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“They are there…and they care.” That is
the short answer to the question “Why include loved ones in
addiction treatment?” First, spouses and other family members
are powerful allies in the recovery process and, when included
in treatment, they add exponentially to positive outcomes. The
second reason is perhaps the most important one: They deserve to
know how they, too, can get relief from pain and improve their
lives.
Relationships Are
Crucial to Recovery
In my early years of counseling, a wise
supervisor helped me to manage my anxiety about couple and
family counseling by reminding me that they were not made out of
spun glass. Therefore, I did not have to be afraid that the
wrong move on my part would break them into a thousand pieces.
As I gained more experience, I learned that, in fact, the
addicted person’s enduring relationships outside of my office
are much stronger than the one I am able to build during a few
hours of counseling. Since relationships are where the power
lies, I came to believe that it is a wise and more efficient use
of counseling resources to include significant others in the
recovery process.
Research literature bears this out: “Family
involvement is often critical for success in treating many
substance abuse disorders…There are very few instances in which
the opportunity to work with a client’s family—at least one or a
few sessions—is not beneficial.” Family and significant other
involvement “utilizes family strengths and enlists family member
as agents of change to motivate the substance use and provide
support or ongoing recovery.” (p. 143,144 & 148, TIP #34).
“Recent research even suggests that family
and marital treatment produces better marital and drinking
outcomes than non-family methods” (p. 144, TIP #34, from
textbook on SA by Lowinson et al., 1997).
A 1997 Harvard study showed more than 50%
of husbands with alcohol abuse disorders remained alcohol free
in the first year after treatment, compared with less than 30%
of husbands treated in individual therapy. Participants also had
fewer marital separations and lower incidence of relapse
(Rotunda and O’Farrell, 1997).
Individuals exist within a circle of
relationships. This is how we all live, learn, and heal. These
relationships may protect, hurt, exploit, or support. They may
be constructive or destructive, comforting or irritating, close
or distant, drunk or sober. The circle is dynamic, changing as
people and their interactions change. Whether or not the circle
changes in the direction of recovery depends on the extent to
which the therapist uses interventions that acknowledge and
enhance the relationships within it.
The Family
Members Need Help Too
Referring clients for couples or family
therapy during all stages of recovery is essential to good
outcomes. It is also the responsible approach knowing that the
spouse and children need relief from the fear, uncertainty,
anger, resentment, anxiety and guilt that coping with addiction
engenders. At first, the spouse may see counseling as a threat
to their “protection” of the substance abuser and an
interference to the family until the therapist is able to help
the spouse understand symptoms of addiction and recovery
principles.
Couples counseling later in recovery can be
a stabilizing force when crises arise that pose relapse risks.
Therapy also provides a safe place for couples to practice new
patterns of behavior that support healthy family functioning. It
is relatively easy to find direction for family counseling at
any stage of recovery by uncovering something that everyone
wants, such as less arguments or better communication. “They are
there... and they care.” What better reason to offer significant
others the valuable help the substance abuse profession has to
offer?
References from Treatment Improvement
Protocol (TIP) Series published by the Center for Substance
Abuse Treatment of the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services.
Ruth F. Anderson, M.A.Ed.., L.C.A.S.,
C.S.I., has worked with couples and families in adolescent and
adult treatment settings for over 20 years. She is now in
private practice in Clemmons, NC. She supervises candidates for
Clinical Addictions Specialist licensure and works part time at
Forsyth Behavioral Health facilitating group therapy for
addiction and mental health patients.
The Next
Step
Editor: Leanne
Murray
Writer: Cathy Swing
Designer: Virginia Hart
Partnership for a Drug-Free
NC
665 W. Fourth Street
Winston-Salem, NC 27101
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