FAMILIES IN RECOVERY
MATRIX INSTITUTE ON ADDICTIONS
MATRIX/UCLA INTEGRATED SUBSTANCE ABUSE PROGRAMS| This is a
lecture about people who are important to each of you. We talk about families in a very broad
sense. In family therapy “family”
means all those people who are part of your everyday existence and are close
to you. Your “family system” includes
people other than those born into your family. It also includes partners, close friends,
associates, and people who are part of your extended family. |
|
| The object of
this talk is to look at how all these people are affected by and can affect
the recovery process. The first step
in understanding what happens to the family as the addiction develops is to
understand the nature of
addiction. The crazy, self-destructive behavior of the
addict/alcoholic and the desperate attempts of those around him or her to
cope begin to make some sense when you learn about the chemical effects that
drugs and alcohol have on the brain. |
|
| How and why does such a destructive process
occur to substance abusers and to their families? This lecture will outline that process as
well as what the goals need to be for both the addict/alcoholic and for
family members as the recovery progresses. |