It can be incredibly painful to watch a loved one suffer with addiction. It can also be incredibly frustrating to watch a loved one with an addiction who is not willing to admit to themselves. Let alone you, that they have a problem. They risk losing their partner, family and career whilst destroying their health. Yet by not admitting there is a problem will not seek to solve it.
I personally know how hard it can be to persuade a very loved but extremely stubborn family member that they need to get outside help and stop resisting. Nagging, shaming and threatening often falls on deaf ears with addicts. However, families do have another powerful option to persuade their reluctant addict to get help. Get them on the road to recovery. The consensus of addiction professionals seems to be that there is no more effective way for family and friends to convince someone to begin their recovery from addiction. Than a well-planned and well ran interventions.
Interventions
An intervention is a ‘non-confrontational’ confrontation. It is an opportunity for family and close friends to share testimonies in front of the addict with the guidance of a professional. To try and convince the addict that treatment is the only way they are going to crack their addiction. Although this can often be very painful for the addict to hear it is set in such a way that the tone of the meeting is respectful and caring.
The intervention is successful because with the weight of the evidence against the addict that they have a problem. Their original denial strategy is no longer effective. It is therefore important that anyone close or influential in their life attends the intervention. Everyone present should have an opportunity to speak and explain to the addict how their behaviour has affected them. What the consequences could be should they not follow with the recommended help. Children are not discouraged from attending as they are also affected by the behaviour of the addict. their testimonies can carry a lot of weight.
Non-Confrontational
It is important that the intervention is planned and even practised so that the people attending. Do not let their personal emotions of anger overrun their testimony as this can be extremely harmful. The tone of non-confrontation is vital to the success of the intervention.
It is also important for an intervention to be pre-planned so as to remove all obstacles that the addict could use as an excuse for not entering treatment. Bags should be packed and all responsibilities taken care of. This removes the possibility of the addict changing their mind. Makes it more difficult for them to come up with an excuse as to why they should not enter.
If, for whatever reason, the intervention does not succeed in getting the addict into treatment. It can still be helpful to gather the family together and prevent a return to the previous situation. Family interventions are the most loving and most successful thing a worried family can do to get help for their loved one.
For free confidential advise call the Haynes Clinic on 01462 851414
