Supporting a loved one with alcohol dependency
If you’ve found yourself carrying the weight of a loved one’s alcohol dependency, first know: you are not alone. Compassion, both for you and them, is the first gentle step toward healing.
Seeing someone you care about struggle and harm themselves can stir confusion, pain, and a longing to fix things. But trying to control outcomes can lead to enabling, which often perpetuates the cycle.
Enabling happens when actions unintentionally protect someone from facing the consequences of their drinking. This could be covering for them and making excuses because you yourself feel ashamed and hopeless. This could also be taking on their responsibilities and supporting them financially. It may feel loving, but it keeps the problem hidden, not healed.
Instead, we’d encourage you to start with caring boundaries. You can still love deeply while making clear what behaviours you cannot accept or enable. Boundaries are not walls; they are vital lines that protect your wellbeing so you can continue to support your loved one in safe and healthier ways.
Treatment for alcohol misuse varies. It might involve counselling, self-help groups, or talking therapies such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). Some people benefit from medically supervised detoxification, especially in higher-risk situations. Medicines can help too, under professional care. What matters most is that treatment meets the person exactly where they are.
The support for you matters just as much. Reach out to groups or forums where families share similar journeys. These are places where listening, understanding, and shared wisdom flow. You don’t have to carry the burden in silence and work through it on your own – often, it’s far too much to handle individually.
It’s okay to hope for change. Recovery is possible. Day by day, with honesty, kindness and a willingness to both give and receive help, healing becomes real.
If you want to chat to one of our trained counsellors about alcohol dependency, get in touch.