How to Do a Medical Intervention for Prescription Drug Abuse

People use the word intervention to provide an accurate description of a person putting themselves into someone’s life with the hope that they can alter their behaviors or the consequences of present circumstances. In many instances, interventions end with the troubled individual being offered an ultimatum that requires professional help. This is especially the case when it comes to a medical intervention.

Before the prescription drug addiction intervention occurs, a group of worried individuals assembles to prepare for the confrontation of their struggling loved one. Ultimately, the goal is to persuade the person suffering to make consequential changes in his or her life.

The reasons why people hold interventions vary for a couple of reasons fluctuating between:

What Should Be Considered for a Medical Intervention for Prescription Drug Abuse?

The two most important factors of intervention are planning and preparation for the medical intervention. The groups organizing the intervention must connect beforehand to discuss how the meeting will go with a professional and what everyone will say to the individual. In many cases, the intervention is led by a professional who has experience dealing with individuals struggling with addiction and their families.

The group will discuss everything they know about the individual and that person’s alcohol or drug abuse. It is encouraged that the loved ones create lists of all that is on their hearts to say to that individual.

The main goals of the letters that family members and friends write to their addicted loved one during a medication intervention are to:

Demonstrate worries and fears experienced by the family members
Highlight in-depth how the person’s addiction has affected each individual in the group
Ensure that members of the group will say everything they need to say, not leaving anything out

How Is Prescription Drug Medication Addiction Changing?

The number of prescription drug-related deaths now exceeds traffic facilities each year in the U.S. One of the biggest benefits of prescription medications is it provides legitimate relief for a huge amount of illnesses. The downside to that benefit is when handed down to individuals from consumers, the possibility of the drug being received in the wrong hands can be deadly. Even in the right hands, due to how addictive many prescription drugs are, when misused, prescription medications can be deadly.

People should take prescription medication addiction seriously. This is because even the strongest-willed individuals can find themselves dependent on prescription medication after a few weeks of use.

Due to the execution of the Affordable Care Act, sales of prescription medication have increased rapidly over the last several years. In 2014, Americans spent a record of $374 billion alone on prescription medication.

People filled out a total of 4.3 billion prescriptions that year (which is also a record). The sales of prescription drugs aren’t declining anytime soon, and the number of overdoses on these medications is going to increase or stay firmly fixed.

Many treatment approaches are balanced and advanced with no shortage of options. Fortunately, the country as a whole is beginning to shift its mindsets towards rehabilitation and away from punishment for those suffering from addiction.

How Is A Medical Intervention for Prescription Drug Abuse Different From an Intervention for Abuse of Alcohol or an Illegal Substance?

A regular alcohol or drug intervention differs from a medical intervention for prescription drug abuse in the following ways:

Finalized outline consequences if the individual continues to refuse help
A thought out intervention to confront the loved ones when they are unprepared, clear-headed, and logical
Honesty and vulnerability is allowed
Once the individual arrives at the appointed location with the group present, the loved ones alternate expressing their thoughts, setting healthy boundaries, and reading their thoughts

The following explains how to do a medical intervention for prescription drug abuse along with how it differs from a regular intervention:

The drug being abused by the individual in need of a prescription medication intervention is legal, so oftentimes, the person that is abusing substances will refuse treatment and refuse to acknowledge that there is a problem.
There is a meeting before the intervention but it’s more centered around assisting the individual to understand his or her role in ensuring their loved one’s recovery from addiction.
The setting is inside of the family member’s house.

What Should The Family and Friends Be Prepared For?

The primary goal of interventions is to inspire the struggling individual to seek treatment. Interventions are a great and essential way to set the tone for people getting help.

They don’t, however, determine the outcome of treatment. So it’s necessary to be prepared for the following:

For The Individual To Attend Or Not Attend

If the individual decides to attend rehab, they must attend as soon as possible. Preparation is so essential because the loved ones have a set plan in place for the individual suffering from addiction. It is also important to have a set plan in place for when that person arrives at the treatment center.

There’s no guarantee that the person with the problem will say yes to attending treatment. Thus, it is highly imperative to be prepared for the individual to disagree with attending, and that’s when the boundaries discussed in the meeting should take place.

Be Prepared For An Experienced Addiction Specialist

When an intervention group is led by an intervention professional, the support team will ultimately feel better equipped to handle strenuous confrontations. The professionals act as third parties to lessen emotional and reactive circumstances.

The families of loved ones don’t realize how stressful and emotional interventions are.

There are a few common emotions that might transpire to be on the lookout for though:

Denial is an enormous feature of addiction. When individuals are in denial, other emotions tend to come out such as:
Agitation
Being upset
Being defensive

Another feature to be aware of is victimization. In this scenario, the individual might make excuses and minimize his or her behavior. The downside to this is it can have a huge effect on family members and disrupt the ultimate goal of sending the person to rehabilitation.

What Preparation Steps Do They Take?

The preparation steps that a professional interventionist takes are the following:

Teaching the group how to effectively communicate with the addict
Working with the group to arrange aftercare programs and substance abuse treatments
Educating the team about recovery, addiction, and many other related topics
Keeping the intervention peaceful and moving through meditation
Ultimately assisting the group plan the intervention

Professional interventionists acquire a large amount of experience interacting with alcoholics, addicts, and their family members. They are ultimately prepared for the worse and best-case scenarios to occur.

In addition to that, they are knowledgeable about local recovery resources in the area and are ready to refer or assist in any way possible. If the group decides not to utilize the expertise of a professional interventionist, the recommendation is to at least discuss and seek guidance from them during the planning process.

Harmony Place specialists work with individuals before and after an intervention. They are held accountable for growing an actionable master plan and helping better the possibilities of a victorious confrontation.

Generally, interventionists acquire experience as therapists and counselors who deal with loved ones suffering from the following:

Addiction
Alcoholism
Mental illness

How Should They Follow Up After Treatment?

The actual involvement of a family member, spouse, or other individuals is vital to the addict’s support team. Thus, following up is important. It helps the addict not only stay in treatment but avoid relapsing as well.

It’s essential to remember that a triumphant intervention must be thought out carefully for it to go as intended. If there is a poor plan created, the loved one can feel worse and feel ambushed, therefore sinking deeper into separation and ultimately becoming more resistant to treatment.

The most effective ways for the person with the substance use problem to follow up after treatment are the following:

Offer participation in counseling with them
Find counseling for self
Learn what to do if a relapse occurs
Change patterns of everyday life to make it easier to avoid destructive behavior

What Happens If The Person Refuses Treatment?

Unfortunately, all interventions aren’t successful. There are a few cases where the person with the substance use problem might refuse treatment. That person might claim that an intervention isn’t needed and become resentful.

A person with a substance use problem may even accuse his or her loved ones who attempt to perform an intervention on him or her of betrayal. The person with the substance use problem may even burst out in anger because of the situation.

It is essential to prepare for these changes, but also to remain optimistic about constructive changes. The easiest outlook to cultivate if it doesn’t work is the team still being able to help the addict by reinforcing positive changes in that person’s life.

Heal by simply doing the following:

Ask the other individuals involved to avoid enabling the cycle of behavior
Take active steps to encourage positive change
Most of all stick to the outline consequences in the medical intervention

Find Help At Harmony Place Today

We believe here at Harmony Place that it’s not necessary to watch a loved one suffer and struggle with alcohol or drug abuse. We have a great team of experienced alcohol and drug interventionists to assist and guide you through the journey of recovery.

Harmony Place provides the most effective opportunity to reach the achievement desired. Contact us to get started.

References:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4031575/
https://www.associationofinterventionspecialists.org/