Building Stronger Family Bonds through Family Counseling on the East Coast

Drug and alcohol addiction affects the whole family and creates a dysfunctional system. The result is that to cope, family members often unknowingly take on roles that are in themselves dysfunctional, which is a trigger that drives their loved ones further into the abyss of alcohol and drug use, adding more damage to the family unit and its members. Family counseling is recommended, not just when an addicted member decides to call it quits, but it is particularly helpful amid a loved one’s addiction. Watching a loved one on the path of self-destruction is a difficult situation. Knowing what to do and how to do it becomes a critical factor, especially because family support plays a significant role in the successful recovery of an addict. Family counseling provides awareness and education to deal with the stress associated with a loved one who is in active use or when they are in recovery.

The Counseling Center offers family counseling, provided by licensed professionals, to help and assist the whole family manage the stress caused by addiction. Points addressed during family counseling include identifying underlying issues and ways to resolve them, opening communication and re-establishing a sense of trust and unity, identifying enabling conditions, applying “tough love,” and knowing when intervention is necessary. Whether you are the parents, a spouse, the children, or the recovering member, addiction is a family disease, and family counseling will positively impact preventing relapse.