How to Help a High-Functioning Alcoholic How to Identify the Warning Signs

They might have difficulties controlling their emotions and be prone to anger or violent behavior when drunk. If your husband is an alcoholic, the more you know about the disease, the better prepared you will be to deal with it. It also gives you a sense of control and confidence when you are working with your husband or partner on recovery. One of the major issues that you, as the wife of an alcoholic husband, may face is awkward situations in public or family gatherings. You may come across situations where things go beyond your control, and you might end up in an embarrassing situation. Adult children of alcoholics often have depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and feelings of shame.

• Sometimes there isn’t anything else you can do to help your loved one.
• In the worst case, you would also want to avoid the situation as much as you can.
• This can cause them to become physically or emotionally abusive.
• For example, if your loved one passes out in the yard and you carefully help them into the house and into bed, only you feel the pain.
• Knowing the difference between someone who likes to drink and someone who can’t stop drinking can help you determine what to do.

You can help by offering unconditional support, including abstaining from drinking yourself. If a parent has AUD, a child may experience excessive stress because they don’t know what mood their parent will be in from day to day. Children may no longer be able to rely on the adult with AUD, which can place undue pressures on them. They might also be at risk for other forms of physical and emotional violence.

Learn More About Alcoholism

The Nobu App also has many free resources to help you cope with an alcoholic family member. The scapegoat is the opposite of the hero in a family dynamic. They are the “problem child” who distracts the family from the person with a substance use disorder. The scapegoat is how to live with an alcoholic an outlet for the family to direct some of their anger and frustration while neglecting the real problem. Codependency is a psychological condition or relationship where a person has an unhealthy attachment to another person, who is often controlling or manipulative.

This means you should separate yourself from all empathy towards their behavior. If you truly love the person, you will hate their addiction. When you’re living with a high-functioning alcoholic, your own health is at stake as well as the welfare of your loved one. By getting help for your loved one, you may be able to avoid further consequences of alcoholism and build a healthier future for your family. Although an intervention can take many forms, many of these meetings open with each participant stating how the alcoholic’s behavior has harmed or disappointed them.

More Questions about Treatment?

Dealing with an alcoholic partner and coping with their alcoholic behaviours and tendencies can have a massive impact on a person’s life. Within this blog, we explore the dos and don’ts of living with someone addicted to alcohol. We’ve also put together the dos and don’ts of talking to the person about their drinking, which you can use if and when you’re ready to have this conversation. https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/women-and-alcoholism-how-to-recognize-an-addiction/ Many people who struggle with alcoholism are reluctant to accept treatment on their own. This is why it is important for you to encourage him to seek professional help for alcohol addiction treatment if he seems hesitant to do so. These groups give people affected by someone else’s alcoholism a safe environment to talk about the impact that the person has on their life.