When a person’s substance use or mental health problem becomes worse and potentially dangerous, often an intervention is needed to encourage them to accept professional help. An intervention allows friends and relatives of the person they are concerned about to have the opportunity to express their feelings and concerns for the loved one. They do this in hopes it will help the person accept that they do have a problem with substances or mental health and make the necessary changes before the situation becomes significantly worse or even life-threatening. An intervention can help in many ways.
What Is an Intervention?
An intervention is a carefully planned process that may be done by family and friends, in consultation with a professional such as a licensed alcohol and drug counselor or an intervention professional (interventionist). It sometimes involves a member of a loved one’s family or others who care about the person struggling with addiction or mental health.
During the intervention, these people gather together to confront their loved ones about the consequences of addiction or mental health and ask them to accept treatment. The intervention:
- Provides specific examples of destructive behaviors and their impact on the loved one struggling with addiction or mental health and family and friends
- Offers a prearranged treatment plan with clear steps, goals, and guidelines
- Spells out what each person will do if their loved one refuses treatment
Bringing in Someone Who Isn’t Part of Family
A significant benefit of interventions is bringing a professional into the process because the person is not part of the family system – they have not been compromised by years of manipulation and maneuvering. If you recognize one thing about your loved one, it should be this: they have perfected ways to keep their addiction going regardless of the consequences. Part of that has been learning how to get around you and other family and friends by compartmentalizing their life. They make sure each person only knows what they want them to know. With mental health, a loved one may lie and manipulate to hide the truth about their mental health problems.
By fragmenting the experience, it can be challenging for a family to get together and approach the individual as a collective. However, the interventionist can tease out all the lies and manipulations and bring the complete picture of the addiction or mental health concern into the light. No longer can the individual hide within the chaos they have created; the game is over because everyone is completely informed, and a consensus has been built.
A Wake-Up Call
Struggling with addiction or mental health can often come with denial or an individual having no idea how bad their substance use or mental health symptoms are. They may also not recognize the negative impact their behavior and actions have on their family and the friends that are close to them. Often, an intervention serves as the first step to recovering from addiction or mental health by becoming aware of the issue.
Interventions can also be a wake-up call for family members. One of the critical components of an intervention is understanding the shift in family dynamics and learning how to put oneself first. In many cases, family members or friends may give endlessly to salvage whatever fragmented relationship exists, which ultimately contributes to the worsening of addiction or mental health. Although this is not the intention, the desire to protect a loved one can create patterns that enable addictive behaviors and worsen familial relationships. Interventions help family members realize they must care for themselves first to better support their loved ones.
The Family Is in Control
Interventions work because they finally place the family in control. For too long, the individual struggling may have manipulated the people around them. Everyone connected to the individual would have been affected in some way. However, when that person consents to receive treatment, everyone involved starts the healing process. The family agrees to provide treatment and help; otherwise, ultimatums are set if they do not accept treatment. The message is one of love, support, and no longer providing any assistance but treatment.
The Healing Process Begins
With intervention services, the healing process begins for everybody. The loved one struggling may recognize the need for treatment and finally start their journey to recovery. They now have the opportunity to become the person family and friends once knew. However, this doesn’t always happen, but that doesn’t mean the family cannot begin their healing. At this point, family and friends decide to no longer let their loved one’s addiction or mental health rule their lives, too; this is where the healing begins. Family and friends can start to move forward with their lives, knowing they love and support their loved one, did everything they could in that moment, and begin to get help themselves.
Intervention services are the starting point of ending the cycle of addiction or mental health and beginning the healing process for everyone connected to the person. Even if a loved one does not accept treatment, family and friends can finally start to heal. When you hire an intervention specialist, you hire somebody who can see past the lies and manipulation. No longer can loved ones hide within the chaos they have created; the game is over because everyone is completely informed, and a consensus has been built. At Rickard Elmore Treatment Strategy®, we provide pre-intervention assessments and interventions. The pre-intervention assessment is used to determine the current and presenting issues affecting the individual suffering from a mental health or addiction concern and their family, friends, and loved ones. The Transformational Intervention process itself provides a space for friends, family, and loved one’s to engage a transparent and collective support system against the destructive behavior while also providing a strong message of love and encouragement under the guidance of a highly skilled Interventionist. For more information on the intervention process, call (877) 387-7197 today.