I live in an area of WV that has an extremely high opioid addiction rate. Many people are addicted to other substances as well (like alcohol or cocaine). I have several friends and family members that are in recovery. When someone you love decides to go into recovery it's important to show them support. Here are some things you can do to help someone if they're in recovery from addiction.
1. Remember that addiction is a "family disease".
An addict isn't the only person that suffers from their addiction. Their friends and family also suffer. They can suffer because they have had to watch addiction take its toll but they may also suffer because the person lied or stole from them. Addiction can cause a lot of pain for many people. So it's important to recognize that and realize that you may need some time to recover yourself. If you possibly can you might want to see a therapist or join a support group for loved ones of people with addiction.

2. Learn about addiction.
Addiction truly is a disease. It isn't a lifestyle choice. No one wakes up one day and just decides they want to have an addiction. So it's important to learn the facts and myths about it. You should try to learn about the substances the person is addicted to, how they work, why they're so addictive, and so on.

3. Understand that a relapse is not a failure.
Most people in recovery will have some relapses. It's painful and disappointing but it does not mean that the person has failed or that their treatment isn't working. Unfortunately, someone with addiction will have this problem for life. That means it's a chronic health condition. There are other chronic health issues (like diabetes, for instance) where the person may have setbacks or relapses in symptoms. When you have any kind of illness that is life-long, it's understandable that treating it isn't going to be a perfect process.

4. Don't make it harder than necessary.
If your loved one is in recovery from alcoholism then please don't have alcohol in areas where they can easily find it. And don't encourage them to "just have one drink" because it's the holidays. It amazes me how often people treat those in recovery like this and it's horrible.

5. Set clear boundaries.
Like I mentioned before, addiction is a family disease. There are often dynamics in play that enable a person to abuse substances. Remember, you can't recover for them, they have to do the work on their own. Examine your relationship with this person and determine if you did anything that helped them get drugs or alcohol. For instance, did you give them money a lot? Did you get them out of jail all the time and help them get out of trouble with the law?

6. Support them while they develop better coping skills.
In many cases, addiction takes over a person's life until they are no longer taking care of theirself or keeping up with routines. Now that they're in recovery, they have to relearn all these things. So they may start exercising and eating healthier. It can be hard to deal with change but recognize that these are things that are helping them stay clean. Don't give them a hard time over living differently now.

7. Don't judge someone with an addiction.
Addiction can happen to anyone. There are doctors and lawyers that have struggled with addiction. The media tends to perpetuate the idea that you can't become an addict unless you're a bad person but that clearly isn't the case. In fact, when it comes to opioid addiction many people became addicted after being prescribed medications by doctors. Addiction is an illness. It is not caused by a lack of morals or bad character.

8. Don't assume there is only one path to recovery.
Many people believe that an addiction MUST be treated with medications like suboxone and others believe that joining a support group should be more than enough. But if someone is suffering from addiction they have to find what's going to work for them. There are people that have recovered by only going to support groups. There are also people that needed medication-assisted treatment. There is nothing wrong with either option. If it works, it works.