Addiction can take over every aspect of your life, including your relationship with your romantic partner. For some people who struggle with substance misuse disorders, specific relationships can even trigger their desire to use drugs or alcohol, which makes it especially challenging to break the vicious cycle of addiction.

Addicts Can Be Secretive

One of the most common factors that significantly affects loving relationships is the level of deception involved in an addict’s daily life. Open, honest communication is key to a healthy relationship, but someone whose life has begun to center on drug use may become very secretive, going to great lengths to hide how far their life has spiraled out of their control.

“Little white lies” that seem innocent enough at first start turning into large-scale deceptions. Sometimes, a person who is trying to cover up unmanageable drug use will lead a double life, walling themselves off to avoid judgment from the person who knows them best. This isolation and secrecy erode the foundation of their relationship with their significant other.

Loss of Trust

Trust is another building block of healthy relationships that suffers as an inevitable consequence of constant deceptive behavior. If your drug use has led you to isolate yourself from your romantic partner, they may be feeling like they have begun to take second place in your life. Their pain and resentment will eventually begin to fester, especially if they have tried to have a constructive conversation with you about your drug problem and you have turned them away.

Once trust is lost, it becomes much more difficult for someone with an addiction to maintain loving relationships without seeking treatment.

Codependency

Codependent relationships can be some of the most toxic and destructive situations addicted people can find themselves in. If you have a substance dependency, your partner may have become codependent on you without either of you realizing it. Someone who is codependent on a loved one with addiction may be struggling with the far-reaching effects of drug misuse, but also has begun to enjoy seeing themselves as or “taking care of” that person. They may make excuses for their loved one’s behavior, even if that is precisely opposite from the kind of help they need.

Change Begins Here

At Canyon Crossing, we offer women’s-only rehabilitation programs that help our clients reclaim their lives and recover effectively from substance misuse and addiction. If you have decided to seek help for your drug dependency, contact our Prescott, AZ, rehab facility to speak with one of our caring staff members.