Interventions are great tools that can help motivate someone to seek professional help for their substance abuse issues. An intervention is a formal process that involves the family members of someone suffering from addiction getting together to make emotional pleas. The goal of an intervention is to convince your loved one that they have a substance use disorder that requires attendance of treatment.

While interventions often work, sometimes the individual is not ready to accept help. Because there is always a possibility that an intervention won’t work, the individual’s loved ones are instructed to outline consequences and boundaries that they will uphold if they refuse drug and alcohol rehab.

If you have just performed an intervention for your loved one and they are still refusing treatment, you might be confused about what to do next. Being aware of the steps you can take after a failed intervention will help both you and your loved one stay safe, hopeful, and prepared.

Why Do Some Interventions Fail?

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), “10 percent of US adults have drug use disorder at some point in their lives. 75 percent report not receiving any form of treatment.”

Sadly, choosing recovery is incredibly difficult for people suffering from addiction. Even when your entire family is rooting for you and providing you with an opportunity to attend rehab, the psychological and behavioral effects of substance abuse can make it hard to accept that you need help.

Some of the most common reasons interventions don’t work include:

• Denial – Your loved one might believe that they do not have a problem, even if it seems obvious to you.
• Fear of withdrawal – Withdrawal symptoms can be brutal and even life-threatening. While medical detox prevents people from experiencing the worst symptoms, the possibility of experiencing withdrawal can prevent your loved one from wanting to get sober.
• Lack of consequences – Oftentimes, people do not realize the extent of their addiction until they face consequences. If your loved one has never gotten in trouble or lost things because of their addiction, they may not think there is anything wrong with their behavior.
• Having no hope – If your loved one has had many failed attempts to get sober, they might not believe it is possible for them. As a result, they may continue to avoid treatment because they do not believe it will work for them.

What to Do After an Intervention if Your Loved One Refuses Treatment

While your intervention might not have worked immediately, it is not a complete failure. Even if your loved one does not accept treatment, the intervention showed them that they have family members who are in their corner and willing to help them when they are ready. But what can you do in the meantime?

If your loved one refused treatment after you hosted an intervention, you should take the following steps:

Stick to Your Boundaries

First and foremost, make sure you stick to the boundaries you outlined during the intervention. If you do not uphold these boundaries, your loved one will not take your pleas seriously and may believe they can continue to abuse substances without facing any consequences.

Examples of boundaries people set during an intervention include:

• Drug and alcohol abuse is not allowed in the home
• I will not provide you with money
• I will not lie to prevent you from getting in trouble
• If you continue to abuse substances you cannot be around the children
• When you are under the influence you are not allowed in my home
• I will not bail you out of jail if you get arrested again

One of the common reasons interventions fail is because the individual suffering from addiction has not experienced consequences for their addiction. If you uphold your boundaries, your loved one will begin to experience the hardships that can push someone to seek professional help.

Use it as a Learning Opportunity

There is always the possibility that the intervention did not work because of the strategies you used. This is common among families who attempt to host an intervention themselves, instead of hiring a drug and alcohol interventionist for assistance.

Drug and alcohol interventions require you to discuss extremely sensitive topics. Sometimes, this can cause people’s emotions to run high. If you or your family members took a more “tough love” approach to the intervention, your loved one could have felt attacked, causing them to behave defensively instead of being receptive. On the other hand, you could have been too relaxed in your approach, making your loved one believe that they can continue to get away with their substance abuse.

Interventions must be customized to suit your loved one’s personality. This is why hiring a professional interventionist is so important, as they will be able to determine what techniques will be most effective for your loved one.

Seek Professional Help

If you did not use a trained interventionist the first time around, getting in touch with one could help you determine what went wrong and how to proceed. They can help you plan a new intervention that is customized to your loved one’s personality and needs.

You should also seek professional help for yourself. Addiction is referred to as a family disease because it affects the people around the addicted individual as well. Since it is extremely stressful to watch someone you love suffer from substance abuse, seeking therapy or counseling could be a great idea.

Find Help for Yourself or an Addiction Loved One Today

If your loved one suffers from addiction and is ready to attend a drug and alcohol rehab program, Arise Treatment Center is here to help. By providing each of our clients with an individualized treatment plan, we ensure that everyone who walks through our doors receives the exact services they need to recover.

To learn more about our addiction treatment programs in Southern California, contact us today.