I was asked by a spouse how to get her vet to see he needs help and needs to stop drinking. Now believe me, I could feel the spouses desperation through the messages. She told me how she had tried this and that, and tried to get him to think of the kids the family, and even went as far as to threaten divorce thinking it would work. I remember being that desperate and grasping at anything, trying everything to keep my family together. Even though Justin didnt drink, I shared with her what I finally figured out and applied it to her situation. I asked her, Have you tried looking at it as why he is drinking? What is it giving him? Instead of demanding he stop which is what you want and not acknowledging he is getting something, some need of his being met by doing it. Her reaction was exactly what mine was back when I was in that desperate state. I dont care why hes doing it, he just needs to stop! After her initial freak out and us talking a bit longer, I convinced her to just try it. She like me was at a point where it sure wasnt going make anything worse. So I helped her figure out what she would say, and explained to her about timing of bringing this up. Well I just heard back from her today and she did it. Her vet got defensive at first like we expected him to, but she said she stayed calm and kept reassuring him she was on his side, and not judging him. He finally calmed down, and now he is in help and 3 months sober. I shared this with permission because sometimes we just have to take a step back and try a totally outside the box approach. Im not saying it will always work, but it is something to at least give some thought too...Shawn
Posted on: Wed, 07 May 2014 02:00:00 +0000
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015