Interventions

Alcoholics and drug addicts are a danger to themselves and others. Co-workers and family members that suffer from suicidal ideation or chronic depression impact everyone that is close to them. Watching someone you care about destroy themself can be a very frustrating experience. Family members feel helpless as they try to encourage the alcoholic or addict to get help and are only met with resistance or denial that there is a problem. An intervention is an attempt to convince someone to get help for a drug or alcohol problem.

Interventions are most likely to be successful when they are well planned, structured and highly personalized. Family, friends and co-workers come together to break through the resistance of someone who is dealing with an addiction to drugs, alcohol or another compulsive and destructive behavior.

There are several styles of intervention. The style I prefer to use is a “care-frontation.” The care-frontation is conducted with love, care and respect for the individual. I have found that confrontations decrease defensiveness and anger. The intervention is uncomfortable enough for everyone, showing care and respect increases the likelihood of a positive outcome where the individual is more likely to follow through with receiving help for his/her destructive behavior. During the process, each concerned person is guided to show concern for the individual. Family members are to express how the individual’s behavior affects everyone that cares about him/her.

The skilled facilitator will have special training in substance abuse and other behavioral counseling disciplines. Aside from having performed prior successful interventions, the facilitator should be a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor and/or a licensed Mental Health Practitioner. The professional facilitator will help the family members become more direct and candid with the individual about the problem behavior. Prior to the actual intervention, several steps ought to be taken. The facilitator will decide who will attend the intervention, where the intervention will be done, instruct family members on the most effective way to express their concern, rehearse the intervention, set boundaries and orchestrate the actual intervention.

The planning and coordination prior to the actual intervention increases the chance of having a successful outcome. Everyone needs to agree on the goal of the intervention. Are you looking for the individual to immediately go into treatment? What is the desired action you want the individual to take as a result of the intervention? The facilitator will help the family members develop a plan that will meet the goal of the intervention. In some way, the goal will be for the individual to get help. Some interventions might not end with the individual going into treatment. The goal would then be having an increased sense of cohesion developed among, and between, family members who refuse to continue to be part of the “enabling system.” You are not looking to force a change since that will only increase the resistance of the individual. Instead the goal is to have family members stop helping the individual in ways that contribute to the destructive behavior. When there is unity among the family members to avoid enabling behavior, the individual is likely to enroll in treatment at a later date.  

Finally, realize that there will be resistance to the individual getting help and agreeing to the goal. The family members are to anticipate objections and have caring responses practiced prior to the intervention. Having rehearsed the responses to the objections ahead of time will help continue to send a clear and consistent message that you care about this person and expect this person to agree to the goals.

Realize that the individual is likely to be scared about giving up their alcohol, substance use or other destructive behaviors. The setting for the intervention is to be a safe space for the individual as well as for the other participants. There will be many strong emotions expressed during this process. The time spent in preparation with the facilitator prior to the intervention will convey to the individual that the destructive behavior is not acceptable anymore in a loving, caring and respectful manner. 

Steven Fogelman, LPC, CADC III, MAC, NCAC II