One of the most dangerous things that can threaten someone’s recovery is unhealthy relationships. Unhealthy relationships in general can damage a person’s mental and physical health. These issues can be further compounded when someone is currently undergoing addiction treatment or has achieved recovery. Children, especially young girls, are often taught to put up with these unhealthy relationships to “keep the peace.” The result of this is generations of people who believe it’s normal for someone to disregard their boundaries, insult them, or mistreat them in general.
Humans are social beings who need relationships with others to thrive. But sticking with unhealthy relationships can be just as harmful as having no relationships at all. It’s especially serious for those in recovery, who can experience a relapse due to the actions of those who don’t care about their needs. That’s why addiction treatment facilities, such as Painted Desert Recovery, educate clients in recognizing these unhealthy relationships. By building a strong foundation of skills, clients can then use them to form healthy relationships with others as well as protect their recovery.
However, before a person can learn how to form healthy relationships, they must first learn how to recognize unhealthy ones.
What Do Unhealthy Relationships Look Like?
An unhealthy relationship results in harm to yourself, either by someone’s deliberate or subconscious actions. People who perpetuate harm to others are also known as “toxic” people. This harm doesn’t have to be physical. It can also cause emotional and mental harm. Unhealthy relationships are full of manipulation, abuse, pressure, and selfishness. As mentioned before, many people as children are taught to ignore these signs. It’s especially true in families with deep generational trauma, where it’s encouraged for family members to not “rock the boat” for the sake of placating a toxic individual.
Some common signs of an unhealthy relationship are:
- Relationships that are noticeably one-side – all the sacrifices and emotional load are placed solely on yourself
- Having your accomplishments constantly be demeaned or criticized
- Your feelings being dismissed, mocked, or used against yourself
- Constant mental, emotional, sexual, and/or physical abuse
- Being blamed for “causing” the other to mistreat you
- Having manipulation tactics being used against you, such as gaslighting – a technique used to deliberately cause someone to believe they are too sensitive or doubt their memory
- Being pressured to engage in activities that are directly harmful to yourself and others, such as drinking and driving
- Having your boundaries ignored or openly mocked
If you notice one or more of these signs in your relationship, it’s time to get help. Unhealthy relationships can be anywhere and can come from anyone. Commonly, people experience unhealthy relationships with relatives, acquaintances, or romantic partners. This does not mean that you cannot trust anyone. It simply means that it’s important to be able to notice the signs and seek help when needed.
Where to Learn Healthy Relationship Skills
Anyone can learn the skills needed to have healthy relationships. With the rise of mental health awareness, more and more people are being taught about healthy and unhealthy relationships. The best place to learn these skills is at any mental health care facility. For those who are also struggling with addiction, they can find help at an addiction treatment facility, such as Painted Desert Recovery. Part of addiction treatment is learning how to recognize and remove unhealthy relationships from your life. This is because unhealthy relationships are detrimental to the recovery process, and can even set people back in their recovery.
It’s common for some mental health care and addiction treatment facilities to have some type of group therapy for families. This is to help families recognize any toxic dynamics within that can worsen addiction and harm progress. Group therapy in general is good at helping people understand each other and make meaningful changes in their relationships. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is another commonly used psychotherapy in addiction treatment. It helps clients identify harmful thoughts and behaviors and make positive changes with the skills they learn. A skilled therapist can also help a client recognize when they are being harmed by unhealthy relationships.
Getting help from a mental health care professional is valuable because they don’t just teach you these skills. They also help you practice them in a safe and encouraging environment. Clients can rehearse dialog, role-play scenarios, and more with the guidance of a professional. Even once someone is finished with treatment, they always have a place to return to should they need further help.
Removing Unhealthy Relationships From Your Life
Perhaps one of the hardest things a person has to do in their lives is cut out unhealthy relationships. It’s especially hard when the person who needs to be removed is a family member or someone you have known for most of your life. However, it is vital to remove these unhealthy relationships before they can further harm you and your recovery. Knowing how to do this safely is another hurdle entirely, and sometimes people fear what will happen once they cut a toxic person out of their life.
Making such a difficult and life-changing decision doesn’t have to be done on your own. Many people utilize the aid of their treatment providers and therapists in treatment to help them take this important step. Painted Desert Recovery especially has a supportive and knowledgeable staff that aids clients in taking this important step in their lives. Here, clients find encouragement and safety needed to take control of their lives. It’s always okay to ask for help, especially with something this important
Life will never be free of unhealthy relationships, but with the learned skills and support, anyone can live a healthier life. Clients can then look forward to forming long-lasting and healthy relationships that enhance and bring joy to their lives in recovery.
For people to be healthy, they must have healthy relationships. Many people in treatment and recovery find success because they have healthy relationships with their loved ones. However, it’s important to recognize a healthy relationship from a toxic one. Toxic relationships can damage someone’s treatment progress and recovery and cause a host of other mental health disorders. That’s why at Painted Desert Recovery in New Harmony, Utah, clients learn what healthy relationships look like. Through the use of quality addiction treatment, they learn how to remove toxic people from their lives and protect their progress and recovery. If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction and needs support, call (844) 540-0353 today.