Welcome to the Addiction Blog RoundUp for this week. I found some interesting things that highlighted the holiday week here in the US. I hope you find them helpful.
What’s Thanksgiving to the Parent of and Addict?
This week at An Addict In Our Son’s Bedroom, Ron wrote a blog post about the holidays and how to cope with codependency or secondhand addiction issues. There is both some sharing of painful memories, and some wisdom about ways of coping that are helpful for all involved. There is also a good reminder:
“Never stop believing”.
Are You Ready to Forgive Your Addicted Child?
Cathy Taughinbaugh of cathytaughinbaugh.com has a guest post over at Parent Pathway about forgiveness. She goes a little bit into the research around forgiveness and then gives 26 reasons to forgive related to addicts and self. I especially like # 18:
“Forgiveness does not mean you must continue a
relationship with someone causing you harm”.
How to Help a Friend with Addiction
As a friend, you may be the first person to recognize that someone is struggling with an addiction issue. Tim Davis over at addictionblog.org is talking about the importance of this recognition this week. He notes that a friend may be one of the best people to intervene and he gives some suggestions of how to do so.
This is an interesting campaign highlighted over at the Drug Policy Alliance. Moms United to End the War on Drugs head up this annual campaign and their mission statement proposes to stop the stigmatization and criminalization of drug use. I am realistic enough to know that there will always be empty chairs at the table due to this disease, however their goal seems to be a good one.
Here is the video.
Getting Throgh The Holidays With Gratitude And Your Sanity
Finally, here is an article about getting through the holidays: the trifecta if you will. Tracey Jackson at Gratitude and Trust writes as a reminder that we can change ourselves, but not the others in the holiday room. No matter how much we might want to, wish for it, or feel the pain around it, we cannot change others.
That’s it for this week. Have a great weekend!
If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or codependency issues, Contact me today to arrange a free, no-obligation consultation to talk about how we can work together or find the right person for you.
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