KHTS Radio Santa Clarita Radio – Santa Clarita News
Boundaries are an incredibly effective method families use to help themselves and their loved ones from harm when battling an addiction.
Watching someone you love struggle with addiction is heartbreaking. Often, spouses of those suffering and their families change their entire lives to be able to give their support more effectively. While amiable and often necessary, this sets addiction as the tone for the dynamic of the entire family.
The reality of addiction is that it doesn’t only affect the individual. It affects entire families and can damage relationships, mental states, and even physical states of multiple people. Addiction tests the strong familial bonds that we have.
Related: Pornography Addictions Cause A Neurological Impact Says Desert Solace
Because of this, Desert Solace, an inpatient rehabilitation facility in Utah, treats not only the person battling the addiction, but their support system as well. In this way, everyone involved is able to fully heal.
A common struggle in those who face addiction is self-esteem. Many feel as though their inability to stop their addiction makes them weak or deserving of this pain. What they, and many others, fail to realize is that family members may also struggle with an addiction caused negative self-image.
Thoughts like, “If only I’d been stricter with my child, [they] wouldn’t be harming [themself] like this,” often occur in parents. From spouses, thoughts such as, “if I was a better wife, my husband wouldn’t turn to his addiction as a way of numbing out.”
These statements are ways for family members to blame themselves for their loved one’s addiction. Addiction, however, isn’t any singular person’s fault. It’s a result of built-up pain and shame over a long period of time.
For this reason, families struggling with addiction should set frim boundaries. Boundaries allow families to communicate with one another and start conversations about what is allowed when showing affection and love for one another without overstepping into micro-managing or controlling behaviors.
Desert Solace teaches the families in their programs that boundaries are created to help set clear goals with their loved ones. This curriculum has been included since day one because the founders of Desert Solace found success in setting boundaries when facing addiction.
Mark and Jerri Jorgensen founded Desert Solace after battling Mark’s addiction to pornography and beating it.
“When I figured out that [Mark] … had a pornography addiction,” Jerri explained, “I went ‘Well that’s not going to work in my life. That’s not going to work for me, but I’m willing to take this journey with you. But I am not living with someone in addiction.”
By setting this clear boundary, the Jorgensens were able to set goals — staying married and working together through the addiction. They were also able to be clear about the results of not fighting to beat this addiction — if Mark didn’t start a journey towards recovery, Jerri could not stay in the marriage.
Once these goals were met, the Jorgensens used their experiences in successfully beating the addiction to found Desert Solace in order to help others reach their own recovery goals.
Jerri Jorgensen, Desert Solace’s family liaison, stated that setting strong boundaries is one of the most important steps a family can take for their loved one’s recovery. “Boundaries are critical, and boundaries aren’t punishment — they are for our safety,” she explained. “Because you can’t control anyone. And [the family members] get to learn that.”
Desert Solace is an inpatient addiction treatment center in St. George, Utah. Desert Solace specializes in the treatment of pornography and sex addictions. Additionally, they offer treatment programs for gaming, gambling and substance abuse. Their inpatient facility for porn, sex, gaming, gambling and substance addictions features professional, licensed counselors, a top-rated chef, equine therapy and more. Desert Solace believes in involving the clients family in the recovery process.
Desert Solace
1239 West 4200 North
St. George, UT 84770, USA
info@desertsolace.com
(435) 817-1351
