One of the most heartbreaking things a person can witness is their family members and friends falling victim to substance use disorder. No matter what it is, alcohol, drugs or prescription pain medication, these substances destroy lives.
It is upsetting to see someone whom you know and care about start changing into someone unrecognizable, even dangerous.
Fortunately, there is a way to stop them before they go too deep into the addiction.
People around the patients can often see the changes and want to help that person out. This is where the concept of intervention comes in.
What’s an Intervention?
In the context of substance abuse and its recovery, intervention involves an organized attempt by the family members and friends to confront their loved ones who have fallen victim to addiction. An intervention is an opportunity for the family, friends, colleagues of other close members to tell how they feel about their addiction. This is a simple explanation of intervention.
Some people may get confused after hearing the term intervention. Most people relate this term to therapeutic approaches. However, that is not the case.
Yes, a therapist conducts an an intervention, but its purpose is different from therapy; an intervention lets the patient know how others feel about their substance use disorder. You can even say that it is a self-realization therapy that motivates and encourages a patient to come out of their addiction independently and begin the road to recovery.
What are the Methods of Intervention?
Although intervention is all about organizing people together and confronting the patients suffering from addiction, it can be categorized into four different pillars.
Simple intervention
The concept of simple intervention is that one loved one is more than enough for the patients to realize their mistakes. This activity is carried out with a one-to-one meeting with a loved one of professional interventionists.
Family system intervention
Sometimes, one person is not enough to convey the message. When professionals face such a scenario, they take the intervention scale a step higher by gathering all the family members.
Classical intervention
Classical intervention is a gathering without the patients. Family members and friends are asked to join the meeting. They are educated by the professional on how to behave around the patient. This helps them act in a way that helps the patients stay away from their addiction without even knowing.
Crisis intervention
This is when the patient is in the late stage of their addiction where they need rehabilitation to come out from their addiction. This is the time to show some tough love to stabilize the situation and optimize safety.
Steps to Organizing a Successful Intervention
The impact of the intervention depends on how well you conduct them. Hence, it is important to outline an effective intervention strategy.
Follow these steps to organize a successful intervention successfully.
Step 1: Hire a Professional
Although many will suggest you organize an intervention without any professional help, we ask you not to listen to them. A professional brings experience in conducting such an event.
Trained interventionists are skilled in creating an ideal environment and ensuring that the invention is successful. To hire a professional interventionist, go to a website.
Step 2: Choose the Right Time
Choosing the right to hold an intervention is important. Never attempt to hold an intervention meeting when the main focus is influenced. This clogs the individual’s thinking process.
Step 3: Don’t Make it a Public Event
Although it is an important matter, do not make this event public. Intervention is already an uncomfortable situation for the patients. Making it public will only add to their discomfort.
Step 4: Surround the Patient With Loved Ones
When someone is under the pressure of addiction, they ignore all its negative impacts on their health and life. In such a case, you need people who strongly influence your patience. These people can be family members, relatives, friends, and colleagues. In their presence, there is a chance that the patient will be able to think rationally.
Step 5: Allow Every Participant to Put Their Feelings Into Words
The ultimate goal of the intervention is to let the patient agree to the fact that they need help. This can only be done by how people around them feel. Allow everyone to talk about their feelings and how they feel about the patience. This will help the patient know the minds of their loved ones.
TIP: Allow the younger individual to speak their mind. This will help the patients understand the impact and reserve the most loved person for the last to convey the message.
Step 6: Avoid Aggressive Body Language
Intervention is a way to show how much you care about patience. Hence, you must avoid showcasing yourself as someone blaming them for their addiction. This kind of body language can make the whole recovery process more complex.
Step 7: Keep Your Emotions Under Control
No matter how bad you feel about them and want them to realize their mistake, remember that the intervention is not for blaming. Instead, it is an event where you care for the patient and assure them that you will embrace them with open arms no matter what happens.
An Important First Step
An intervention is a crucial moment to pivot someone at risk of substance abuse to an addiction-free life. This is one of the most grueling experiences you can ever have in your life. But it is necessary to do so as it allows the patients to understand how people around them feel and care. Once the intervention is successful, the next step is to check into rehabilitation programs.
Even if the intervention doesn’t work, you and others who are involved in the patient’s life can behave in a certain way that can help them. You can also ask other people to take action to enable positive changes.
