When Addiction Leads to Divorce

If you fell hopelessly in love with an "addict," or someone who developed an addiction to alcohol, pain killers, drugs, or even sex while you were married, you may have found yourself at the end of your rope.

In fact, there's a good chance that you held on too long, that you tried desperately to help your spouse overcome their demons only to realize that they have to want to help themselves, and it's just not happening. If you have children together, it's understandable why you may have been trying hard for so long.

While we're not marriage counselors, therapists, or psychologists, as divorce attorneys we have seen our fair share of spouses whose marriages were destroyed by addiction, and it's not always due to drugs or alcohol.

It can be an addiction to gambling, or even a wife's unhealthy relationship with food, leading to anorexia, frequent hospitalizations, and a husband who just can't take it anymore. While some would say that such a husband is wrong to give up on his wife during a time of mental illness, they haven't walked in his shoes.

Addiction is a Whole Other Animal

You have unhappy couples who struggle with infidelity and money problems, then you have addiction, which is a whole other animal. It's often accompanied by lying and stealing in order to fund the addiction. It can also lead to cheating, beating, and behaving irresponsibly while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

From draining the family's savings account, to driving drunk with the kids in the car, to getting fired from multiple jobs, addiction can wreak havoc on a marriage, and it's usually the spouse who takes the brunt of whatever addiction is involved.

Loving someone with an addiction can leave the spouse feeling frustrated, helpless, and angry that they can't save their marriage or their family. These feelings can be intensified when the addict refuses to acknowledge their problem or seek help.

When addiction leads to divorce there aren't any winners. If nothing can save the marriage, divorce is often the next step. Sadly, addiction leads to endless tragedies, with one of them being the breakup of families.

Dealing with divorce and addiction? Contact a Los Angeles divorce lawyer from Claery & Hammond, LLPfor help. We are here to guide you every step of the way.

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