What you truly need to do to help the alcoholic/addict in your life.

I’ve spent my entire life surrounded by addicts — here’s my story with key takeaways on what to do to actually help someone who is struggling with addiction.

My parents were both addicts. When I was a baby, my mom divorced my biological father and quickly connected with my stepdad — who was also an addict.

Most, if not all of my family has struggled with addiction or still do. I’ve been in relationships with men who were addicts, I have friends who are addicts — I’ve come to believe that we all have addictions in one way or another, some are just more obvious because they affect other people.

I’ve always had a really keen interest in addiction because of my relationship with my mom. I wanted to help her. I wanted to save her from her alcoholism and drug abuse.

I knew what she was like when she wasn’t wasted — that felt like the real her. When she was drunk or high, she became someone else. I have always been incredibly sensitive and empathetic and I could feel that she wasn’t happy. I knew she felt powerless. I felt her shame and I knew this was a spiral she wanted out of.

I knew these things from such a young age that it felt like it was something that I brought from a previous life. How else could I have this innate awareness?

I started by pouring her alcohol down the sink, and flushing her weed and my dad’s cigarettes down the toilet, thinking that would help. If…