It can feel overwhelming when you first seek out treatment for substance abuse. While it is natural to worry about the outcomes of your decision, telling your friends or family that you’re going to treatment is no easy task. Many individuals feel stressed about their decision to seek help. Despite the anxiety, having a strong, solid support group on your side can help you decide if you should mention treatment to your family.
Improving Yourself Is Your Choice
You are already taking a massive step towards a healthier lifestyle, and choosing to enter treatment is a victory in itself. Unfortunately, many individuals who decide to go to treatment avoid telling their friends and family because they’re afraid of the reaction. If that is your situation, remember that it will take your friends and family members some time to process the information.
Not everyone will agree with your decision to seek treatment and may even argue against you getting help. However, if you understand that this hesitancy could be a reflection of their own struggles, you can move down the path that is best suited for you rather than what’s best for them.
Fortunately, getting help for substance abuse will ultimately help you regain control, increase your happiness, and give you a more productive and meaningful life. You deserve to have all of those things in your life, and if you are in the process of improving yourself, others’ opinions are irrelevant, as you are the one who must live with your decision.
How to Tell Your Family
Choosing the appropriate place and time is essential when telling your family about treatment. Therefore, creating a plan ahead of time can avoid your family feeling as if they have been ambushed. It can be a difficult conversation to have, and you may want to wait to tell people until you are in treatment. You can get support and guidance about telling your family when you are in treatment. You need to do what you are comfortable with and what is best for you.
If you’re comfortable telling your friends and family that you’re going to treatment, it’s okay to share those details. More often than not, friends and family are great support systems when we enter a treatment center, but every individual situation is different. If you’re not comfortable sharing information, you don’t have to.
There is no right or wrong way to discuss the information about your choice; your decision to pursue a lifestyle that will be healthier for you is not anyone else’s business. If you are uncomfortable sharing information about seeking treatment, a treatment facility can help you create a plan that will ease communication with your family when you are ready.
At The Guest House, we want to help you find the right words and time to tell your family you are going to treatment. Everyone involved who understands the recovery process can support your decision of seeking a healthier lifestyle free from substance abuse, and those who want to see you succeed can help you turn your life around. If you need help creating a plan to tell your family about going to treatment, and if it’s time to get help for substance abuse, reach out to us at (855) 483-7800.