Every person experiences some trials and tribulations through life in the development stage of young to middle adulthood. Stress factors may include an accident that causes trauma to a person, becoming dependent on substances, choosing to create unhealthy habits, or the lack of a parent in the home and the person’s life. The decisions an adult makes are often directed by the feelings created and experiences through the adolescent stage and many of those that will carry into adulthood, having a drastic effect on relationships with family and friends.
When a member of the family is experiencing a substance abuse problem, it can greatly affect all parties involved. Drugs and alcohol begin to change who the person is as it creates the feeling life is not important enough to become sober again, and that life’s problems diminish when under the influence. Family members become desperate to help and may start to enable a person or make excuses for the abuse problem over the years. Families place the blame on the substance instead of the person abusing drugs, or alcohol and parents will usually become the biggest enabler. Allowing adult children to move back into the home during dependency and not holding them responsible will only further the current problems. (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman, 2010).
The combination of alcohol and prescription drugs being abused will cause a person to become isolated from society as they become more depressed about their dependency. Alcohol is a depressant, and when combined with narcotics, the effects are intensified. This deadly mix can cause death by overdose, or make the trauma to a brain injury take longer to heal. Peers develop a sense of not wanting the person around when drinking is involved so the responsibility of something happening to a friend is not a problem, or the person may decide to hide from the problems and not take part in social activities. (Nevid, Green, Johnson, & Taylor, 2012).
If the dependency problem in...