4. RECOMMEND THAT YOUR FRIEND SEEK HELP

Once you've gotten to the point where your friend trusts you to talk to him about his problem, you've got to recommend that he should seek help. Alcoholism and drug addiction don't go away by themselves, and few people are strong enough to quit cold turkey. The help you provide is necessary and important, but it probably isn't sufficient. There are many different ways to get help with addiction, and you should suggest them all to your friend until you hit on one that's acceptable to her.

We'll provide you with a list of suggested places to get help, and you can either print it out and give it to your friend or just remember the ones which seem suitable and talk to him about them.

  • Family Physician
    One simple way your friend can get help is to see her family physician; her physician will be familiar, discreet and aware of all the available resources.

  • Alcoholics Anonymous
    World Services, Inc.
    475 Riverside Drive
    New York, NY 10115
    212-870-3400 (Literature)
    212-647-1680 (Meeting Referral)

  • Center for Substance Abuse Treatment
    National Drug and Alcohol Treatment Referral Service
    1-800-662-HELP
    Referrals To:
    1-800-ALCOHOL
    1-800-COCAINE
    1-800-448-3000 BOYSTOWN

  • Cocaine Anonymous
    World Service Office
    3740 Overland Avenue, Suite C
    Los Angeles, CA 90034
    1-800-347-8998

  • NAFARE Alcohol, Drug, and Pregnancy Hotline
    200 N. Michigan Avenue
    Chicago, IL 60601
    1-800-638-BABY

  • Narcotics Anonymous
    World Service Office
    P.O. Box 9999
    Van Nuys, CA 91409
    818-773-9999

  • National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information
    P.O. Box 2345
    Rockville, MD 20847-2345
    301-468-0985
    1-800-729-6686

  • National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence
    12 West 21st Street, 7th Floor
    New York, NY 10010
    1-800-NCA-CALL (they will refer you to a local treatment information center)

  • Rational Recovery Systems
    P.O. Box 800
    Lotus, CA 95651
    1-800-303-CURE

  • Secular Organizations for Sobriety (SOS)
    P.O. Box 5
    Buffalo, NY 14215
    310-821-8430

  • Women for Sobriety
    P.O. Box 618
    Quakertown, PA 18951
    1-800-333-1606

Most of these resources are only starting points. They will either refer your friend to a local treatment center or perhaps only to another, more local, referral service. It can be a bit frustrating, and you need to stick with your friend and ensure that she keeps calling until she finds help.

By help, we mean either counseling or a treatment center. Of course, they do counseling at treatment centers, but we use the two terms as follows. Counseling means you continue to live your life and you go and talk to a counselor once in a while. A treatment center is a place where you go and hang out for three to five weeks while you receive frequent counseling, support, and, if necessary, medication (such as methadone). It will be up to your friend, in consultation with you, his family, other friends, physician, and/or anyone else who wants to stick his two cents in, to determine which of these options is most suitable for her.