It is a sink or swim situation.
And while you hope that your oldest son who as been dealing with a major alcohol addiction will find a way to succeed now that he has moved into his own apartment, you and your husband both fear that this will not go well. Unable to convince him to admit himself to a facility that specializes in the latest detox processes, you finally had to give your 30 year old son an ultimatum. He had been living back at home for the last year, but his refusal to follow the rules that you have set in place left you with few alternatives. Although you do not want to see him fail, you fear that you have been enabling his condition.
Treatment for Addictions Often Involves a Long Term Stay at a Detox Center
After the meeting with the one detox doctor that some friends had recommended, it became abundantly clear that your son will likely not be able to solve his problem on his own. Unless your son is arrested again or ends up in the hospital with a dangerous blood alcohol level though there is no way to make him dry out. The one other time that he was hospitalized, the doctors committed him for a five day stay. At that time, your son was still married, and it ended up being the reason that you found out what had been going on. It turns out that your husband’s wife had been struggling to get him to take better care of himself with no success.
Nearly 18 months later, and now divorced, your son is not making any progress. In fact, he appears to be worse. Summoning up all of the tough love that you can find you issued the ultimatum last month. Unless he could quit drinking or unless he agreed to go to a treatment center, he would need to move out.
With two trips so far, you have moved most of your son’s belongings to an apartment that is 60 miles from your home. Treatment for addiction is never easy, but it is impossible if you cannot get him to start. And while your son insists that he does not need anything as formal as treatment for addiction that involves a one month stay, the fact of the matter is he has wasted and made the last 12 months of your life very stressful.
If you have a loved one who is struggling with an addiction you are not alone. In fact, Americans find themselves dealing with a number of addictions, including alcohol and drugs. Unfortunately, the average alcohol addiction patient does not receive treatment until eight years after the age at which they developed the condition. Another frightening fact is that of all emergency room patients admitted for injuries, 47% of them tested positive for alcohol and 35% were intoxicated; of those patients who were intoxicated, 75% showed signs of chronic alcoholism. These statistics are a scary sign of how many problems addiction can cause.