In the previous article we talked about things but you should not do. In this article we’ll talk about things that you could do to make it more certain that your partner will do something about their drinking. As suggested in the previous article as the partner of the drinker you should not fall into the trap of co-dependency, that is living the life reacting to the behavior of the drinker. It is difficult to not fall into that pattern, however that only reinforces the drinker’s behavior and increases the anger and resentment felt by the partner.
Instead you need to start thinking about yourself you need to start living you need to start having a life of your own. Spend time with friends, join clubs, find things that interest you. If you can do this has a number of consequences. First you might actually enjoy it, it may be some time since you actually had time to yourself and did things for yourself. Second you may find that it takes your mind off some of the problems and you worry less, and you are less stressed. Third it may say send out a signal to the drinker but you’re no longer spending your life waiting on them in this change in the...