Facts indicate that couples counseling can handle addiction issues, including the relationship problems associated with it.
However, some partners get offended or confused if one of them suggests consulting counseling services to solve their relationship and addiction issues.
What both partners should realize is they can both can experience addiction challenges even if only one of them is struggling with it.
Besides, below are a few crucial ways that counseling can help in addiction recovery and restoring a better relationship.
Counseling Help Couples Handle Emotional Problems
Many life occasions contribute to emotional stress, which can become worse with addiction. Some problems that affect couples include the death of their loved ones or parents.
When relationship issues occur between spouses, the addict may concentrate on habits that strengthen addiction. Alternatively, the other partner may focus on the addict as the leading cause of existing problems, rather than admitting their relationship has problems.
Additionally, many addicts do not realize they have co-occurring mental health issues, which contribute to emotional distress.
However, with professional couples programs, spouses can learn to handle their emotional issues in various benefiting ways. Also, these programs can prevent the manipulation from addicted partners with controlling behaviors to take charge of everything, leaving the other partner unsupported or isolated.
Detecting and Solving Issues Resulting From the Addiction
Counseling for challenges involved in relationships can help couples to detect and solve issues resulting from the addiction itself.
Problems caused by addiction may include:
- legal problems due to alcohol, drug and sex addictions
- financial difficulties, arising from gambling, drugs, and overspending addictions
- sex addiction increasing risks to HIV and STDs infections
- health problems associated with food, drugs, and alcohol
While these are not the only problems resulting from addiction, the advantage of couples counseling is that it can help them to solve all issues they desire to overcome.
Counseling Helps to Resolve and Repair Relationship Issues
One of the most significant help that couples counseling can offer to spouses affected by addiction includes resolving and repairing the damaged relationship.
Although couples may experience challenges acknowledging their relationship disputes, the best recovery can happen if they handle and solve relationship problems together.
Other addressed issues may include accepting and healing from existing or past affairs, restoring patterns of secrecy and lies, requesting and granting forgiveness, ending abusive behaviors, among others.
Enabling an Addiction Is a Relationship Problem
Although an addiction seems to be controlled by the addict, it is often a relationship problem. The non-addicted spouse may unintentionally enable the addiction, and if both partners are addicted, it may not be easy for them to quit.
Enabling behaviors are partner’s habits that prolong addiction, usually without such intentions. These include eliminating messes, covering up, lending money, and caring for the addict’s responsibilities.
However, professional counseling may help the couple become aware of these enabling habits and help them solve them.
Final Words from the Recover
If you are struggling in your marriage or relationship due to addiction or substance use, you can contact support and treatment facilities in your area. Check whether they offer professional counseling services to address your relationship needs before you enroll in a perfect match.
