Addiction is a chronic and relapsing disease – one that does not discriminate and completely devastates the lives of everyone it touches. Sadly, the majority of men and women who are in desperate need of addiction treatment fail to seek it before it’s too late. This is either because they are in denial about their current state, they are not willing to seek the help they need, or because they remain unaware of the recovery-related resources that are readily available to them. The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion reports that in the year 2005 alone, close to 22 million Americans suffered at the hands of addiction. Of all the individuals who actually recognized that they had a serious problem, only 273,000 made a serious attempt to enter into drug addiction treatment. At CuraWest we believe that quality clinical care should be readily available to all those who need it. We have dedicated ourselves to developing an accessible and effective program of clinical care, one that is both comprehensive and extremely individualized. Of course, in order for addiction treatment to be effective it must first be willingly sought.

Because addiction is a disease of denial, it is not uncommon for those suffering at the hands of a life-threatening substance dependence disorder to deny treatment. If you have a family member who consistently refuses help, you have likely grown frustrated, resentful and exasperated. Where do you turn? What steps can you take? How do you get your family member into treatment?

Fortunately, there are numerous resources available to those who are attempting to get an addicted family member into treatment. At CuraWest our treatment advisors work closely with the family members of addicted men and women, helping them enter into our life-changing program of recovery as quickly as possible.

How Addiction Affects the Family

Active addiction affects the family unit in a wide variety of ways – in ways that are apparent and in some ways that you might not even be aware of. The US National Library of Medicine published a study titled, “Impact of Substance Abuse on Families.” The study shows that over time, the traditional, nuclear American family has grown significantly more complex. It used to be that the family unit would consist of a father, a mother and children – anything else was frowned upon; societal standards used to be much more strict and non-inclusive. Nowadays, it is much more common for there to be single parent families, foster families, step-families and multi-generational families. Experience with familial substance abuse and dependency vary depending on the family structure. At CuraWest we understand that unique needs and requirements vary on a family-to-family basis. For example, the needs of a family unit with an addicted father will vary from the needs of a family unit with an addicted child. However, the feelings involved typically remain consistent. The family members of an addicted loved one feel abandoned, fearful, anxious, saddened, angry, embarrassed and guilty. They feel hopeless and helpless; especially if they have tried repeatedly to encourage admittance to professional treatment, only to be let down over and over again. Regardless of the structure of your unique family, CuraWest is available to help your addicted loved one get into the clinical treatment program he or she both needs and deserves.

Getting Your Family Member into Treatment

How do you get your family member to commit to receiving quality clinical care in a licensed and accredited treatment facility? The very first step is initiating the conversation. We recommend sitting down with your family member in a safe and controlled environment for a one-on-one discussion. It is crucial that the discussion takes place when your family member is completely sober. Attempting to speak with someone rationally while they are intoxicated almost always backfires. Keep in mind that your family member might not be receptive to what you have to say, and this is no way, shape or form any fault of your own. Addiction is a disease of denial and defensiveness, and if someone is not ready or willing to seek help they might react harshly. If you do decide that having a conversation could be effective, remember to always come from a place of empathy, compassion and understanding. Never place blame on your family members or make them feel badly. Never make threats, raise your voice or swear. If you cannot approach your loved one calmly and with an essential level of reservation, it is best that you leave the conversation to the professionals.

The most effective way to get an addicted family member to commit to inpatient treatment is by staging a professional intervention. At CuraWest we have licensed and experienced interventionists on staff who are always ready and willing to help your family in any way they can. As soon as you give us a call, we transfer you to one of our interventionists who immediately begins helping you develop a viable plan of action. The intervention team is formulated and several meetings are held prior to the actual event, during which letters are written, boundaries are discussed and a treatment center that best suits the needs of your loved ones is chosen. The event is planned and eventually conducted, orchestrated the entire time by the assigned interventionist. Attempting to plan an intervention on your own is never a good idea. There is a very specific formula that must be adhered to in order for the event to be successful. To learn more about our comprehensive intervention services, give our treatment advisors a call at your earliest possible convenience.

Our Family Program

At CuraWest we offer each and every one of our clients and their family members the opportunity to participate in our comprehensive family program. Unlike many medical detox facilities, we offer intensive therapeutic care in addition to traditional clinical and medical detoxification services. We believe that every stage of recovery – including medical detox – should be focused on the restoration of physical, emotional and mental health. While we do prioritize physical stabilization and a safe, comfortable withdrawal process, we also focus heavily on laying a stable and lasting foundation for the remainder of the addiction recovery process. Not only do we provide family therapy sessions for our clients and their loved ones, but we offer family members themselves a wide range of applicable resources and additional family-oriented services. At CuraWest we believe in comprehensive healing – we believe that the disease of addiction is far-reaching and it devastates everyone that it touches. Therefore, family members must do some intensive healing of their own.

Because we understand just how stressful witnessing active addiction has been for the family members of the addict or alcoholic, we do everything in our power to make the admissions process as simple and stress-free as possible. We accept most major insurance providers, and gladly perform free, no obligation insurance benefit checks whenever necessary. We also help facilitate travel plans and take care of any additional concerns that you may have. Feel free to reach out at any point in time with any additional questions that you may have. We look forward to speaking with you and getting your loved one started on his or her own personal journey of addiction recovery.