Divorce is not a fine term to begin with and if it joins the word addiction, then 90% of the time there is no future. Married life gets difficult with a spouse who is addicted to any sort of drug or alcohol. And in many cases, one of the spouses have to file for divorce with the help of a divorce attorney. In fact, it is estimated that in the USA alone 75% of marriages end in divorce because one of the spouses is addicted to drugs.
Drugs have a detrimental effect on your life, your partner, your kids, your job, family life and takes a toll on your marriage. An addicted person will not be able to work on jobs and concentrate on anything such as earning money or taking care of his/her family. They will be eventually kicked out of their workplace, will not be invited to gatherings and will just care for their drug dosage and for that they will take extreme measures. If their daily dose is not met then they might steal or become aggressive with others which includes verbal, mental and physical abuse. If your spouse is addicted and is not willing to leave the addiction or visit any rehabilitation center then the only option is to leave and get divorced.
Look For A Divorce Attorney
The first step you need to take is to look for a good family attorney. The attorney should be an expert in handling substance abuse divorce cases. You should discuss and communicate everything with your attorney and tell everything. Once you will discuss everything you will feel better as if a burden has been lifted off your shoulder.
Talk It Out With Your Spouse
Your spouse has the right to know your decision and the reason for divorce. Even if you love him or her with all your heart, you will have to leave because of the restricted and depressed life you were living with him or her. You will have to say that you are tired now and have given your best to make it work and to help him or her but now you have to think about yourself.
You Will Need To Gather Proof
This is the most important step. You will need to gather all the details regarding your marriage and all the documents for proof. You will need to tell your lawyer and court that from how many years you spouse is addicted. You will need to inform them how did the addiction start and how much prolonged it is now. How many years have been passed since the onset of addiction? You will need to give details of all the therapy sessions and rehabilitation centers your spouse attended and left.
Another thing that will go in your favor is whether your spouse is using up all the marital finances or any investment or profits for drug purchases. Instead of contributing to the marriage, your spouse is using up all the savings to buy drugs.
You will have to show proofs regarding your spouse that if he or she has been causing physical and verbal abuse to you or the kids during the time they did not get the drug or while facing withdrawal symptoms.
Make sure you have all the documents and proofs ready to show to the court and also have testimonials of friends and family and those who know the addict.
Child Custody
This will surely fall on you as you are the responsible parent and child custody cannot be granted to the addict parent no matter if he or she wants the children. So you will need a separate place and house so you can live peacefully and happily.
Be Patient And Strong
This is not going to be easy and you will also need therapy sessions after the divorce as you have spent depressed years with an addict who doesn’t even know what he or she is doing. But if you have support and love then you can make it. Make sure you are handing your case over to a top rated divorce lawyer Fairfax VA who have previous record of successful divorce cases. You may want to spend less on your divorce but if the other spouse is not letting go, you need to be strong.
