Learning What True Friendship Is

To most people, friendship is described as a combination of admiration, love, respect, loyalty and trust. When drugs, alcohol and addiction are added to that combination, most relationships rapidly deteriorate to disdain, dishonor, hate and distrust.

One of the common indicators of drug use and addiction is a change in one’s group of friends. Friends usually have the same social norms when it comes to drug and alcohol use and when one person’s use becomes greater or different than that which is the socially accepted “group norm,” friendships break up and new “friends” are found. These new “friendships” are usually centered on a whole new level of abuse and use of drugs. Rarely do these new friends have each other’s best interests in mind and their loyalty usually doesn’t outlast the supply of drugs.

While doing the Narconon program, students learn how to identify people who really “have their back” and people who loosely claimed that they “have their back” while they used together. It’s often eye- opening to see who one’s friends are when it comes down to a life without the use of drugs and alcohol. It may seem hard at first, but getting rid of the caustic people who have been supporting one’s addiction opens the door to true friendships, based on admiration, common healthy interests and trust. Recovery can also mean the restoration of old friendships long left behind in an addict’s life.

Here is a brilliant description from a recent Narconon graduate on what he learned about true friendship in the process of getting sober.

“We can all agree that friends come and go in life. We move, fight, get a girlfriend, etc. My definition of friendship is a bond between two people and a mutual understanding. Before I used drugs, I had a group of friends whom I actually called my brothers. We did everything together. Even if I was wrong, they were by my side; where I went, they went. They knew everything about me and knew my next move before I’d even make it.

During my drug use, I gave away that bond with those “brothers”. I pushed them away because I didn’t want them to know what was going on with me. I turned my back on them and started hanging out with people that were using drugs instead.

I started to hang with a new group of “friends” if you will. Really, they weren’t my friends and they didn’t have my best interests in mind; they were only around when the drugs were there. The friendships were fake. They didn’t know the real me, they only knew the person that drugs had turned me into.

When I came here to Narconon and got clean, I met and created friendships with some amazing people, which is when I realized just how much drugs had affected my life. The new group that I am a part of now showed me what a real friendship is and how beautiful it is to truly care about how someone is feeling and doing. I know that one of the greatest things I got out of coming here to Narconon was true, lasting friendships. I understand the value of someone who values what I value and that values me. Through those friendships I can keep creating a good, healthy life. It’s such a simple concept and I now know how to create and keep good friends. Thanks Bro!”

—M.

Narconon has many resources for helping get a friend into treatment. Narconon has saved thousands of friendships and helped heal the frequently severe break-ups created by addiction. True friendships are the best thing in life. Every friend is worth saving and full recovery is possible!

If you or a loved one has lost everything to their addiction, call Narconon Suncoast today!