage, divorce and parenting advice to newspaper & magazine columnists. To learn more about Lisa Dunning visit her website at http://www.LisaDunningMFT.com

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