Do you know someone with drug and alcohol dependency? Naturally, you want to help them, so you may decide to hold an intervention. However, there are good ways and bad ways to go about it. Learn how to stage an intervention correctly to encourage someone to seek the treatment they deserve.
How to Stage An Intervention: Steps to Take
You might want to have an intervention specialist on hand. Moreover, this may be necessary if your loved one is prone to violent outbursts or has a co-occurring mental health disorder.
Even without a specialist, you can stage an intervention yourself. Before you begin, decide who will be present during the intervention. Typically, this is friends and family. Some people shouldn’t participate, however, if their emotions are likely to take over. Try to include the calmest individuals as part of the group.
Next, decide where to hold the intervention. Ideally, it’s a location where the user feels comfortable, such as their own home.
Practice what you’ll say. Each person should tell the user how they feel in language that isn’t condemning or blaming. Think of using “I” statements, such as “I am worried about you,” and not “You have hurt all of us with your use.”
In knowing how to stage an intervention, it’s also important to make the consequences of abuse clear. Furthermore, you must decide in advance what your end goal is. Is it to get the user into rehab right away? Is it to get a firm commitment that they’ll enter rehab within the next month?
Finally, recognize that the user may reject your help. In addition, you may have to issue an ultimatum, which may include cutting off financial support.
However, make it clear you’re still there to support any efforts to get clean.
What Not to Do for an Intervention
Just as there are ways to handle an intervention, there are also ways to make them go wrong. These are sensitive moments in time for the person struggling with addiction. The wrong approach could only make things worse. For example, things you shouldn’t do include:
- Encouraging user during substance use
- Winging it
- Escalating arguments
- Not being clear about consequences
- Being confrontational
The more you prepare, the better the chance that the intervention will go well.
Take Your First Step To Sobriety
Crest View Recovery Center can help you and your family heal from the damage that addiction has done. Our addiction treatment facility in Asheville, North Carolina places an emphasis on reality therapy. In fact, we teach you how to manage your addiction in real-life situations to prepare you for long-term sobriety.
For example, the substance abuse treatment programs we offer include:
- Men’s drug rehab program
- Women’s drug rehab program
- Rehab treatment program
- Intensive outpatient program (IOP)
- Addiction recovery
If you or a loved one needs drug addiction help, reach out to us today at 866.327.2505. It’s not too late to change your life for the better. We’ll help you overcome addiction and take steps toward lasting recovery.
