How to support a loved one struggling with addiction

April 2, 2025

12:49 pm

head in hands

Finding the appropriate drug addiction rehab UK or drug misuse advice UK can be accessed by anyone by calling a clinician at Find me a rehab. We can also provide free rehab advice online. 

What do I say to someone?  

Before you do this, it is important to understand what the problem is. Gaining an understanding of what addiction is. No one wakes up in the morning with a desire or plan to become addicted to drugs, it is the culmination of a chain of events. For some, especially with opioids, it may stem from a legitimate prescription for pain following an injury or surgery that spiralled out of control. For others, an escape due to abuse. Some people use stimulants to try and enhance their performance, both in the bedroom, on the racetrack or in the boardroom. Some, because of peer pressure and others because of depression or anxiety: Every individual is just that: an individual. Addiction is an equal opportunities illness: It matters not if you are gay, straight, bi, white, black, male, female or in a wheelchair. Muslim, Jewish, Christian: No one is immune.  

Empathy: Not sympathy from a basis of understanding 

Addiction is a disease, just as diabetes or asthma. If you had a relative who was insulin dependent diabetic, you wouldn’t criticise them for having to monitor their carbohydrate intake. Similarly, if you have a friend who is in recovery from alcohol, you would not be offended if they declined a social gathering invitation so they could attend an AA meeting. Knowing about addiction, how it affects a person and the treatment options available puts someone in a better position to offer appropriate support.  

Offer support but do not enable 

Making someone, caught up in addiction, that you want to support them could make all the difference. Many clients, in treatment, will tell you that they were unaware of how much support was available to them from their “inner circle” until someone came forward. Supporting someone doesn’t mean enabling them. For example, paying someone’s drug debt and/or “scoring” for them is not supporting. The only exception to this is where someone who is heavily alcohol dependent should never be left without alcohol due to the danger of withdrawal. If you need advice and/or support before speaking to someone you are worried about, please call in. Alternatively, we can provide rehab advice online. We can help with drug addiction rehab UK as well as drug misuse advice UK. 

Encourage them to get help 

This can be the most challenging aspect. The adage “You can take a horse to water, but you cannot make it drink” comes to mind. Treatment, in the UK, is voluntary. Trying to deceive someone into getting into treatment is, not only entirely unethical and illegal, but it is also counterproductive. It would destroy any trust between the person in addiction and the person trying to help. Obtain leaflets, show them websites, give them the phone number for Find me a Rehab: It matters not. If you are going to plan an “intervention”, with the help of family/friends, ensure it is not done is a confrontational manner. 

Support the person while in treatment  

Having achieved an admission for someone caught up in addiction, it is essential that they feel supported: both in treatment and after discharge. Withdrawing support could be damaging to their recovery. Some centres, with the person in treatments consent, may invite you in to join a therapy session and/or discuss aspects of the post-discharge recovery plan.  

Be aware of your limitations 

Supporting someone caught up in addiction can be draining. It is imperative that, by offering support, you do not “burn yourself out”. You cannot cure an addict, but you can certainly help. As with anyone who is ill, it is important to be healthy, yourself and to look after your own needs: first.  

How can Find me a Rehab help?  

We are not just here to advise on which rehab may be suitable. Our clinicians, with their decades of experience in the field of addictions, can provide free, confidential and impartial advice to anyone concerned about their own, or someone else’s, drug and alcohol addiction. For those who don’t feel up to talking, we can provide free rehab advice online. Our clinicians can provide free drug misuse advice UK as well as information on drug addiction rehab UK.