How Do I Handle The Loss Of A Friend?

An unfortunate reality that most people who are recovering from drug and alcohol addiction will face is the fact that this disease is ruthless, evil, and has an insatiable hunger to occupy and destroy everything that it contaminates. This inevitably has led to the death of many of our closest friends and even family members. With death being such a probable outcome for those who fail to understand the severity of this disease, we are all going to experience the death of someone that we care about. First and foremost, as individuals and as a community, we cannot afford to become desensitized to the tragedy of a life lost, no matter how many funerals we have been to. We must be committed in our efforts to continue reaching a hand out for those in need of help because we cannot destroy this type of evil single-handedly. Part of the antidote to the rage, apathy and resulting depression associated with losing someone to addiction is the hope that can be instilled in another individual who is suffering. While our loved ones who have left us cannot return, we can sublimate our sadness and despair into the love that we express to others, and that we embody ourselves in the face of such tragedy.

From an action standpoint, we often feel helpless and as though there is nothing that can be done. While this may be true in relation to the person who has passed on, it is imperative that those of us still battling continue to wield the weapons of love and compassion as the primary defense against apathy and hatred. If we can continue to help others who are struggling, we can take the horrific experience of losing someone and channel those negative emotions into a more productive action that not only helps to serve the person who is suffering, but also to help the individual who is continuing to reach their hand out because it transmutes the frustration, bewilderment, rage, and depression into understanding, empathy, compassion, and acceptance. Finally, to best honor those we have lost, we can continue persevering in our recovery in way that our loved one can no longer. Through actions of selflessness and compassion we can keep alive the memory of those who have battled alongside of us in the war against addiction and its evils.