By statistics, all of us should at least know someone who uses and abuses drugs or alcohol. In fact, there is a very high statistical chance that either in our immediate family or in our extended family there is someone who is and has been addicted for some time.
The real numbers according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, in 2007, are that there are an estimated 22.3 million persons were classified with substance dependence or abuse in the past year. These were all over the age of 12 years of age and that means just fewer than 10 percent of the young adult and adult population suffers from addiction. One could assume that 1 out of every 10 people you meet on the street potentially suffers from addiction to either drugs or alcohol or both.
So based on the governmental estimates and, in honesty, our simple observation of those around us, it is clear that addiction not only affects us but also by implication, is there for us to confront.
What this means is that if there is a problem with a family member, friend or co-worker, to the degree that we celebrate our freedom from the slavery of addiction, we should nudge, prod and insist that those addicted get help. After all, the result of getting help is a life saved so your insistence is actually not an embarrassment or "overstepping your bounds". Too many people have died waiting for someone to insist they get the help they need. By the nature of addiction the individual trapped by their substance abuse is not likely to decide while using drugs or alcohol "successfully" that they need to get help.
On the contrary, the person using drugs and alcohol in an environment of people who totally tolerate their use and abuse will develop much stronger addictions and use even more.
It may seem like getting someone addiction treatment, which includes convincing them they need to seek help, is un-doable and not their responsibility. While every person alive decides for themselves what they are and are not responsible for, it might be wiser to consider stepping in at least to try.
There are millions of family members and friends who over the years have resisted forcing someone to get help only to have to spend the rest of their life regretting it after the person dies due to their drug or alcohol use. Realizing too late that you really did care for the person and that you could have made a difference is just another miserable side effect of drug and alcohol use and addiction.
In short, there are way too many people in our lives who need a helping hand. As hard as we may try to avoid thinking that we should do something, deep inside we know. It is our duty after all to help those who can't help themselves and those who are addicted definitely falls into this enslaved category. Find out about helping someone addicted today.
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