For families and friends
You can’t force someone into recovery, but you can make it more likely, and keep them alive while they get there.
Keep them safe first
Keep naloxone at home, in the car and in your bag, and show everyone in the house where it is. Learn the overdose steps above. If they use, encourage them never to use alone.
Talk with care, not ultimatums
Pick a calm moment. Say what you’ve seen and how you feel, using “I” statements. Listen more than you talk. Offer one concrete thing: “I found a clinic that can see you this week. Can I drive you?”
An approach called CRAFT (Community Reinforcement and Family Training) teaches families how to do this, and research shows it helps loved ones enter treatment more often than confrontational interventions.
Supporting without enabling
Supporting means helping with things that move toward health: rides to appointments, help with insurance, a meal. Enabling means shielding someone from the results of use, like covering debts or lying for them. You can love someone and still say no.
Take care of yourself
Loving someone with an addiction is exhausting. Your sleep, your health and your other relationships matter too. Family support groups, such as SMART Recovery Family & Friends and Nar-Anon, connect you with people who understand.
If you’ve lost someone
Grief after an overdose often carries guilt and stigma. You are not to blame. Groups like GRASP (Grief Recovery After a Substance Passing) offer support from other families who have been there.