Alcohol Intervention: When Should I Stage an Alcohol Intervention?

The person must be sober, and the location should be non-threatening and private. Planning a follow-up is just as critical, be it seeking immediate admission to a treatment facility if the person agrees or deciding on consequences if they refuse. In McMahon’s experience, the subject of an intervention is usually grateful for the care and support shown by family and friends. It is extremely painful to stand by and watch someone’s life be destroyed.

How to Help an Alcoholic: A Guide to Support and Recovery

If you’ve been covering up for your loved one and not talking about their addiction openly for a long time, it may seem daunting to reach out for help. However, it’s important to make sure you’re getting the https://ecosoberhouse.com/ support you need as well. Lean on the people around you, and, if you need to, reach out to a mental health professional to speak about your stress and what you’re going through.

• It also may be right to ask your loved one to seek support from a group such as Alcoholics Anonymous.
• On the other hand, they may feel like you have betrayed them by going to their family first.
• Dr. Hoffman is the Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of AddictionHelp.com and ensures the website’s medical content and messaging quality.
• And seeing how many people they’ve affected — and how deeply — can give them the motivation they need to make a change.
• Join our supportive sober community where each day becomes a step towards personal growth and lasting positive change.

Work with an addiction professional

• This is meant to help the addict understand the concerns and feelings these team members have with regard to the addict’s health and their own well-being.
• These may be nights where things got out of control or situations where their drinking led to unpleasant fights or outcomes.
• Some people may drink all day, while others may only binge in the evening alone.

If you believe you or someone you love may be struggling with addiction, let us hear your story and help you determine a path to how to do an intervention for an alcoholic treatment. Among Americans who abuse alcohol, many are able to reduce their drinking without any formal treatment. A little more than half of all adults in the United States report drinking alcohol, and 7 percent report having an alcohol use disorder, according to an annual survey conducted by the U.S.

• Alcohol use disorder, or alcoholism, is more than just drinking too much from time to time.
• After an intervention, family members and friends follow through with their promises, such as not enabling their loved one’s drinking problem by financially supporting them.
• While it’s up to the person to willingly start their sobriety journey, you can also help.
• The goal of an intervention is to encourage someone to seek the proper treatment they need and deserve.

Following Up and Moving Forward After a Drug or Alcohol Intervention

It’s OK to make choices that are good for your own physical and mental health. Often, in trying to “help,” well-meaning loved ones will actually do something that enables someone dependent on alcohol to continue along their destructive paths. Make sure that you are not doing anything that bolsters their denial or prevents them from facing the natural consequences of their actions. If family members try to “help” by covering up for their drinking and making excuses for them, they are playing right into their loved one’s denial game. Dealing with the problem openly and honestly is the best approach. When someone with alcohol dependency promises they will never drink again but a short time later are back to drinking as much as always, it is easy to take the broken promises and lies personally.

Once you’ve decided to move forward, the first step in how to arrange an intervention is to assemble a supportive team. They’ll provide the love, support, and accountability your loved one needs. The road to recovery can be full of twists and turns, but the love and support of friends and family can go a long way toward helping someone straighten out.