Intervention is about putting families back together. It is a process intended to help a loved one realize and accept his or her problem(s) and subsequent need for help. Oftentimes, individuals living with an addictive disorder view their own reality in a significantly distorted manner, a process referred to by psychologists and psychiatrists as denial – an inability to see reality for what it is. In other words,the addicted person is unable or unwilling to see the full impact their addiction has on the family, themselves, and their ability to function. As such, they may view the suggestion of needing treatment as an “absurd overreaction.” An intervention is intended to work through the person's denial system and help them to gain insight into how the addictive behavior is destroying their lives and ripping through the lives of the family.

Family members who contact an interventionist for help typically feel that despite all the family has done, and is continuing to do, the addiction is rapidly progressing and spinning out of control. This sense of powerlessness oftentimes leads to feelings of guilt, inadequacy, depression, and anxiety. Addiction is a medical illness and is recognized as such by numerous medical fraternities and the Federal Government. Most medical illness cannot be managed or treated by the family alone, so why is addiction viewed by most families as something they “should” be able to manage or control?

Addiction is also a family illness. Being a family illness does not imply that the family caused the addiction, nor that they should be responsible for curing it. What it implies is that if you love someone who is addicted, you will be significantly affected by the addiction and that because of the love each family member has for the addicted person, they become part of the addictive process through enabling (i.e., shielding the addicted person from natural consequences). Furthermore, the fear of losing the addicted person locks the family into the patterns of enabling, controlling, and frustration. Intervention is about allowing the family to find new patterns of relating the addicted person.

There are two overriding and equally significant goals to any intervention process:

1. For the addicted person to accept the gifts of treatment and recovery, and
2. For each family member to discover ways to focus on themselves and respond differently to the addiction.

Why do an intervention?

1. Addiction is a progressive, chronic, and potentially fatal illness.
2. Family involvement early on in the treatment process increases the person’s chance for recovery.
3. Treatment had worked for millions of individuals throughout the country.
4. Many addicted individuals die long before they “hit bottom” and “want help.”

Does hiring an interventionist bring a guarantee?

There are never guarantees when you are dealing with a condition as unpredictable as addiction. It does however, give the family an ally in learning how to deal with the addiction and relate to the person in a manner which typically facilitates change and an acceptance of help. It also gives the family an outlet to begin addressing their own issues. Simply, stated, if the family systems changes, there becomes less room with in the family for active addiction.

What Types of Addictions are intervened on?

Alcohol Addiction, Drug Addiction, Sexual Addiction, Eating/Food Addictions, Internet Addictions, Shopping Addictions, Gambling
 
How do you begin the intervention process?

An intervention begins with a concerned phone call. The typical intervention includes several hours of preparatory phone work, deciding on an appropriate treatment facility, family training sessions(s), and the intervention meeting with the addicted family member. Interventions are done throughout the country. Please call (225) 769-7575 ext. 5 for further detail.