Monday, August 23, 2010:
Forms of denial listed in Substance Abuse Treatment and the Stages of Change by Connors, Donovan, and DiClemente:
- Simple denial — insists that alcohol or drug use is not a problem despite clear evidence to the contrary.
- Minimizing — acknowledges some level of a substance abuse problem but discounts it as not serious or significant.
- Blaming — projects responsibility for the problem externally, on other people or events and circumstances. Personal responsibility is abdicated.
- Rationalizing — uses “alibis, excuses, justifications and other explanations” to account for the substance abuse.
- Intellectualizing — addresses the substance abuse in an intellectual, analytic, and unemotional manner.
- Diversion — avoids the substance abuse issue by distracting attention from the topic.
- Hostility — responds to others who raise the issue of substance abuse with anger, irritation, and/or scorn, with the intent of dissuading others from raising the topic.
I have a close relative whose life seems to be unraveling due to apparent drug use. I made an attempt to help because I loathe to see anyone go through what I have, and I would hate to see the rest of my family drug through the ringer again. Because of my past drug use and criminality, my attempt to help probably makes me look like a self-righteous hypocrite to this person, but so be it.
I received an email from this relative who tried to assure me that there were no worries
.
In trying to convince me that there was no problem, this relative used each and everyone of the above mentioned forms of denial.
After a week of worrying and having my dad tell me, Now you know what it feels like to worry about someone [with a drug problem],
I decided to take the advice of Alcoholics Anonymous and Let go and let God.
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