Crisis

Family Crisis:

One of the things we talked about in our readings for class this week was family crisis. How it can effect others long term and impact the relationships of those involved in the future. We read about the tendencies of children with alcoholic parents or parents addicted to druge. It was a very sad topic to broah but an important one in understanding how we can create safer, happier families. As I learned more about these issues I realized that actions truly do impact those around you. Not just by causing sadness, but really deeply impact those who love you.

We learned that kids who grow up in hiomes with addicted parents are more likely to turn to drugs and alcohol themselves. I saw this with my friends back home. I had a few friends whose parents struggled with drugs. It was heartbreaking to watch the kids, who really did despise the drugs their parents used, fall into similar patterns as their parents when they faced hard times. That was a surprising theme of what I saw. A lot of the kids I knew who grew up with troubled parents started by hating the things that their parents were doing. But as life got hard, and with no parents to rely on, they began to turn to those things themselves. One of the sad things about drugs and alcohol is that it becomes the controlling factor in peoples lives. It robs them of their agency, their compassion, and becomes a never ending hole. For those within the family, this can be a scary and sad thing. I knew many friends who felt abandoned and hated by their parents. Some blame themselves for their parents problems and then turn to drugs themselves to cope with the pain. Others fall into bad friend groups because of a lack of parental support.

Alcohol can be even worse. There is a phrase, once an alcoholic always an alcoholic. It is a hard habit to stop and will put you into the exact same place if you start again. Because its legal, many people forget the heartbreaking effects it can have on people. I have seen more families destroyed through alcohol than anything else. It can cause accidental pregnancies, accidents on the road, and causes nothing but distrust and sadness. It becomes an expensive addiction that cause many people to make rash, unthoughtful decisions that can hurt others. Children who grow up with parents such as these find it harder to avoid similar patterns in their own lives.

So what can we do if we are faced with challenges such as this in our lives. From a religious standpoint I would urge anyone going through this to turn to the savior. He has suffered our heartaches and knows how unbelievably heartbreaking a trial like this can be. He has promised to strengthen those who call on his name and to comfort those who mourn. Other ways are reaching out for help. Therapy and the support of good people around you can protect you from the negative impact of the decisions of family members and can provide you with a healthy outlet to talk about the things going on in your life.

There are many trials in life that you cannot prepare for. The loss of a child, physical illness, and many other trials come with life. But when making choices regarding drugs and alcohol we should always remember those who love us and would be shattered if we let them down. In my life I have always thought of my mom and how I want to make her proud. Ive always known if I did those things it would crush her, and I have used that as the motivation to avoid them.