Family Wellness

In their depths of their being, everyone understands that love is the essence of a fulfilling life. Lack of love and emotional pain manifests in many different ways; often we don’t know how to release or heal painful experiences from Within, searching instead, for something or someone outside of ourselfto achieve this for us. Feelings of love and affection have enormous influence, they help shape our behavioural patterns, with ensuing attitudes and actions hitting both ends of the scale: rational or irrational! Relationships between two adults, with or without children involved, can be challenging. Healthy relationships mature throughout our life’s experiences, with many changes as each individual ‘grows’ emotionally. Ideally, balance and harmony from mutual respect, trust, on-going communication (even through the ‘bad times’, with conflict resolution), and a lot of give-and-take in equal amounts, keeps all types of relationships flourishing, contributing to happiness and wellbeing.

When ‘Things’ go Wrong

Addiction is often described as a ‘family illness’. Indeed, the Ripple Effect of destructive emotions washes over everyone. Hurt, anger, fear, frustration, confusion and feelings of helplessness are felt by all in varying degrees. It is usually the Pressure to Stop from those around us (family, friends, or work-related), which propels us to ‘do something’ and seek outside help; which, incidentally takes great courage.

The Process of Change

As we change, ‘Things’ change. Research and experience tells us that not only do family members need help and support, but that a person’s chance of doing well in recovery are enhanced when family and concerned others participate in the healing process. Change is often challenging, significant friends or “others”, as well as family, are part of an ever-important support system.

Affinity Lodge strongly encourages family and significant others to ‘come along’ on your journey to Inner Peace; to find balance and harmony for themselves we provide: EDUCATION, INSIGHT, and AWARENESS.

By the time their loved one starts recovery, many family members are themselves in a state of physical and emotional exhaustion and need an opportunity to re-charge and nurture themselves again.

We provide tools to:

Begin the process of positive self care.
Explore issues such as effective communication, healthy boundaries, self and other forgiveness, and relationship reconciliation.
Understand how family dynamics influence the addiction process and overall health of each family member.
Understand addiction and co-dependency.
Let go of the ‘baggage’ of personal perceptions.
Learn respectful conflict resolution, assertiveness and boundaries.
Develop the capacity for empathy and skills for emotional, physical and sexual intimacy.
Process negative, critical, ‘shame/blame’ emotions.

Essentially, tools to COPE WITH DAILY STRESSORS

Change our perceptions

Regain Trust

create growth within relationships

‘Stressed’ Relationships(Without ‘addiction’)

Stressors come in all shapes and sizes, affecting us physically and emotionally. When one, both, or more members of a family unit are stressed usually healthy relationships can suffer. Affinity Lodge provides an opportunity to re-align inner harmony for outer balance with life’s vicissitudes; not only for those with ‘addictions’, but anyone searching for greater meaning, depth of emotional attachment, and joyous, fulfilling relationships.

The Family Unit with Children

Past experiences can impact your current functioning. Learning appropriate skills for emotional maturity, self-esteem, boundaries, and a host of other necessary nurturing tools to empower an individual to maintain healthy functional relationships with themselves and others, are sometimes absent within the family unit.

We each have our own ‘baggage’ from childhood, ‘passing-on’ our perceptions from experiences consciously or unconsciously.

The aftermath of living with addiction, or indeed, any other ‘dysfunctional’ family system, can hamper connection to our authentic self. Compulsive, unhealthy attachments, including those to the very things we ‘witnessed’, may keep negative cycles returning generation to generation.

Stopping the Cycle

The majority of staff at Affinity Lodge have had personal experience of addiction and families of their own.

We are particularly dedicated to the recovery of those with children, in order to prevent certain cycles continuing; providing personal knowledge, understanding and practical tools for managing the ‘trials and tribulations’ of raising children whilst in recovery ... Finding your own sense of self and helping your children develop theirs is just one of the Blessings of recovery!