Why Do Addicts Lie?

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Why Do Addicts Lie?

If you have someone close to you who has struggled with addiction, you may have noticed a big personality change in them. Before becoming an addict, your loved one may have been a very calm and honest person. But as their addiction progressed, you may have noticed that they started frequently lying. These lies could be about anything from where they are going when they leave the house, to what they are doing with all of their money. Lying is common among addicts and is very hurtful to those close to them.

There are many reasons why addicts lie. The number one reason is usually to keep their addiction going. They do not want to be stopped and will lie to you if you if they realize you are catching on. Second, addicts lie to avoid confrontation. No one, addict or not, likes to be confronted about a flaw they have. If the addict thinks you know about their problem and are going to confront them about it, they lie to avoid the conflict.

Additionally, your loved one could be in denial or ashamed of their addiction. They may claim their addiction is controllable in order to not face the fact that they have a disease and need help. This is them not only lying to you about their addiction, but lying to themselves as well.

It is very upsetting to have a loved one who is an addict that won’t face their problems or tell you the complete truth about their addiction. What is important is to support them through their realization that they do have a problem and above all support them through their recovery.