There's a lot of talk about what it is like to be addicted to a substance. I, myself, am lucky enough to never have struggled with such an illness, so I can't quite pinpoint what that is like. I haven't been in and out of rehab or sat my family down to ask for help.

Although, I have watched my loved ones struggle with addiction. I've seen the looks on their faces when they reach out to the people around them, begging for help to break free from their substance. It's heartbreaking, gut-wrenching, and downright difficult.

You do not know real pain until you've watched your family member hunched over a toilet, unable to eat, sleep, or stop shaking. It only gets worse from there, though. After watching them suffer through withdrawal symptoms, you think it's finally over. They've gone through a rehab program, you've loaned them money for living expenses, they landed a job, and you think everything is looking up.

Until suddenly it's not.

Suddenly their addiction has resurfaced. Maybe because a selfish drug dependent friend texted them to come over. Maybe because they experienced a new hardship. Maybe just because. Regardless of the cause, your child/brother/sister/nephew/uncle/loved one is back to using again and you brace yourself for another cycle of what seems to be endless.

If you have never personally watched this cycle, you might think the situation I just described is the worst of it. The sad truth is that it's not. The absolute worst part about watching someone you love suffer from an addiction is the anxiety. Every time you get a phone call from a number you don't recognize or from another family member, you worry that this is the call. You worry to yourself about the possibility of an overdose.

For those who don't understand what it's like to feel the need to help someone struggling with an addiction, it's something that doesn't make sense until you're unwillingly thrown into the position. I would not wish the hardship of addiction on any family. My heart aches for the people who have lost children to substances that shouldn't be in existence in the first place.