Addiction is taking hold...

A friend or loved one has an addiction and they are hitting rock bottom-- what do you do? What can you do?

There are some general strategies that can help you intervene:
1. Be sure that the person is really suffering from an addiction and not some other type of medical condition.
2. Create a united front. Be sure to include people from as many facets of the addict’s life as possible (colleagues, friends, religious leaders) who can describe the ways in which the individual has changed physically,
3. Remain loving and caring, not angry and confrontational. A popular tactic is to have family members write and read “love letters” to express care and love.
4. Have a treatment plan ready. Make it clear that the goal of the intervention is to get the person into treatment. Don’t take “no” for an answer.
5. Go to a professional. There are board-registered interventionists who have met requirements for their specialization.
(Source: Revolution Health – www.revolutionhealth.com)
There are four simple questions that can be asked to determine if you or someone you know is drinking too much.

1. Have you ever felt you ought to cut down on your drinking?
2. Do you get annoyed at criticism of your drinking?
3. Do you ever feel guilty about your drinking?
4. Do you ever take an early morning drink to get the day started?

If you answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions, you probably are drinking too much and it’s time to talk to your physician or other health care professional.

Resources
www.interventioninfo.org
www.nationalinterventionreferral.org
www.drugfree.org/intervention