How to Stage an Early Intervention

08/11/2017

How to Stage an Early Intervention

Is your loved one’s prescription drug use getting out of hand? Is he or she is using pain pills for an ailment that no longer exists? Have you noticed that someone you care about is sneaking alcohol into other containers to hide how much he or she drinks? When you see these warning signs, early intervention can be life-saving.

How to Stage an Early Intervention and do it Right

The worst thing you can do is go overboard. Accusations and appeals to the individual’s sense of gratitude toward you won’t work. Instead, keep your head and approach your loved one in a matter of fact manner. Getting your facts straight is crucial.

For an adolescent or adult child who uses experimentally, ask lots of questions.

Ask the individual what he or she believes will happen if the use of the substance continues. Explain how using will affect school or athletic performance. Highlight that it may become increasingly difficult to reach goals while using drugs.

When dealing with a loved one whose use of a substance has become problematic, offer assistance. While you can’t rescue the person from financial problems that drug use creates, give support by learning about rehab. Provide transportation to a detox program and rehab facility. Offer to watch a child while your loved one undergoes treatment.

Approach the Situation from an Educated Position

When your loved one admits to having a problem with drugs or alcohol as a result of early intervention, it’s vital to know what to do next. Inform yourself about the available treatment options. Typically, you have an option between an inpatient and outpatient drug treatment program. Residential settings, which allow participants to live at the facility, have a high success rate.

For starters, these settings get the individual out of a situation that triggers drug use. Secondly, this type of treatment option allows for clinical supervision and immersion in therapeutic activities that promote recovery. Examples include:

- - Cognitive behavioral therapy that’s part of one-on-one talk therapy, which allows individuals to explore the reasons for drug use
  - Trauma therapy, which assists with the resolution of events that are in the past but affect actions today
  - Nutritional counseling helps people to regain their physical health, which suffered during times of drug abuse
  - Group therapy that offers opportunities for developing relapse prevention tools and building self-esteem
  - Family therapy, which brings in those closest to the program participant to facilitate healing of relationships and provide support

When your loved one chooses a facility that offers detox on site, the transition to rehab is seamless. Doing so is advantageous because it allows familiar counselors to continue working with the individual. If he or she requires some life skills training, the work starts in detox and continues throughout rehab. A program that supports a whole person approach to healing significantly boosts the odds for success.

Help is Closer than You Think!

At Silver Pines Treatment Center near Hazelton, PA, caring therapists work with folks just like your loved one on a regular basis. The facility has a homelike atmosphere that includes participation in daily living tasks. Find out more about our addiction treatment options, including heroin addiction treatment, today by dialing 267.209.7313.