Addicts are the masters of hopelessness. Addiction rewires the brain to crave more and more of the alcohol or drug it is addicted to. The longer your child is addicted to these chemicals, the harder it is to escape.
Fighting this battle leads to a sense of hopelessness for most addicts. They get to the point where being numb feels better than charging against “Goliath” every minute of the day, failing again and again. Eventually, they lose hope.
Hopelessness is contagious. If you’re the parent of an addicted child, don’t let it defeat you, too.
Instead, do whatever you can to rekindle hopefulness in your addicted child.
Begin by practicing the “Show Don’t Tell” principle. When your child was young, you could teach by instruction. But those days are gone. Now your child is a teen or older, and the addicted brain is unteachable. The best way to work around this obstacle is to demonstrate hope by living it.
Here’s how. If you want your addicted child to regain a sense of hope for the future, find the positive in YOUR life and celebrate it every day. Live in the present moment and express your gratitude for even the tiniest bit of goodness in your life. If you’re a spiritual person, walk your talk.
That’s right. Release your child’s life and concentrate 100% on cultivating hope in YOUR life. Hope is like a flower. If you water hope regularly with positive thoughts and words, it will grow and thrive.
Ready for some good news? Hope is as contagious as hopelessness. It is. Keep nurturing the hope in your life through your words and actions. Soon you’ll notice an energy shift in your family. Everyone will become more hopeful. Even your addicted child. Imagine that?
Children watch their parents like hawks. Your best parenting comes from teaching by example. Serve your family a large dose of hope every day through your hopeful life. Hope is good medicine. Why? It’s what you need to create a miracle.
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Is your child addicted to drugs or alcohol? Are you trapped on the emotional rollercoaster of addiction? Dave Cooke can help. He’s an Addiction Coach and an internationally recognized speaker. Let him show you how to create an action plan that will move you, your family, and your addicted child back on track in a healthier direction. Go to https://www.100pedals.com/coaching/ for more information or contact Dave at dave@100Pedals.com.
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