Things that could change, and things that are surprisingly okay.

There are many help centers for many people throughout the U.S. for many different problems. You might think that their would be more help for children of addicts, but then you would be wrong. Most of the help centers concerning alcohol and drugs are for alcoholics and drug addicts themselves. There are not nearly as many help centers for children of addicts as there are centers for addicts themselves. This would be something that could use improvement. Though I was impressed with the Alanon and Alateen programs.

In most social environments the subject of having parents addicted to drugs and alcohol is not very open. Most people do not understand what it is like to be in this situation and think that since the parents are addicts, this must mean that they are bad people. This is most certainly not the case, and children can be sensitive about others making quick judgments of their parents, because in some ways, we all are a part of our parents. One of my resources touched on this and the evidence of children of addicts wanting to be distanced from others, supports this strongly.