It’s getting to that time of year when many of us are shopping for gifts. But some gifts can be problematic, embarrassing or redundant for someone with an addiction, someone overcoming an addiction, or the loved one of someone with an addiction.

Even if addiction isn’t in the picture, the common gift of wine or other alcohol is often inappropriate (I’ll never forget receiving a bottle of wine while I was pregnant!)

While gaffes like these might seem easy to avoid, you cannot always be aware of whether family or friends are trying for a baby, in early pregnancy, or are attempting to cut down or quit alcohol.

And the consequences can be worse than you think — one elderly gentleman I know suffered a severe relapse to alcohol after being given a bottle of brandy by a neighbour, who had no idea he had been struggling with alcoholism for years.

I’ll be blogging about this topic in more details over the holiday season, but for now, think outside of the box (or bottle!)

Appropriate Holiday Gifts originally appeared on About.com Addictions on Thursday, December 3rd, 2009 at 17:40:40.

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