When you think of drugs and family, your thoughts probably instantly go to teenagers with shady friends and rebellious behaviors. The last thing that comes to mind is a mom with a drug problem.
If an expectant mother has a drug problem, it’s usually discovered by her doctor quickly during prenatal visits. Hopefully, she’ll get help dealing with her addiction for the safety of her unborn child. However, some moms start doing drugs after they have children.
Why Would a Mom Do Drugs?
The Caron Treatment Centers did a survey and found that 88 percent of women have admitted to drinking alcohol at home and 70 percent of them have driven while under the influence of alcohol.
On top of that, 44 percent of women that participated admitted that they have abused prescription drugs. The most shocking part? Seventy-four percent of the women surveyed were mothers.
Women get addicted, and abuse drugs and alcohol, for many of the same reasons everyone else falls into that trap.Stress or anxiety are perhaps the biggest culprits. Other reasons, found through this same survey, were issues with romantic relationships, pressure from friends and family, experiencing a traumatic event, or just boredom.
Putting Family First.
Sometimes the answer to a mom with an addiction comes from the little voices.When your addiction becomes obvious to even your youngest children, their request for you to get help may be the turning point. However, in order to get better, you need to want to get better.
Moms that are addicted to drugs need to be able to see what they are doing to their family and they need to know that it can be turned around. They also need their families’ support. If anyway turns on them or walks away, it could cause a relapse.
Drug addicted and alcoholic parents make it more likely that their children will have these same bad habits at some point in their lives. Think of that the next time you consider abusing drugs or alcohol!
Help for Women with Drug Addiction.
There is help out there, through both therapy and rehab. Rehab facilities know that recovery is different for women than it is for men, which is why it is important for a woman to seek help from a program designed specifically for them.
The right program can also help you focus on your family, the most important people in your life. This new focus could be what it takes to break your addiction and get you on the path to a new healthier life.
Addiction is an illness, but there is a cure. If you feel like you have a problem or know someone that does, get help before it’s too late. A drug-addicted mom could lose her children because she is an unfit parent.
But it doesn’t have to end up that way if you get help and commit to a healthier lifestyle.