When most people think about alcoholism their immediate thoughts are about the alcoholic, but the effects of alcoholism are far-reaching and involve not just the alcoholic but the alcoholics family, friends and work colleagues. The first in the firing line are the people closest to the alcoholic, namely their loved ones.

Living with an alcoholic can be hell as they can be mentally and physically abusive and there’s nothing worse than trying to reason with someone who is under the influence of drink. So how can you deal with the irrational person who you love but who is addicted to alcohol. Learning how to deal with the alcoholic is essential if you truly want to help them to overcome their addiction. It’s important to realise that the person who has the problem is the alcoholic and not you or other members of your family. You need to develop a strategy of coping which does not encourage the alcoholic drink.

Modifying your behaviour around the alcoholic will make things easier for you, for example don’t give the alcoholic money to buy alcohol, try to avoid places where alcohol is readily available, never drink around the alcoholic and avoid keeping alcohol in the house.

To help the alcoholic you need to let them see how damaging their addiction is. This is easier said than done, because the alcoholic can be so blind to the consequences of their addiction. You may be able to make them think about their problem though by pointing out what their addiction is doing to them. They may not realise how awful they look, how bad their skin is and how their behaviour is affecting all of the people around them. It is very likely that they will be in a state of denial and will find loads of reasons to continue drinking. Maybe you could make a list of all the problems that the alcoholic is cause and show them the list when they’re sober. The alcoholic may not be aware of many items on the list and this might be away to prove to them that they have a problem.

If you can get the alcoholic to recognize how damaging their addiction is, then maybe you might be able to get them to do something about it. For example, suggest they talk to their doctor about the problem or maybe show them some support groups which they can participate in online. The best thing that you can do is to get the alcoholic to talk about the problem and to discuss why they feel the need to drink.