Passover, the holiday where we celebrate freedom and new beginnings, is an ideal time to address the forces that enslave us in our everyday lives. It is a time to ask ourselves, “What is my personal Egypt?” In today’s society, people are enslaved to money, to cell phones, to food, to honor and more.
Over 20 million Americans suffer from some kind of addiction, whether it be drugs, alcohol, pornography, gambling, or other dangerous behaviors. It is impossible to exaggerate the devastation addiction can wreck the lives of the addicts and their families. Opiate-related fatalities have quadrupled since the turn of the millennium. This is one of the main reasons that life expectancy has stopped rising and may even be on the decline.
Families are key to beating addiction
The first step in beating addiction is usually for families to acknowledge the problem and decide to solve it together. Often, families feel ashamed and do not want the addiction to come out into the open. We can all empathize with this feeling. Addressing the issue openly is hard, but no less essential for that.
Family gatherings provide an effective platform to discover and discuss difficult issues. When a family comes together for the holidays, relatives often notice changes in a family member. Sometimes, when families spend real time together, they recognize that a problem they were dimly aware of is worse than originally suspected. Freed from the distractions of work, buried issues rise to the surface.
This can create a catalyst for families to realize that outside help is needed. It is no surprise, then, that during holiday time there is an upswing in the number of people seeking addiction treatment for themselves or their family members.
After admitting the problem, families should collectively brainstorm the best course of action for their loved one. At Retorno, our addiction treatment and recovery facility in Givat Shemesh, Israel, we have been privileged to watch hundreds of souls free themselves from addictions of every kind.
This Passover season, it’s time to take action. If someone in your family is suffering from addiction, address the problem now. Use the family gathering to collectively come up with a plan of action. Help your loved one escape from the bondage of addiction and taste the freedom that comes from leaving a personal Egypt behind and starting fresh.
