By admin addiction AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center Detoxification Dr. Dalal Akoury Drugs Heavy Metal Toxicit Wellness Retreat July 12, 2014

Helping your friends who use drugs-Being your friend keeper

Have you ever asked yourself what the kind of society we will have if drugs are not a bused and no one is addicted to drugs? Try visualizing that in your mind and imagine seeing yourself being the reason behind that atmosphere where drugs and addiction is never heard of, this is the society we are advocating for and you can be very instrumental in making it happen. We have been posting very informative articles on this link relating to addiction among other life changing topic and just recently we posted one detailing the consequences of drugs abuse and drug addiction which I will encourage you to look at even as you continue learning more about your role in helping those of your friends who may be struggling with drug addiction.

The problem of addiction in our societies today must not be left for the medical doctors and health professionals only to tackle. This problem must be fought from all directions, since it can affect anyone without discriminating on who to affect so everybody should be involved and you are part of that group of everybody. The question you are likely to ask is “how or what can I do to help?” in this article we will be discussing some of the things you can and should do to contribute in the fight against drug addiction and the following are just some of the things you can do:

Treatment
You owe your fiend the duty of care in all dimensions and especially that friend using drugs. People using drugs often find it difficult to consent seeking treatment, if your friend is one you can take the advantage of being their friend to prevail upon them to accept treatment because this will help them stop abusing the substances they abuse. There are many ways of administering treatment which may include talk therapy, medicine or even both. Receiving treatment will help them resist the urges or desire to use drugs again and also helps them be in control of their lives. The objective of treatment is to have the addict recover from their addiction and start living life without drugs. Your condition does not matter treatment is there for everyone whether you are a new drug user, heavy user or an addict you can be treated and get better. Take that bold step and be a hero by convincing you friend to seek help (treatment) and that will be a positive contribution on your part.

Understand the dangers
It is important to note that you can only help someone if you know and understand the dangers of the problem at hand. We have in our previous article discussed some of the consequences of addiction you can make reference to. On your part you must have clear understanding of how destructive drugs can be to you physically, psychologically, emotionally and economically. Having the clear knowledge will help you avoid drugs and be sober even as you look forward to helping those in drugs already.

Helping yourself and someone you love

Remember drugs addiction can affect anyone and you are not excluded and so let us start with you before you can go helping somebody. If you have ever tried using drugs before and felt bad about it, it is important that you share this with someone trusted immediately preferably your parents. This must not wait any longer because it may graduate to other serious problems your parents or any trusted adult will know what to do and they will ensure that you helped before things go from bad to worse.

However if it is your friend or any of your family members who has or is beginning to start using drugs or is associating with bad company, you must not keep quiet because you can help in the following ways:

Talk to an adult -bring this to the attention of somebody senior it could be your teachers, school counselors or social workers these people will have ideas that can help you talk to your friend about their drug use. Seek for useful information and ideas to help them if you do not want to name anyone. They are specially trained to deal with teens and drug use.
Take a risk -sometimes it may be necessary that you take some manageable risk because talking to your friend about his drug use may not be an easy thing to do, as this can make him angry. Nonetheless try and spending some quiet time with him (not in quiet, hide outs that will put you in trouble), and let remind him of the dangers and potential problems he is getting into. Ensure that you speak to him only when he is sober but if he is angry, you may have to stay away from his company. But continue to care for him and share ideas with him.
Remind them that help is available -Sometimes people want confidential help, because they do not want anyone to know about their situation. This is OK. Try and research and find them a counseling service around. You can always ask adults (teachers or parents) about places for teen counseling, and give your friend the information to seek the confidential help.
Be careful yourself -You can also be tempted into drugs one day. Knowing the facts like what you are doing now is a great way to stay away and say NO! Be careful and keep distance with bad company. Do not even entertain them. If your good friends have fallen to drugs, be careful they do not drag you into it and to be safe drop them from your list of friends fourth with.

Finally having been a good a ambassador of fighting drug addiction by helping others through vital information it is important that your friends get to know that when addiction hits hard treatment from addiction professionals will be very helpful and Dr. Dalal Akoury who founded AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center is an expert in addiction and together with her team of experts will help you get well in real time while focusing on Neuroendocrine Restoration (NER) to reinstate normality through realization of the oneness of Spirit, Mind, and Body, Unifying the threesome into ONE.