444 Alcohol and Other Drugs
Living with
Someone
Who Has a
Drinking or
Drug
Problem
➤ Women whose
partners use injection
drugs are at risk
for getting HIV and
hepatitis.
Often women must care for someone, like a partner or a
male relative, who has a drinking or drug problem. Living with
someone with these problems is very difficult, especially if
the person does not want to change. You can help yourself
and your family if you:
• do not blame yourself. It is not
always possible to help another
person control his or her drug
or alcohol use.
• try not to
rely on the
person’s
opinion of
you to feel
good about
yourself.
• try to find
a support
group for you and your family. Sometimes this is the only
way a family can cope with the problem.
➤ Al Anon is an
organization like AA,
that provides support
and help for family
members of alcoholics.
423
helping relationships
I found out I was a people
gatherer... What got me to
move forward was other
people around me. I did not
think of myself as a leader,
but there I was, getting
people together to
talk about this.
Bonnie, from the USA, talks of her
struggle with her husband’s drinking.
She now works with Al Anon.
How to help someone with a drinking or drug problem:
• Help him admit he has a problem.This may be all that is
needed for him to use less or stop, unless he is addicted.
• Talk to him about stopping when he is not drunk or on drugs.
• Try not to blame him.
• Help him to avoid situations where he may feel pressured
to drink or take drugs. This means not being with people
with the same problem, even if they are friends.
• Help him to find other ways to cope with life’s problems
and to have better mental health.
• Help him make a plan for stopping and follow that plan.
Where Women Have No Doctor 2012