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The reasoning alcoholics sometimes use to justify not going to rehab is often quite bizarre. The excuses they use to decline this type of help would be more believable if their predicament was not so serious. An inpatient rehab can provide the individual with everything needed to build a new life away from addiction. The most bizarre reasons people use for not choosing this have been listed below.
1. Going to Rehab Could Ruin My Reputation
The claim that going to rehab would ruin the person’s reputation makes no sense. The reality is that being an alcoholic will cause all the harm to a person’s reputation. Going to rehab means that the person is taking a positive step to improve his or her life and most individuals will view this as a brave thing to do. The reason this type of bizarre reasoning occurs is that the individual is often in denial about the amount of harm that drinking is doing to their reputation.
2. My Problems Are Not Serious Enough to Justify Rehab
People die every day of the week due to alcoholism. It is an extremely serious condition, and the prognosis is poor – the sad reality is that the majority of alcoholics end up dying from the condition. The denial of addiction means that the individual is often oblivious to the seriousness of his or her condition. Refusing rehab is like a cancer patient refusing chemotherapy because he or she feels okay at the moment.
3. I Can’t Take Time off Work
The problem with this excuse is that if the person does not manage to break free of addiction, there is a real risk of losing this job anyway. Alcoholism involves a downward spiral, which means that things tend to get worse over time. Just because the person is able to do enough to keep a job today does not meant that person would be able to do it tomorrow. It is vital to make time to go to rehab in order to safeguard the future.
4. I’m Waiting For the Right Time to Go to Rehab
The idea that there will be a ‘right time’ to go to rehab is a very dangerous way of thinking. It is a delaying tactic. There is a real risk that the person may be dead long before he or she feels ready. Some people believe that they need to hit rock bottom before going to rehab, but this is a misunderstanding of what rock bottom means. Hitting rock bottom just means you have had enough, and the best time to do that is right now.
5. I Can Quit By Myself
This excuse is a bit like a drowning man who refuses to get into a life raft because of his conviction that he can swim to shore. If he could swim to shore, he would not be drowning. It is usual for alcoholics to continuously fail at their attempts at going it alone – it is a type of madness to keep on doing the same thing but constantly expecting different results.
6. I’m a High Functioning Alcoholic
A functioning alcoholic is somebody who is good at hiding their addiction, but this does not mean that there are no consequences for the behaviour. The ability to keep a lid on the alcoholism does not last forever, and the functioning alcoholic‘s life can fall apart in a spectacular way. It is much better to enter rehab right away before this explosion occurs, as it can be very messy.
