Charlie Sheen & Addiction - Christian Broadcasting Network (blog)

Charlie Sheen & Addiction

Try as we might to avoid it, many of us have witnessed the tragic unraveling of Charlie Sheen in the media. It's just so sad to see a person's life ruined by their slavery to a substance, or substances.

Mental health professionals say they have to have Sheen as a patient to adequately make a diagnosis, but based on his many interviews on television and radio, many suggest Sheen also exhibits signs that point toward a bi-polar condition and/or narcissism.

I doubt there is anyone among us who hasn't been touched by the scourge of mental illness or addiction in one form or another. Many of us know firsthand how excruciating it is to see a loved one be sucked-in by a monster such as alcoholism or drug addiction.

Charlie Sheen's behavior is familiar to many of us because we have seen and heard people we love saying and doing the same type of things. Maybe we even recognize ourselves in some of his rants. If you know anything about addiction, you know that addicts, in general, all sound the same. They tell themselves the same lies and tell others the same lies. The biggest lie is, "I don't have a problem."

As painful as it is for the person who loves the addict, until that addict admits there's a problem, there is little anyone else can do. Except pray, of course.

Pray that God will convict that person.

Mental health experts say often what finally convinces a person he or she is an addict is when that person hits rock bottom. That often means the loss of a job, family, reputation, money, or all of the above. Sometimes families and friends can wake-up the person with an intervention. That's when a group of loved ones get the addict alone and confront him or her with the truth that they have a problem and need to seek treatment. Interventions must be done with love.

Once treatment begins, it's important that Christ be the center of that rehabilitation. The addict needs to hold tight to the verse, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." That's a good one for the loved ones, too, as recovery is not a burden that should be carried by the addict alone.

Addicts and their loved ones need to remember that recovery is a process. Each day, the addict needs to start afresh and take it one day at a time. Victory over substance abuse is possible!! But it takes hard work and most of all, the power of our Savior, Jesus Christ at the very core.

Print     Email to a Friend    posted on Wednesday, March 02, 2011 2:43 PM