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Choosing Better Medical Care

The Rules Of An Intervention: When You Can Engage, And Why You Should Not

19 December 2017

Chris Burke

An intervention, when done correctly, is an excellent way to get those who are addicted to drugs or alcohol to realize what damage they have afflicted on friends and family because of their habits. However, too many people attempt to have an "intervention" without having any idea of how to run one. Sadly, that is when an intervention goes wrong, and the expected result does not come to fruition. If you want to conduct a successful intervention, here are the rules, as well as when you can engage in an intervention, and when and why you should not attempt one.

The Rules

There are rules to follow when you decide that you want to stage an intervention for a friend or family member. Most importantly, someone in the group of participants has to have gone through intervention training. You cannot simply decide to have an intervention without knowing how to conduct one. Secondly, it is important that a licensed therapist or psychiatrist be present to deal with the negative emotions that will surface during the intervention. The therapist or psychiatrist can help everyone express what they feel in a way that does not use your friend/family member as a "target" for a verbal attack. Third, the person for whom you are holding the intervention needs to be a willing participant. You cannot spring an intervention on a person who has an addiction and expect that it will be more effective as a "surprise."

When You Can Engage in an Intervention

When you follow the rules, and the person for whom you are holding the intervention is ready to listen, then you can hold the intervention. It will take quite a bit of coordination among you, the therapist/psychiatrist, and other participants, since everyone who wants to participate will all have to be present at the same time and place. An intervention may take an hour, or it may take several hours, so everyone has to be ready to do nothing else but the intervention.

When and Why You Should NOT Attempt an Intervention

There has to be a bipartisan party present, which is why a correctly planned intervention always includes a therapist or psychiatrist. These people are trained to remain outside the emotional fire of the situation and be supportive of everyone in the room. If you do not have a fully trained mental health professional to act as the outside regulator of this event, do not host it. Tempers will flare out of control, verbal assaults are always possible, and lots of unpleasant and judgmental things may be said that will only damage the desired outcome of your attempt at an intervention. 

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