Learn proven ways to live with and help an alcoholic wife.

1. How To Live With And Help
An Alcoholic Wife
by
Jozzy Scott
http://alcoholicspousehelp.com

2. INTRODUCTION
The challenges of living with an alcoholic wife
could be quite intimidating. Maybe you had
even thought of letting go. I believe you are
reading this because you want to know what
to do. I will go straight to the tips that can
help you not just to live with but also to help
an alcoholic wife.

3. Prepare Yourself For The Task
You might not be able to do much if you do not
prepare yourself adequately. The reason you have to
take care of yourself is because most times, the
person who takes the verbal abuse of an alcoholic is
sometimes just as mentally and emotionally sick as
the alcoholic. You need to give yourself the
permission to put your own health first: mentally,
spiritually and physically. Understand that you were
not the cause for her disease and you should not
become a victim of her disease.
Joining an Al-anon group can be helpful in gaining
your mental and emotional health, elements you
need so much if you must be of help to your
alcoholic wife.

4. Stop nagging/shouting at your alcoholic wife
This is where we sometimes get it wrong. We think
that shouting at her will make her sober. Nagging will
not help at all. In reality, it can even drive her for
more bottles.
The alcoholic has adapted to treating all emotions
with alcohol. She is happy, she drinks; she has been
scolded by her husband and she drinks to calm
herself; she is sad, she drinks to feel happy and so
on. So when you nag, you practically are giving her a
reason to take to the bottles.
When living with an alcoholic wife one of your goals
is to help her to reach the state of wanting to make a
change and improve her life and that is not achieved
by nagging.

5. Detach with love
Detaching from the abuse of your alcoholic wife is
one of the best things to do when dealing with her
alcoholism.
You can do this if you truly love her and want to help
her to possible sobriety. Don’t have any interaction
with the alcoholic wife while she is drinking; that
includes, talking and arguing with her. Why fuss and
fight with someone who has lost the ability to make
any sense? Don’t become ensnared in the alcoholic
trap with her.

6. Don’t Enable Her
Let her take responsibility for whatever her drinking
has caused. If she falls after drinking, it is not your
duty to lift her up. If she messes the place up after
being drunk, you are not to clean up for her. Stop
picking up the pieces after her. Don’t help her to bed
after getting drunk. If she gets conscious after
drinking and finds everything fine, how would she
know that her drinking is causing problems? Let her
be responsible for whatever problem her drinking
causes. It could be a tough choice to make
consciously because you feel responsible and guilty.
What makes it harder still is that you love her dearly.
However, if you want to help her you have to make
her see what her drinking is costing you and the
family.

7. Remove ALL the Alcohol From Your House
It is useless to try hiding it. She will find it and that
will also in a way be enabling her. You might even
consider staying away from alcohol yourself and
making your house an alcohol – free zone. Although
an alcoholic will most times do anything to get a
drink, but perhaps distance could be a good
disadvantage, if not a barrier.

8. Find Out What Else You're Currently Doing
Which Is Not Helping
Do not detach from the world so make sure you
continue to see your friends and have time for
yourself. Don’t let your diet, hygiene and social
dispositions suffer because of your alcoholic wife’s
condition. Be kind to yourself, don’t blame yourself
for her condition and give yourself permission to
have your own life and to be happy while you are
living with her.
I wish you the very best. You will also find helpful
tips in this link