If you have a friend or family member who is suffering from an addictive disorder, there comes a time where you can no longer sit by and continue to watch the inevitable crash. Or, perhaps you have already witnessed the crash. The DUI, loss of employment, dwindling bank accounts, abject ...
During this past year I created a new service for families interested in performing interventions on their own. I call it, appropriately enough, "Assisted Interventions".
I came up with the idea after receiving countless emails and phone calls over the years from families desperately in need of intervention help, but for ...
April 22nd 2008
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Intervention
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With the growing publicity and popularity of A & E's show Intervention, many people are becoming familiar with the intervention process. It has gotten to the point where it is not uncommon for me to be leading an intervention and have the addict walk in, peruse the room and smugly ...
April 15th 2008
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Intervention
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Every once in a while I get the call to lead an intervention where the circumstances point to what appears to be a relatively easy case. One such intervention occured recently.
The intervention call came from a father who reported that his 21 year old son was drinking and using meth. ...
Occasionally, I'll get the call where a family member asks if there is a process to forcibly send a person into treatment. Generally speaking, the answer is no. There are certain exceptions, for instance, minors, and leverage can certainly be used if there are some legal issues (criminal or civil) ...
March 25th 2008
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Intervention
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I absolutely love working as an intervention specialist. I am extremely fortunate to be able to work with families and addicts in an effort to provide guidance, relief and a solution for their respective suffering. It is extremely difficult and emotional work, but work that I treasure. There is , ...
March 19th 2008
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Intervention
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I'm often asked by family members if it is wise to attempt an intervention on their own, without the presence or involvement of an intervention specialist. I typically respond to this question by letting them know that they probably have already done multiple interventions in the past, yet never knew ...
March 12th 2008
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Intervention
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I receive quite a few phone calls during the week regarding family interventions. The questions from the callers range across the board but inevitably I'll get the question "what is your success rate?"
I'm a little uncomfortable with the question, not because of my actual "success rate" (it hovers in the ...
What happens after the addict agrees to admit to a treatment center? Does the intervention team quietly disperse, wait for the addict to complete treatment and hope all goes well?
The answer is a resounding "NO". Many (hopefully all) drug and alcohol counselors agree that treatment for the family is just ...
February 28th 2008
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Intervention
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There really is no substitution for preparation when it comes to drug and alcohol interventions. You may hope for the best, but you better be darn sure you are prepared for the worst. Rare is the occasion when a drug and alcohol intervention goes exactly as planned.
I recently facilitated a ...