A Cousin in Need
Some people say that alcohol and drug addictions are passed down from the previous generation or even hereditary. I personally have a different view on that but I can say that I have several relatives who have struggled with some addictive behavioral issues. There is one cousin in particular that comes to my mind that’s from my mother’s side of the family, and as long as I can remember, he has been in and out of several different drug rehab facilities.
My Mother and Father always said that he was such a nice and lovable child growing up. When he was a teenager he lost his Father and was hit with the pressure of being the man of the house and caring for his four younger brothers. I’m not sure if it was because of all the responsibility he was given, but shortly thereafter, he ended up moving out and leaving the responsibility to his Mother, and that was when the addiction problem’s started to begin. Even now, I think that inherently he is a good guy and has good intentions but is always allowing the drugs to get the best of him. Because of all the drug usage, he would have these out-of-control anger outbursts and temper tantrums.
He is quite a few years older than I am but I remember his younger brothers telling me stories about when he would come around, he would either be drunk or under the influence of something and would have these nasty verbal arguments with their mother and would get physical and break things. I thought, wow, this guy needs some serious intervention. I have always felt sorry for him because there were times when he was really nice and funny. He can have a good since of humor when he wants to. He has always loved my family and was really nice to us when we were in his home town.
Sadly, we would always hear the same story about him ending up in trouble, in jail, broke, or in a drug treatment center. The first time we heard that he was going in for Drug Detox we all were extremely excited for him because we thought that this was it, he is about to get his life straightened out and is about to be headed down the drug-free path. The truth is, is he would be straightened up for a couple months, and then right back to his old bad habits again. There were numerous occasions where we thought that he was recovered. He would go to church every weekend and really say that he dedicated his life to God and his church.
I guess the reality of it to me is, is that he has never received the proper drug rehabilitation, because if he had, then he would not be so quick to succumb to his old self-defeating habits. I really do hope that he seeks out the right help for himself because there are facilities out there that can help him, I know it. Ultimately, he has to really want the help and desire it from within, and so far, it seems to me that he hasn’t really wanted to quit yet. I could be wrong though, it has been a while since I’ve seen him.
I do believe in him and I also believe that he has a chance at a successful recovery with the help of the right drug treatment program. I know that deep down he doesn’t want to hurt his family and probably feels horrible about the way that he has chosen to live his life, but if he can just get passed all the negatives and forgive himself, then I know that he would be willing to put his whole heart into another process of addiction treatment. The real truth is that no rehab center out there will successfully help anybody unless the individual physically and psychologically desires it from the inside.
