Intervention

Do You Feel Powerless To Help An Addicted Loved One?

Family Intervention Can Help

Are you watching someone you love struggle with drugs/and or alcohol, feeling powerless to help? Have you tried everything you can think of to best support your addicted loved one, but nothing seems to make any sustainable difference? Maybe broken promises, hiding behavior and dishonesty are significantly impacting everyone, and you fear for your loved one’s and family’s wellbeing. Perhaps from the outside things appear okay and your addicted loved one continues to be high functioning in his or her career, but things are becoming consistently unstable at home. It might be that you’re increasingly afraid of what might happen—watching the situation get worse and worse—if you don’t do something significant and tangible to help. Are you ready to seek family intervention, hoping that expert support and guidance can finally help you get your loved one the help that he or she needs?

Millions Of People And Families Are Affected By Substance Abuse And Addiction

If you’re watching a loved one struggle with drug or alcohol use, abuse or addiction, you are far from alone. Current statistics show that roughly 20 million Americans (ages 12 and older) suffer from a substance abuse disorder, and of those, 74 percent also struggle with an alcohol disorder. Similar studies also report that only 8 percent of people with a substance abuse disorder receive treatment, leaving millions of individuals and families without the guidance and support needed to navigate the progressive and often devastating disease.

While drug and alcohol abuse and addiction are prevalent across the country, Houston is particularly affected. Houston is classified as a High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and over the last decade, Houston (and Texas as a whole) has experienced an increase in drug overdoses. The opioid epidemic, among other substance like cocaine and methamphetamines, are a serious concern, affecting people of all ages, genders and backgrounds. A rising concern, however, is the elderly population. Substance abuse among the elderly (most commonly alcohol and prescription drugs) has been highly underestimated and underdiagnosed, although it is arguably one of the fastest growing health problems and concerns in the U.S.

Whether your addicted loved one is a spouse, parent, child or friend, attempting to help another (and your family) navigate the chaos of substance abuse and addiction can be highly fearful experience. The good news, however, is that family intervention can help. From an approach based in love, I can help you develop a thoughtful intervention strategy and take you through the family intervention process with expert guidance and compassionate support.

 

The Love First Clinical Intervention Model

When it’s done right by a clinical interventionist —with planning, a highly compassionate intervention and follow-up—family intervention can be highly effective. I am trained in the Love First intervention model, which focuses on your loved one as a person first and the disease as just one part of the person. As it sounds, a Love First intervention is essentially about love. It’s about inclusivity and supporting someone you care about as opposed to making him or her feel ostracized or punished for the disease he or she is struggling with. Love restores hope, and together we can create a plan designed to encourage your loved one to get help. He or she can know that the intent is genuine concern, love and care and that everyone is present with compassion and support.

 

The Family Intervention Process

Before the actual intervention takes place, you and other concerned family members and myself will meet twice to talk about your specific situation as I begin to understand your addicted loved one, the progression of his or her disease and your family. In these meetings, in which we pull the family together, I’ll provide you with education, tools and skills that you can draw from during the intervention process. Collectively, we’ll come up with a substance abuse intervention plan that we all feel will be best received by your loved one. At that time, I’ll help you walk through the process of treatment and recovery for your loved one.

We can also discuss a “soft intervention” to begin with, in which I can train you and your family to effectively and structurally address your concerns without me being in attendance, which can be successful especially if it’s a first intervention attempt. If we decide that it’s best that I am in attendance, I’ll work to keep everyone focused on coming from a place of love, that this is a disease, and that we’re all in this together. There are no bottom lines in this form of supportive intervention, and it’s important that your addicted loved one know that he or she is not alone.

Following the intervention, we’ll schedule follow-up meetings that can help you navigate family issues and best support your loved one, family and yourself while your family member is in treatment and after treatment, which are all vital pieces of the recovery process.

Regardless of how the intervention goes, you and your family will have a plan and the support needed to take care of yourselves during and after what is often a challenging process.

 

Love Restores Hope

Love truly restores hope, and a Love First Clinical Intervention done with a compassionate, practical and highly experienced drug and alcohol counselor can help dispel the fear and secrecy that is intertwined with addiction.

Since the early 1990s, I have been helping individuals and families struggling with drug and alcohol abuse and addiction. As a recovering alcoholic with a family history of substance abuse, I know both personally and professionally how devastating the disease can be and the impact that is has on families. I also know that with practical guidance, a loving plan of action and supportive follow-up that you can bring a sense of grounding to what is an extremely challenging situation. You have been battling this long enough; however, when approached from a place of inclusivity and love, all members of your family can feel supported. I will offer you effective tools, useful resources and compassionate support throughout the whole intervention process, which can make all the difference.

 

You still may have questions and concerns about family intervention…

 

What is the difference in a clinical interventionist and other interventionists?

In the day and age of online education and training there are programs that will “train and certify” anyone who chooses to take the class regardless of their knowledge, background or experience.  People are charging exorbitant amounts of money for substandard services and no follow-up.  Leaving the family hanging out there with no guidance after the intervention.  As a clinical interventionist I bring over 25 years of clinical experience.  I believe the family needs are as important as the addicted persons needs and will help the family on a continuing basis.  Once a family has worked with me they become a member of our ever growing family.

 

We did an intervention before and it didn’t work. How could trying again with you lead to different results?

Unlike other forms of intervention, which can feel punitive, I lead interventions from a place of love. I also believe that intervention is most successful when there is planning and supportive follow-up that considers everyone’s needs.  I understand that every individual and family is different, which is why I’ll work with you beforehand to create a strategic approach to the intervention, as well as after to help you avoid the emergence of old patterns. When it comes to battling addiction, it truly does take a village, and I am there to support you and your family the whole way.

 

I am so worried, but cannot see my loved one being receptive to intervention. I’m wondering why to even try.

I understand where you are coming from, and have heard many other concerned people share the same feeling. It’s also not uncommon for an addict and/or alcoholic to threaten to walk out of an intervention and/or deny there is a problem. Others, much like you, also feel discouraged, hearing from other people that their attempt at an intervention with a loved one didn’t work. But, it can. I’ve seen many families try, and when approached from a place of love and support, come through a successful intervention. We’re also going to go in with a well thought out plan. With strategy in place, rates of success increase.

 

Is there a way to do an intervention ourselves?

It is possible to do an intervention without an interventionist, which can be a great first step. Oftentimes people are receptive to starting with just family and close friends that they trust and respect. If a soft intervention is the path you want to try, I can train you on structured conversation and provide you with specific tools to use. And, if the soft intervention is not well received, we can discuss options and consider a more formal intervention.

Find Your Freedom

If you and your family are suffering from the impact of addiction, we can help. Addiction is a family disease, and everyone needs support and a safe space to heal. We will guide you by creating an addiction recovery strategy that’s personalized for you and your family. There is freedom from the pain and shame. Take a powerful first step - ask for help - and start your healing journey with us today.

I invite you to call our office at 832-928-0211 for a free 15-minute phone consultation. We’re happy to discuss your specific needs and answer any questions you have. We have offices in Houston, TX, and we provide online therapy and recovery coaching for anyone living outside the Houston area.