As the life of the drug addict continues to spiral downward, family members and friends stand by on the side-lines hoping and praying the worst does not happen. Indeed, sometimes that is the only thing they can do. However, other times a drug intervention can be just the thing the addict needs to get his/her attention.

Drug interventions are very powerful motivational tools in the lives of some addicts. In fact, an intervention is often the very thing that forces the drug addict to understand he or she has a problem that requires help. Experts agree that when an intervention is utilised, the drug addict does not necessarily need to hit rock bottom before he or she is willing to seek help.

Drug Intervention Basics

Drug interventions can be complex events involving several different components. Nevertheless, we can break the process down into some basic building blocks – the foundational building block being one of purpose.

The purpose of a drug intervention is to force the addict to come face-to-face with the reality of his/her behaviour. You need to understand that drug addiction impairs cognitive reasoning to the extent that most addicts do not even realise they have a problem. Instead, they might believe drugs are the only thing helping them to hang on in the face of other perceived difficulties.

The second building block is one of persuasion. The idea of persuasion is rooted in the fact that you cannot force a drug addict to seek treatment. He or she must make that decision on their own. The intervention is intended to be that persuasive vehicle leading the drug addict to that place of decision. As such, persuasion must be handled very delicately.

The third building block is one of accountability. Accountability is necessary in the sense that the addict must understand he/she has very clear choices to make. If an intervention is concluded without clear choices, the individual is not encouraged to make any decisions. At that point, you’ve wasted your time.

The final building block is that of ceasing all enabling behaviour. Unfortunately, family members and friends often enable addictive behaviour by making excuses for the addict. For an intervention to be successful, such enabling needs to stop. It must be clearly understood that the addict alone is responsible for his/her behaviour; he/she alone is responsible for changing it.

Professional Help

There is definitely a right and wrong way to conduct a drug intervention. To that end, there are professional counsellors who specialise in this sort of thing. It’s advisable that you seek advice from a professional before conducting an intervention. A professional can help on several different levels:

• Advice – If you are comfortable conducting an intervention without the direct assistance of a professional, you can still benefit from professional advice. A counsellor can explain how to plan an intervention, what types of things should be said, and other various strategies. This advice may prove invaluable.

• Planning – You may be willing to conduct an intervention without the direct assistance of a professional yet still require help in planning the event. Again, the professional counsellor can be valuable here. He or she can meet with the intervention team, help plan a strategy, and give advice to individual team members about what to say and how to say it.

• Oversight – If you are uncomfortable conducting an intervention without the help of a professional, a counsellor can provide complete oversight. He or she will help plan the intervention, oversee it as it transpires, and provide a neutral place in which to hold it.

Intervention Focus

It used to be that interventions were conducted from the standpoint of showing the drug addict how destructive his or her behaviour was to their own mind and physical body. Moreover, while this strategy is still employed at times, the thinking on this has started to change.

In recent years, experts have slowly been concluding that a strategy of confronting the addict with the harm he or she is causing others might be more effective. They believe this is the case because drug addicts have already demonstrated, by their behaviour, that they have little regard for their own health and well-being. Their attitudes toward family members and friends might be different.

Think of it this way: very few addicts purposely endeavour to harm their loved ones. Especially spouses and children. When confronted with that reality, it might come as a real shock. That shock might even be strong enough to temporarily awaken the addict to the reality that he/she needs help.

Regardless of the strategy you and your counsellor choose, keep in mind a couple of other things:

• team members should focus on the facts rather than emotions

• an intervention should be conducted in a neutral place

• team members must be willing to hold the addict accountable

• team member should be chosen based on their level of influence

• the purpose of an intervention is to heal, not to punish.

After the Intervention

Sometimes a drug addict can be encouraged to seek treatment after a single intervention. If so, team members or their counsellor need to be ready with treatment options as soon as the decision is made. You don’t want the drug addict to have enough time to change his/her mind.

If a drug intervention is not successful, team members should not assume the drug addict is beyond hope. They should also not assume they have failed in their efforts to help. It is not uncommon for addicts to require two or three interventions before they finally figure out what’s happening.

If you’re not sure what to do after an intervention, don’t be afraid to contact a professional again. If we can help, we’d be more than happy to do so. Our staff members are always available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

If you need help accessing rehab services for your loved one, you’ll be glad to know that’s what we do best. We are constantly researching treatment options so that you don’t have to. Rather than taking weeks or months to find out what’s available, all you need to do is call us or send an e-mail. We will walk you through your options and answer all of your questions.

Our primary goal is to assist you or your loved one in obtaining drug addiction recovery treatment. Moreover, because that’s all we do, we can focus all of our resources on it. Will you allow us to help you today?

Among all the different types of addictions people suffer from in the UK, the one that is overlooked the most is the addiction to prescription drugs. It is a problem that does not discriminate – an addiction that can strike just about anyone, anywhere in the UK.

The disconcerting thing about prescription drug addiction is the fact that so many legally prescribed medications can easily lead to addiction. From painkillers to sleeping pills, almost every UK household has at least one potentially addictive substance sitting in the medicine cabinet.

The increased use of legally prescribed prescription drugs over the years has led to an increase in addiction. Prescription drug rehab programmes are admitting more and more patients every year, with no end in sight. If you find yourself addicted to prescription drugs, you need to take action right now.

The Addiction Process

The process of becoming addicted to prescription drugs is similar to illicit drug addiction in some ways, yet remarkably different in others. The biggest difference comes by way of how the addiction begins. Where illicit drugs are concerned, there is never a valid reason for taking the first hit. However, prescription drug addiction begins when an individual takes a medication legally prescribed by a doctor.

Prescription drugs can create two types of addictions, otherwise known as ‘dependencies’:

• Psychological Dependence – Many prescription drugs, especially painkillers, can create feelings of euphoria when used. These euphoric feelings can result in a psychological dependence in which the addict craves those feelings. The addict often feels like he or she cannot cope with life without their drugs.

• Physical Dependence – Prescription drugs capable of creating addiction do so by initiating chemical and physical changes within the body. The drug user will experience definite withdrawal symptoms if he/she does not continue using the drug. This is known as physical dependence.

Potentially addictive prescription drugs come with very strong warning labels. Any individual using these types of drugs should heed the warnings and follow instructions to the letter. Failing to do so could be your ticket to addiction.

Breaking the Addiction

Prescription drug rehab programs exist to help drug users break their addictions. The good news is that any addiction can be conquered. All it takes is a willingness to seek out treatment at one of our many drug rehabilitaion centres in the city. Here’s how the process works:

• Identification – Addictions to illicit drugs are easily recognised by the average person who knows what to look for. However, an addiction to prescription drugs might be more difficult to identify. Therefore, the first step in breaking a prescription drug addiction is to identify it. That can be accomplished by learning the signs and symptoms of addiction.

• Stabilisation – Because prescription drugs are being used for a medically legitimate purpose, it is not always wise to apply a detox strategy based on the cold turkey method. Prescription drug abusers need to be stabilised in order to treat their addictions without otherwise compromising their health. Whatever condition resulted in the original prescription must be handled appropriately.

• Rehab – Once the addiction has been identified and stabilised, the rehab process can begin. Drug rehab treatment consists of a period of detox followed by weeks or months of counselling, support, and skills training. Depending on the severity of the addiction and the drug used, rehab could be as short as a few weeks and as long as 4 to 6 months.

Private Rehab

Addicts from all walks of life can choose to undergo a private treatment program at one of our drug rehab centres. We usually recommend private rehab as the best option if the client can afford it. Why? Because private rehab programmes tend to have higher success rates than public services.

Private drug rehab clinics offer addicts a residential treatment programme that completely isolates them from their circumstance and deals with their addictions 24 hours a day, every day. This concentrated approach prevents the addict from being distracted by other things that could lead him or her to relapse. The combination of separation and a 12-step recovery programme has proven successful for millions of addicts around the world, which is why so many people choose to stay at a drug rehab clinic.

When a client truly cannot afford private rehab, there still is help available through the NHS, drug rehab charities, and professional counselling services. We recommend these public programmes if, and when, they are appropriate for an individual client.

We want to be clear that public services are helpful to the extent they can be. Nevertheless, they are limited in what they can accomplish. Public services include things like:

• Outpatient Programmes – The typical outpatient programme involves the addict visiting a facility several times a week. While there, he/she may undergo one-on-one or group counselling, followed by participation in a group support meeting.

• Independent Support Groups – Thousands of people every year choose to sign up for drug rehab. UK independent support groups offer addicts the opportunity to be part of a group for mutual accountability and encouragement. These support groups typically welcome anyone with an addiction who wants to join.

• Counselling Services – The NHS does offer limited counselling services to drug addicts. Counselling can be offered both individually and in a group setting.

Choosing the Right Option

Prescription drug addicts have plenty of options to choose from when seeking treatment. So many in fact, that making the right choice is often a very difficult task. It requires knowing what is out there in relation to the unique circumstances of the individual addiction. As an independent referral service, we exist to help make the choice easier.

Our main task is to assist drug addicts and their families in accessing appropriate help and treatment options. We do this mainly by researching and maintaining information on private clinics and public programmes both domestically and abroad. When a client contacts us, we walk him or her through their treatment options before recommending a course of action.

If you need help choosing the right option for you, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us. All of our services are confidential and free. Furthermore, our staff are fully trained and more than competent to answer your questions about treatment options. Whatever we can do to help is what we are willing to do.