Seeing your loved one suffer from addiction is hard enough as it is, but sometimes, getting them the help they need is even harder. That’s because most drug addicts are in such a deep state of denial about their problem that they will refuse any efforts you may have to get them to break their addiction.
It’s even possible that if you persist enough, they will soon find you to be the villain who is trying to take away their source of “happiness”. There is no reasoning with them, and they could even find it difficult to believe that you’re only looking out for their best interests. For them, you are not understanding their needs and instead are working to manipulate them and make them suffer by depriving them of the substance that they crave the most.
Unfortunately, this is what drugs can do to their brains. It severely clouds their judgment and turns everyone who tries to take their habit away into an enemy. However, you simply cannot stand by and do nothing about it too, especially because there are serious repercussions on their health and life in general. One of the last resorts that loved ones turn to is to stage an intervention. It’s not going to be a walk in the park, but done right, there’s a very good chance that you may be saving the life of your loved one.
Plan the Intervention
The intervention is supposed to catch the subject by surprise, not you. As the one holding the intervention, it’s important for you to prepare every little detail of it. Leave no bit to chance for optimal results.
Identify the plan, who’s going to be involved, and what are steps that you should take to pull it off well. Keep in mind that you don’t want the subject to feel like they’re being attacked. Keep the group size to a minimum. The subject may easily feel spooked otherwise, and then you would have failed almost immediately. It is advisable to bring a professional interventionist with you, so that there could be an objective person in the room. Expect emotions to run high; the subject may feel betrayed by this sudden intrusion while you may feel desperate enough to do anything you can to convince them to go to rehab.
Write Down What You Want to Say
You want to make it clear that you’re coming from a good place and that you simply want to help them get back on their feet. Because it’s going to be a highly emotional meeting, you should write down what you want to say instead.
That way, you can outline your thoughts and organize them better ahead of time. Having a copy with you during the intervention will allow you to speak from a clear-headed mind space despite being in emotional turmoil right then and there. This can help you deliver the message that you want exactly as it should be delivered: clearly and strongly. Anyone else coming to the intervention with something to say should ideally do the same. This is to prevent emotional outbursts as much as possible, which could end up in further misunderstandings and miscommunication.
Follow-Through with Your Plan
The point of staging an intervention is to get them to commit to rehab. Once they do, you should be ready to follow through with it. Don’t let them sleep on it or think about it any longer, because most likely, they will leave and isolate. The advantage you have right now is that you are still able to communicate with them. Because it is very possible that they may view this intervention as a betrayal of sorts, it also becomes very possible that they may cut you out.
You don’t want to let this opportunity slip past you. As soon as they say yes, have them be on their way to a rehab facility. This means that you should have already done your homework and have pre-selected the facility they are going to. That way, the day of their intervention is also their first day of sobriety. Find out more about rehab facilities and how they can help with your intervention plan.
