Managing Drug Misuse and Emotional Burdens of Families

Emotional burden refers to the internal emotional state experienced by families as a consequence of living with a drug-using member. This burden may arise when the family first encounters the issue of drug use or during their ongoing involvement in supporting the recovery process. This paper examines the forms of emotional burden experienced by families, which place them at risk of developing mental health disturbances. The study employed focus group discussions involving families of drug users in Terengganu. The findings indicate that families experience minimal emotional strain during the early stages of addiction; however, emotional burden becomes more pronounced once they are involved in the recovery process. These findings highlight the importance of providing consistent social support to ensure that emotional burden does not continue to overwhelm families and adversely affect their daily functioning.