Drug addiction in the USA has risen up to 28.5% in the 12-month period ending in April 2021, summing up to 100,000 drug overdose deaths.
While it is the government’s responsibility to regulate drug usage and stop drug addiction deaths, every US citizen should take individual responsibility to get their family members or friends who are influenced by illegal drugs.
How to get someone into rehab? - If this question is running into your mind, this blog will unblock you and guide you with the next steps.
Table of Contents:
- When Should You Seek Addiction Help?
- Tips to Get Someone Into Drug Rehab Without Forcing
- How To Check-In Your Addicted Friend Into Rehab
- How To Stop Being Influenced By Someone Into Drug Abuse?
- 5 Ways To Say No To Drugs
When Should You Seek Addiction Help?
You should seek addiction help immediately after discovering substance abuse or chemical dependency.
Drug Addiction is not something you can notice immediately (Unless your friend/family member highly addicted). Still, you can notice some change in behavior, most probably some odd behavior which can help you take further action.
You cannot define the observations and behavior changes as they may vary from one to another. Some may show external symptoms like bloodshot eyes, sudden weight loss or gain, or skin lesions.
If you are close to them, you can even notice
- Insomnia
- Neglecting responsibilities
- Avoiding meetups or family time.
- Changes in appetite
- Violent behavior.
Wait! If you notice the below-mentioned changes, you should not waste time and convince your friend or family member to join rehabilitation immediately.
- Neglecting important responsibilities at the workplace.
- Experiencing withdrawal symptoms while attempting to reduce substance use.
- Suffering from pain in isolation
- Poor hygiene and grooming habits.
- Violent Denial if asked upfront about substance abuse.
Tips to Get Someone Into Drug Rehab Without Forcing
It is understandable that getting your close friend or family member into drug rehabilitation is not an easy process. Here are some tips that can help you join your loved ones in recovering from substance use disorders through professional rehabilitation smoothly.
Work on Your Approach
Talking with your friend or family member regarding their addiction is the most sensitive thing. So, it is crucial to work on getting them into drug rehab.
You cannot be straightforward in your approach, like you are suggesting to someone you do not know. You cannot predict the response - It may come out violent or strong denial or even make them disgusting. A wrong or forceful approach might even lead to relationship issues.
Always make sure that you ensure strong emotional support in your approach. That might lead to a successful process of getting your friend or family member into drug rehabilitation.
Hire an Interventionist
If you are successful enough to convince your loved ones to rehab, all you have to do further is to connect to the SAMHSA’s National helpline and get adequate help.
If your convincing attempts go south, do not force them to join the rehabilitation. Instead, you can hire an interventionist. Hiring a professional interventionist is the best way to get your friend or family member into rehab because they are professionally trained and are not emotionally attached to the patient.
Discuss With A Counselor
While you are determined to join your loved ones in drug rehab, ensure you have all the necessary resources, logistics, and financial options like insurance, post-rehabilitation recovery costs, medical expenses, etc. Talk with your insurance provider about the medical coverage for drug and alcohol rehab facilities.
How To Check-In Your Addicted Friend Into Rehab
Getting into the rehab facility involves certain steps
- The facility will conduct a pre-intake drug screening to identify the drug that your loved ones might be influenced by.
- The facility will analyze the best drug rehabilitation program based on the influence of the drug test results.
- The facility will check the patient's underlying health conditions before the addiction treatment. Usually, the facility will ask about the current medications, the history of abuse, psychiatric disorders, etc., during the intake process.
- After the pre-screening and financing options, the facility will take your loved one into an adequate rehabilitation program.
There are two ways where your friend or family member would be given treatment based on the drug abuse - Inpatient treatment and Outpatient treatment.
The rehabilitation centers might focus on detoxification by suggesting Medical Assisted Treatment (MAT) like Naloxone, methadone, and Buprenorphine.
How To Stop Being Influenced By Someone Into Drug Abuse?
You can keep track of your occasional hangouts, avoid taking prescription drugs above limits, and do physical exercises to stop being influenced by someone into drug abuse.
Drug abuse is not a genetic disorder to fall into the trap because of genes. It is all about dopamine release. Here are some ideas to avoid being influenced by someone to take illegal drugs.
- Keep track of your Occasional hangouts - Taking drugs occasionally during hangouts might be ok but make sure you keep your drug intake in check. Keep track of your alcohol or drug intake activities and deny if it goes out of the limit - no matter what. Resist.
- Follow Prescription - Some prescription drugs, if taken above the prescribed levels, might lead to overdose and eventually to drug addiction. So, make sure you stick with your prescription. If you are taking drugs for pain and if it persists, connect with your doctor and take drugs as prescribed.
- Exercise regularly - Physical Activity keeps your body healthy and regulates the functioning of your hormones so that it will not induce unnecessary dopamine needs.
- Join Support Groups - If you are afraid of relapsing, you can join support groups and talk about what you feel. Support groups motivate you to keep yourself away from drug abuse.
5 Ways To Say No To Drugs
- Be direct - Say NO to drugs if you are offered. Be firm and direct. Talking around shows that you are still interested in taking drugs.
- Give a reason: If you are forced to take drugs, give a strong reason and just move away.
- Suggest an alternative: If it is a social gathering of your work colleagues, you can go for a diet coke if you are forced to drink alcohol.
- Go Deaf Ears: If you are mocked or demeaned for not taking alcohol or other drugs, do not react. It is better to go to deaf ears about it.
- Walk away: Walking away is the best solution to avoid taking drugs if you are not confident about your self-control. It is not crucial to test your self-control by being in that environment. Walking away or resisting is itself the best practice.