Forms of Intervention

There comes a time in many families when an intervention of some sort must be made. While there is no perfect way to intervene in the life of your family member, you need to think of the situation that needs intervening and the goal of the family intervention. You may have a family member who is in an abusive relationship and needs to escape. Perhaps you have a substance abuse addict in your family, and there must be an intervention in order to save that person's life. When discussing family interventions, there are four basic types to consider, including Simple, Crisis, Classical, and System. The following paragraphs will discuss in detail the aforementioned types of family interventions.

Simple Intervention

With a Simple Intervention, you can ask the family member to stop his or her destructive behavior. Simply ask that person to stop drinking, abusing drugs, or living in an abusive relationship. This approach can actually be quite successful, and it is surprising how often people avoid this strategy for fear that the situation would never change. If you have never attempted a Simple Intervention with this family member, it should be the first move before attempting a more complicated intervention. It really is worth the effort merely for the fact that many Simple Interventions can be successful.

Crisis Intervention

A Crisis Intervention is the total opposite of the Simple Intervention. Dangerous situations often bring about Crisis Interventions, and many times they involve weapons, emergency rooms, reckless violence or threats of violent behavior. In these situations, it is more than obvious that a your family member is an immediate danger to himself or to others. The primary objective in a Crisis Intervention is to calm the situation and to create a safe environment for all people concerned. More often than not, a crisis situation allows family members to step up and provide perfect opportunities to intervene in the situation.

Classical Intervention

The most common family intervention is the Classical Intervention, based on the Johnson's approach. This type of intervention has been used for decades, and has resulted in thousands of successful family interventions. The focus of the Classical Intervention is on the addict, abuser, or drinker. The immediate goal of the Classical Intervention is for the addict to enter treatment, the sooner the better. Family involvement in a Classical Intervention varies, but there should be at least a bit of planning in the day or days before the actual intervention. Much of the family's work is quite extensive in the days and weeks after the intervention so that all family members are able to take care of any problems that arise with the addict.

Family System Intervention

A Family System Intervention has a focus on the family. The complex goal of this type of intervention is for everyone involved in the family to make changes, regarding the self-destructive behavior. This changed behavior will influence the drinker or addict, and help the individual on the road to his or her recovery. In a Family System Intervention, the whole process is the intervention. In other words, the entire system changes, not just the one individual. While the intervention day is important, the more significant work comes after the intervention. The entire family recognizes that changes need to happen, and that they too must stop their destructive behavior, which may include having enabled the addict to continue the addiction.

Through a thorough look at the four possible family interventions, you can choose the best approach for your family member. Take careful consideration of the addict's personality, current living situation, and addiction, and choose the intervention that you think will lead to success.