Anchored in Hope: Help for Loving Someone in AddictionSýnishorn

I trust that you’re finding some strength along this journey to being anchored in hope. We’ve talked about the need for hope and the kinds of hope we can put together to become strong anchors. And we’ve acknowledged that loving someone in addiction can feel like giving and giving and giving with nothing in return.

In this last day of our reading plan, let’s examine some of the concrete, practical ways we can regain our hope.

Give it to God. We’re never meant to carry our burdens, but this can be extremely difficult to do. Don’t beat yourself up when you find yourself taking your burden back from God for a little bit—just give it back!

Love, accept, and forgive… without condemnation. This is what God has done for us, so we owe it to Him, ourselves, and our loved one to respond the same way.

Find YOUR purpose. God didn’t put you on this earth to coddle your loved one! What are you meant to do with this one precious life?

Take time to breathe. Breathing deeply and intentionally calms down the nervous system, which tempers the stress response in the body that makes us feel anxious and unsettled.

Set personal boundaries. Boundaries protect you and keep you physically, emotionally, mentally well.

Lean on your support system. Connect with others who truly understand what you are going through. You will quickly learn you are not alone. They can listen to and encourage you.

Let go of feeling guilty. “You don’t know what you don’t know.” Remember: it is not your fault your loved one is an addict. There is nothing you did to make them one. You must free yourself from the guilt.

This is the beginning of it all. This is where HOPE starts. These are the anchors of hope that will hold you fast in the middle of even the stormiest oceans.

I pray you’ll find the HOPE you need as you implement these strategies and that you will discover new ways that God will anchor you in the hope He alone can give.

And if you want to find a community of others like you, we offer that through Finding Hope, a nationwide network of loved ones of addicts. We have groups all over the country as well as online; to find one for you, visit FindingHope.today.