Due to the Covid-19 crisis, the Support Group for Concerned Significant Others is suspended until further notice. We are still offering individual support for Concerned Significant Others through one-on-one consultations. Email [email protected] for more information.
It’s Lonely Loving a Problem Drinker.
After all, you’re constantly balancing trying to help someone who refuses to change, while also protecting your partner from negative consequences of their alcohol abuse. It makes sense if you feel exhausted, anxious, and worried most of the time.
Connect with People Who Understand Your Experience
You can connect with others who know what you are going through. Our support group for Concerned Significant Others can help you:
- Get support from others who understand your experience
- Identify strategies to help your loved one help themselves
- Validate your thoughts and feelings - free of negative judgment
- Know that you are not alone
Benefits
You can find your voice and agency in your relationship. Through guided support and collaborative insights, you will discover strategies to help your loved one while identifying opportunities to heal.
Loving a problem drinker leads to many of the same symptoms as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), including hypervigilance (being on high-alert to your partner’s drinking behavior at all times), flashbacks (remembering the worst situations from the past about your partner’s drinking), sleep disturbance (waking up in the middle of the night worrying about your partner; being unable to fall asleep worrying about your partner and children), and numbing (struggling to identify your own thoughts and feelings due to constantly thinking about your partner’s drinking).
Connection to Others is Essential to Healing
You can connect with others who know exactly what is like to walk in your shoes. Together, we will illuminate new paths to heal. This inludes identifying new ways to become effective in communicating your needs while negotiating the “non-negotiable” boundaries your partner needs to follow.
Change is possible. Reach out today to get started. We’re here for you.
Group counseling can help you regain control. Here's how:
Get research-proven strategies to change your partner's drinking behavior.
If you feel like your partner is choosing alcohol over you, group counseling can help. Peer support and expert guidance helps you get strategies to take effective take action. Group counseling provides validation and space to share research-proven strategies to help you reduce your loved one's problem drinking - even if your partner is not in treatment.
You can support your partner in a loving way.
It's hard to love someone who abuses alcohol. Over time, your partner's alcohol abuse naturally transforms you into an Enforcer, policing your partner's behavior. You don't like being an Enforcer, and neither does your partner. Group counseling helps you get effective support to help your partner change without begging, pleading, or threatening.
Feel whole again.
One of the benefits of our integrative group approach is that your health and well-being will also improve, empowering you to feel comfortable in your life again. Sleep well at night and wake up to a feeling of ease.
Find your voice.
Even though friends, family members, and books offer well-intentioned advice, it's important to start with what YOU want in a group that understands your experience. We will explore the challenges you face today by understanding the history of your relationship. Through this process, we will illuminate opportunities for you to create a healthy future.
Feel confident and calm, knowing you are helping your partner.
It can be overwhelming to love a problem drinker - especially when it feels like you’re all alone in your journey. We appreciate the resilience of Concerned Significant Others in their daily experience. Group counseling will help you feel restored confidence in how you can help your partner.
Join a team of unconditional support.
Group counseling not only helps you get connected, but helps provide you with options to connect your loved one to treatment options. Your experience is an essential part of our collective whole. Feel reassured in times of uncertainty that you have professional and peer support every step of the way.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Concerned Significant Others Support Group:
Q. How do I get involved in the group?
Before joining this closed counseling group, you will conduct an individual intake with a counselor to ensure you are a good fit. The intake counselor will go through group logistics, including schedule and process, at that time.
Q. Is my confidentiality protected?
All members of the Concerned Significant Other (CSO) Support Group sign a confidentiality document before attending their first group that outlines privacy and confidentiality agreements. It is extremely important to us that your confidentiality is protected.
Q. How often does the group meet?
This closed group meets weekly for 8 sessions.
Q. Do I have to attend all groups?
Before joining the group, your counselor will review group expectations for attendance. Because it is a closed, time-limited group, we ask that you prioritize attending all appointments.
Q. Will my insurance cover this service?
This group is a facilitated peer support group. Because you will not receive a mental health diagnosis, this support group is not billable to insurance.
Q. How do I get started?
You can schedule an appointment by calling (312) 715-8234. Our Intake Coordinator will answer your questions and match you with the best counselor to meet your needs.