Drug addiction is not a problem only for drug addicts; it reaches into the lives of everyone who cares about, or has to deal with the addicts, and can throw their lives into turmoil. If you are one of those people for whom someone else's addiction is becoming a life-altering–and not for the better–experience, it may be time for you to consider a drug addiction intervention.
Drug addiction interventions confront addicts not to heap them with verbal abuse, but to give them a clear look at how badly their lives have careened out of control. Alcohol rehabilitation programs are appropriate no matter the type of addiction involved; they will be equally effective with abusers of alcohol, speed, heroin, crack, or even prescription meds. All they are intended to do is give the addicts the impetus they need to get help.
Drug addiction intervention avoids use of criticism and judgmental language; it simply and clearly explains to the addicts how their getting help will bring positive results not just to the addicts but to all those who care about or have to work with them.
Preparing For A Successful Intervention
If you are considering a drug addiction intervention, there are steps you must take to ensure the success of your effort.
Once you have identifies your own enabling behaviors, you must summon the courage to stop them; no matter how painful that thought maybe, it is the only way you can impress on the addict the seriousness of the situation. Let the addict know that you are not abandoning them, but be firm about your refusal to rescue them from any future trouble the cause of their addiction.
This will require you not to offer them financial support, nor bail them out of jail; nor go out and share a drink with them when they are feeling lonely. If you and all those who have been assisting them in the past are ready to make that commitment, wait for a time when the addict is neither drunk nor high and can focus on the conversation. Then start talking.