An intervention is something that involves intervening in the life or behavior of a person, in the hopes of changing their behavior or the outcome of the situation at hand. An intervention is often something that happens when the loved ones of an addict see their life spiraling out of control, and they want to do something to help them, and they want to also end their own enabling. In many cases, an intervention may also include an ultimatum presented to the addict, and in some cases, an intervention might include a professional who works with the group, but others may not.
What happens in an intervention is that a group of people come together and in a sense, confront the person who is addicted to drugs or alcohol, and they work to persuade them to not just make changes in their life, but more specifically, to seek help from a professional or a rehab center to deal with their substance abuse. A group that does an intervention usually includes very close friends and family of the person with an addiction, or it can even include colleagues in some cases.
What happens in an intervention is usually decided upon before the addict is included because it’s important that it’s well-prepared.
The intervention group meets beforehand to discuss how the intervention will go and what will be said, along with what will happen, and usually, interventions have a leader who is selected by the rest of the group.
The group, when they initially meet, discusses what they know about the person’s drug abuse who they’re confronting, and they will usually write down a list or letter, or maybe several letters to be read that will highlight how the addiction individually affects each of the people. They will show how addiction has affected the addict’s own life as well, and they will then let the person know that it’s their wish that he or she go to treatment.
There are also consequences outlined as to what will happen if the person doesn’t go to treatment, and they will define the outcomes if the person doesn’t agree to treatment.
In most cases, what happens in an intervention is that the group tries to find a reason to get the addict to a specific place at a certain time, and the objective is usually to catch the addict off guard, to allow for more honesty and vulnerability from the addict. Then, once the addict arrives at the agreed-upon location, everyone is present in one room. The addict is asked to have a seat, everyone reads a letter or shares their thoughts, and then also provides some sense of boundaries.
The goal of an intervention is to motivate an addict toward treatment. There is some research showing addicts are more likely to seek treatment when an intervention is what ultimately pushes them toward going, although they don’t necessarily affect how well the treatment itself works. Much of how an intervention works is based on the fact that it creates boundaries for the addict, such as financial or providing a shelter for that person, and it also lets members of the group highlight specific, definitive ways the addiction affects them.
Answering “how does an intervention work” is really about understanding that it’s a way to show an addict just how profound their substance abuse is in the ways that it affects the people around them.
Also important to answering “how does an intervention work” is the fact that if an addict does agree to treatment, they need to go as quickly as possible after the intervention itself. If an addict doesn’t agree to treatment following an intervention, then they must face the consequences outlined by their friends and family during the meeting.
Some general things to consider about how drug intervention works includes the fact that it should be conducted by someone with experience, who can mitigate defensive reactions on the part of all participants. What a lot of people don’t realize is how emotionally charged interventions can become because of all the intricate personal relationships at play, and a professional drug intervention specialist is detached from these personal relationships, which can be incredibly helpful. It’s also important to note that during an intervention the addict will not only be defensive, but may minimize their problem r their behavior, may try to guilt their loved ones, or they may start to present themselves as a victim.
In fact, both denial and victimhood are two of the primary obstacles to a successful intervention, and professional interventionists are specifically trained to address these areas.
Often once people have an understanding of what a drug intervention is and the drug intervention definition, they wonder who needs a drug intervention?
A drug intervention is ideal for someone who is struggling with drug abuse, but who seems unaware or unable to see how their addiction is affecting their life negatively, and the life of the people around them.
In many cases, a drug intervention takes place when someone denies that their drug use is causing problems. The addict may place blame on others, rather than accepting the effects of their abuse.
While some people may not use professional guidance to stage an intervention, finding professional drug intervention help can be a more effective way to improve the likelihood that an addict will seek treatment following an intervention.
There are experienced, professional interventionists who can do everything from training the loved ones of the addict over the phone as to how to guide the process, to coming and helping them in person and being present at the actual intervention.
Even if you’re not going to have a professional interventionist present when the meeting takes place, it is almost always better to seek drug intervention help during the planning process, to understand the best way to approach it, and how to increase the chances the person will accept help.
Family Intervention Specialist
A family intervention is designed to improve outcomes and also help caregivers and family members of an addict as they experience severe stress and negative consequences because of the addict.
The family intervention model is based on the concept of the entire family’s well-being, mental and physical. It’s not about surprises with the family intervention model either, unlike other classic models of intervention. With the family drug intervention, the addict is kept in the loop with every detail of the actual intervention. In essence, they’re part of the family intervention team, and they are invited to all family drug intervention meetings.
Family interventions require that the family intervention team and the family intervention worker take part in meetings that don’t just last for an hour or so but go the span of a few days. During a family drug intervention, the family intervention team begins to learn how to change old patterns of behavior, how to communicate with one another, and how to implement lasting changes.
What’s also unique about the family drug intervention is that everyone is considered the patient. The family intervention specialist works with the entire family intervention team, and it’s about group therapy, without placing blame or writing letters.
Also, while the objective of family interventions and working with a family intervention specialist is ultimately to encourage the addict to seek treatment, the family relationships can continue even if they don’t, or if they do. It’s about a continuation of working through issues as a family.
Drug Intervention Specialist
A drug intervention specialist or addiction intervention specialist is someone who can work with an intervention team before, during and after an intervention to help build a strategy and improve the chances that it will be successful.
Some of the specific tasks taken on by a drug intervention specialist or alcohol intervention specialist include helping the loved ones with the planning and how to convey the fact that the addict needs to seek help, teaching the intervention team about things related to addiction, and working with the family and loved ones to arrange treatment.
Other roles of an addiction intervention specialist may include helping the family understand what to expect during the intervention, making sure it stays on track even in the face of obstacles and helping identify the treatment options best suited to the individual addict.
An addiction intervention specialist usually has certain credentials and an educational background as a counselor or therapist.
When a group opts to work with a drug intervention specialist or alcohol intervention specialist, they usually do so in the very early stages of planning. The sooner the group works with an addiction intervention specialist, the better prepared they are. The specialist can not only help during preparation, however, but they’re also trained to be more persuasive to the addict.
Finding an Intervention Specialist
When you’re searching for an interventionist, you need to conduct an interview of the candidates. You want to consider their professional credentials, and most states have their own set of professional credentials for interventionists. They may also be a psychotherapist, a licensed clinical social worker, a licensed alcohol and drug counselor or a certified chemical dependency counselor.
You want to ask someone how many addiction intervention situations they have handled because experience is important as you search for professional addiction intervention resources and addiction intervention services.
Also, question the intervention model they use. Sometimes an interventionist will develop their own approach, or they may follow something specific such as the Johnson Intervention Model or the Systemic Family Intervention, among others. You want to speak with the professional about the steps they take before the intervention takes place as well.
As you get to know addiction intervention specialists, you’ll also want to talk to them about what happens if the intervention doesn’t go as planned. For example, how do they handle an emotionally charged situation or when where the addict doesn’t accept treatment? What about if the addict doesn’t even come to the intervention, or refuses to participate? It’s important to gauge how a specialist deals with difficult situations and obstacles during an addiction intervention.
You may also opt for addiction intervention services from someone who’s connected to a particular rehab facility. Some treatment centers have relationships with interventionists, and this may make the process of finding and setting up treatment easier for everyone involved.
It can be overwhelming when a family or group of loved ones decide to stage an intervention, and that’s when drug intervention programs can be helpful. There are drug intervention programs and drug intervention services that provide resources to help loved ones as they plan and stage an intervention.
There are a few things to know about interventions that can make it better to seek help from a drug intervention program or drug intervention services.
First, there are risks that can come with an intervention, and when you have help from a drug intervention program, these risks can be managed or mitigated. It’s also important to realize there are outlined steps for how to stage a formal intervention that’s effective, and drug intervention services can help you understand and follow these steps.
An outline of the steps that should be included in effective drug intervention programs are:
- An intervention group should include the people close to the abuser. This isn’t just limited to family members but can also include close friends, colleagues, and religious advisors.
- Professionals who can help with an intervention include counselors or professional interventionists from various drug intervention programs that are local or national, or other therapists or counselors.
- During the actual intervention, the group will talk to the addict about how their substance abuse has had a negative impact on them. They emphasize that they won’t stand by and overlook it anymore, and they will urge the person to seek help immediately.
Because interventions can have such an impact on everyone involved, seeking drug intervention services can be very helpful.
Also important to understand about drug intervention programs and drug intervention services is the fact that there are specific interventionists certifications that professionals should have.
One example is the Association of Interventionist Specialists (AIS) which has two levels of certification, BRI I and BRI II. The second level is the more experienced in the area of intervention, and AIS is one of the primary certification boards for interventionists. To become an AIS Board Certified Interventionist Specialist, professionals are required to show they have a great deal of experience in conjunction with an educational background.
When you decide you’re going to work with a provider of professional drug intervention services, that person will help you plan the meeting to try to help the addict, and the professional will facilitate all steps of the processes. There will usually be at least one preliminary meeting between the people who will participate in the intervention and the professional, and this is when the group will prepare their letters, and practice and outline their strategy.
Also key to know about drug intervention programs is that there are different approaches that may be used. Two of the most common are the Johnson Intervention and the ARISE Intervention. With the Johnson approach, the addict is confronted by a group of loved ones, and they’re presented with consequences if they don’t agree to treatment. This tends to be the most successful type of intervention.
The ARISE drug intervention program strives to be less confrontational, and it’s usually about compassion and healing for everyone in the group. It’s also more collaborative, in that the group and the addict work together in the recovery process.
An intervention is something that’s meant to provide the motivation an addict needs to seek help for drug or alcohol abuse. In some cases, interventions are also staged as a way to overcome other addictive behaviors or eating disorders and encourage the individual to seek help.
Many times, before learning how to stage an intervention, families and loved ones of people with addiction problems will often try to have conversations with the person, but they aren’t successful. It’s difficult for people with addiction problems to step outside of their own drug use and see how they’re affecting others, and that’s why a focused, strategic intervention can be helpful.
If you’ve tried talking to the addict about their use and behavior and it hasn’t helped, a group intervention is usually the next step.
Below outlines some steps as far as how to do an intervention and how to do a drug intervention.
The first step in how to do a drug intervention or how to do an intervention for a drug addict is to contact an intervention specialist who is qualified to help you understand what needs to be done and how to do it. Even if an intervention specialist isn’t present during the face-to-face meeting, they can equip you with the tools and resources you need to hold an intervention. An intervention specialist is trained and experienced in overcoming some of the obstacles loved ones face during an intervention, including facing addicts who continue to deny there’s a problem.
Without guidance from a professional as far as how to hold an intervention, it can be tough to break through a sense of stubbornness the addict may display.
Once you have connected with a professional, the next step of how to do a drug intervention is to bring together the friends and family that will be participating. Some of the people that may be part of an intervention can include parents, spouses, siblings, colleagues and very close friends.
In some cases, there may be children of the addict that participate, but because it can be a difficult experience, this isn’t always the case.
Once the group is formed, the next step in how to hold an intervention is to start preparing for what will be said during the actual meeting.
You may not even realize when you’re looking at how to stage an intervention just how emotional and even combative it can be, which is why it’s so important to be prepared and work with a professional if possible. During the initial phases of planning how to have a successful intervention, the team can be created as well. You want team members to be the closest people to the addict, and you want them to have communication with one another during the planning stages.
Next, when you’re learning how to have a successful intervention, you want to gather the necessary information. First, the members of the intervention group can consult with one another to share stories and determine all the known details about the addict and their drug or substance abuse. Then, the group can start considering the steps and arrangements that can be made for the addict if they agree to treatment.
One of the key components of how to stage an intervention is the setting of boundaries and consequences if the addict refuses help. These consequences need to be extremely specific and decided on in advance of the actual intervention. Each individual who’s part of the group has to decide on their own set of consequences.
All of the intervention team should write letters or take notes that they can use to ensure they make all of their relevant points during the meeting.
When someone is addicted to drugs, and you’re researching how to do an intervention for a drug addict, one of the most important things to realize is that person may not see how they’re affecting others. They may be putting the drug so much above everyone and everything around them that they’re blinded to the effects, which is why the personal stories and sharing during an intervention are so critical.
Once you’ve rehearsed what you’ll say, the next step in how to hold an intervention is to choose the meeting time and location. You want the addict to feel like they’re going to a place that isn’t threatening, and it’s best to try to find a time when they’ll be sober. Regarding length, most interventions last around an hour, but that’s up to the people holding it.
Finally, when you’re looking at how to stage an intervention, during the actual meeting, it’s important that every person shares their specific thoughts and consequences that they’re ready to follow through with if the person doesn’t go to treatment.
There’s not a definitive answer to the question of are interventions effective and can interventions work because ultimately it all depends on the individuals including the addict and the group holding the intervention. Also, how success is defined may differ.
A family may not define the success of an intervention as immediately entering treatment either. Instead, they might determine whether or interventions are effective by looking at their ability to follow through with what was communicated during the intervention.
The success of an intervention depends on many factors, but drug interventions tend to be more successful when a formula is followed, and when the group works with a professional.
To sum up, can intervention work and how effective are drug intervention programs: it’s all based on the individuals, but following a plan and implementing certain steps can increase the chances of success.
How to Write an Intervention Letter
A drug intervention letter or alcohol intervention letter is one of the most important components of a formal intervention, but how to write an intervention letter can be difficult to understand. First and foremost, when you’re holding a formal intervention, you want the drug intervention letter or alcoholic intervention letter to reflect compassion and the sense of love and concern you feel for the addict. You want them to understand the seriousness of the situation, but without blaming and shaming them.
How to write an intervention letter depends on being able to communicate your genuine sense of love and concern, and your strong desire for the addict to get better. You want it to highlight the severity of the addiction, and show how the actions of the addict hurt the people around them.
When you’re writing a drug intervention letter or alcohol intervention letter, you also want it to show that your hope is that they will participate in the treatment being offered during the formal intervention and that there will be clear, defined consequences if they don’t.
When you are exploring how to write an intervention letter, one of the most important things to keep in mind is that you must be willing and ready to carry out the consequence you list.