What is detachment? I see it as a way of pulling back so that you don’t get hurt or caught up in the drama. It is necessary when you need to protect yourself. Buddha looked at detachment as a way to protect oneself from suffering. Detachment is neither kind or unkind, it is neutral.
If you are involved with someone who has issues with addiction it is necessary to detach so that you do not get caught up and become sick with the addict. Over the past few months I have been struggling with this. There is someone I love very much who is an addict and I have had to learn to detach so that I can bring some normalcy and control back into my life. I have had to learn what I can and can not control. This is not easy and you can very easily attach again and try to fix something which is not in your control to fix. I have to keep reminding myself that I control what I say, feel and how I behave. I have had to learn what is my problem and what is not my problem. It is very easy to lose yourself when dealing with an addict. What has been very helpful to me is this quote, “You yourself as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection” ~Buddh
a In dealing with addiction I have to remember to care for myself as well, this is also very important if you are a caregiver. Caregivers tend to give the best to their patient and lose sight of caring for themselves.
On the brighterside I am thankful for the lesson I am learning and I know that this only makes me stronger. Life can be a struggle but when you pull through you can look back and see how much better you have become as a person.
~Sara
