The Impact of Addiction on Children
There’s no way around it: children are the most damaged by addiction, especially if they are raised in a house with an addicted parent. Whether or not that addiction is functional, the children always suffer. Almost all develop psychological issues related to their parents’ behavior, one in four will develop addictions of their own, abuse or being a witness to abuse is far more likely, and almost all will have a hard time developing positive relationships throughout their lives if they don’t undergo treatment and address the situation.
Treatment for Children of Addicts and Alcoholics
Children of addicts and alcoholics will always require treatment of their own in order to heal after a parent’s addiction. Even if the parent is no longer in the home due to incarceration, abandonment, separation, divorce, or death, the child will still need help dealing with the fallout of a parent’s addiction. The emotional toll is high and stays with a child, even if the parent gets treatment and remains clean and sober. Addressing the issues that come up for the child all the way into adulthood can help them to recover from the trauma they’ve experienced and avoid replicating their parent’s behavior.
Why Addiction is So Traumatic for Children
When a parent is addicted to alcohol or drugs, even if the other parent is not, life is chaotic and unpredictable. Adequate care and attention is rarely given the child. They miss basic doctor’s and dentist’s appointments. Their clothes are dirty, too big, or too small. A parent may be overly loving and indulgent with the child one minute and then, for no apparent reason that the child can see, that same parent can be withdrawn, angry, irrational, or act “crazy.” Rules may be rigid but the parent may be inconsistent in upholding those rules, rarely following through on punishments or to make sure that the child is doing what he or she needs to do for themselves or for school.
The result is that children feel embarrassed by their parent’s behavior, insecure and confused. They love their parent and wish that they were more like the loving version of themselves that they occasionally see. Few want to have friends over because they are afraid of how their parent will behave and most, as they grow older, work hard to spend as much time as possible away from home – or conversely, spend more and more time at home because they are worried about their parent and need to make sure they will be okay.
Find Help for Children of Addicts and Alcoholics Now
If you are the child of an addict or alcoholic, help is available through support groups and therapy. If you have children and you are living with an addiction or alcoholism, contact us at Michael’s House today to learn how you can get the help you need – for your sake and for the sake of your child.
