How Can Families Encourage Healthy Accountability?

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If your loved one struggles with substance use disorder (SUD), you may feel tempted to give them leeway for mistakes they made in the past or moments of relapse in the future. Your loved one will benefit from you holding them accountable for their actions rather than receiving blanket forgiveness. Without the motivation of accountability, your family member may have difficulty maintaining sobriety. Newport Beach Recovery Center provides resources and support to families who want to boost their loved one’s recovery. 

Why Is Accountability Important?

Accountability ensures that the person you care about experiences the consequences of harmful actions. You may feel guilty for not letting your loved one brush away their mistakes. However, recovery requires self-awareness and a desire to make positive life changes. Holding people accountable isn’t meant to be a punishment. In fact, without the motivation of personal accountability, your loved one may not want to actively participate in treatment. To heal, they need to process the underlying issues contributing to their substance abuse, which requires a desire for change.

Accountability does the following: 

  • Lets your loved one know you care about them and their actions 
  • Ensures that your family member remains self-aware about the possible consequences of their behaviors 
  • Provides you with an open line of communication that encourages honesty 

Your loved one will face many challenges during recovery, and you can help them continue making improvements without pressuring them. You must point out when they begin to cross certain boundaries. Holding them accountable and also informing them of how their substance abuse affects your life may be the motivation they need to attend treatment and heal from SUD. 

What Are the Benefits of Holding Someone Accountable? 

Holding someone responsible for their actions can improve family dynamics by opening up a line of honest communication between family members. Accountability aims to ensure everyone thinks through the consequences of their actions, including your own. Holding your loved ones accountable for their actions also requires you to practice self-accountability and model positive behaviors. Mistakes are learning moments, not something you should use to belittle, judge, or blame. Accountability can do the following:

  • Promote self-empowerment and ownership of behaviors 
  • Improve family bonds and create healthy boundaries
  • Reduce stress and create a more nurturing home environment 

How Can You Encourage Healthy Accountability?

If you want to support your loved one’s recovery, you can help them build off what they learn during rehabilitation. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), “[T]reatment focuses on developing personal accountability and responsibility.” During treatment, they will learn how to recognize, process, and regulate emotions in a healthier way. The skills will allow them to cope with stress and conflict. You can encourage them to continue growing and building these skills by informing your loved one what the result will be if they cross a boundary or begin to revert to maladaptive behaviors.  

Holding your loved one accountable for their actions does not mean blaming them, judging them, or looking down on them. Instead, it is a two-way street that involves healthy boundaries, uplifting comments, and encouragement. You should be willing to accept the consequences for your own mistakes. Hold yourself as an example of how to use those moments for self-improvement. Families can encourage accountability by setting reasonable and consistent expectations that every member of the family respects.

Why Does Accountability Work? 

Nobody likes to feel judged or lose something they hold dear because of personal choices. Accountability does not involve judging or blaming. However, it has a similar effect which can give your loved one a reason to look at their behaviors and act more cautiously in the future. By making it clear that you prioritize their mental health and physical well-being, you can show them support while also providing them with a reason to look back at mistakes made while under the influence as negative moments in their life. 

Showing encouragement and celebrating their successes in recovery will create positive associations. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), “Motivation is the key to substance use behavior change.” Other benefits for your loved one include: 

  • Better self-efficacy and self-awareness 
  • Increased positivity and improved mental health 
  • Reduced risk of relapse and a stronger support system

Showing that you care about your family member’s well-being will also increase their self-esteem and confidence in recovery. Many people use family relationships as a motivator. Ultimately, you can help your loved one by making it clear that you support them while holding them accountable for their actions. The entire family can benefit from practicing honest and open communication about how actions can affect the family unit. 

You want to protect your loved one from pain or heartache. However, if they do not have to face the emotional pain and other consequences of their choices, they may never find a reason to change. Holding your loved ones accountable for their actions and sobriety can give them the motivation they need to move forward and heal from substance abuse. You can also improve your own self-awareness by practicing self-accountability and modeling healthy behaviors for your loved one. You can be a part of their support system. Offer assistance in the form of consistent consequences for breaking boundaries or backsliding into unhealthy behaviors. Your loved one can grow and become a better version of themselves if they learn from past mistakes and avoid repeating them. To discover more about Newport Beach Recovery Center and the programs we offer, call us today at (855) 316-8740.

Why Do Some Interventions Fail?

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If your loved one struggles with substance use disorder (SUD), you may have tried a family intervention to convince them to get professional help. Interventions are one method for providing resources and communicating your concern for their health and well-being. However, everyone responds differently, and early intervention is critical.

According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), “The goals of early intervention are to reduce the harms associated with substance misuse, to reduce risk behaviors before they lead to injury, to improve health and social function, and to prevent progression” of the disorder. Newport Beach Recovery Center can provide resources, treatment programs, and referrals for individuals with SUD. Family members can also contact us on behalf of their loved ones. We can give you the tools to conduct an early intervention and protect your loved one from further harm.

What Is a Brief Intervention?

Brief interventions are a standard tool for increasing self-awareness and presenting treatment options to individuals with SUD. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), “Brief intervention focuses on increasing insight and awareness regarding substance use and motivation toward behavioral change.” The person with the SUD may be aware of the upcoming intervention, or they may not be informed ahead of time, depending on the circumstances.

Other interventions include those conducted by family members or mental health professionals. Family interventions are often informal, conducted by various family members or close friends, and occur within the home. You can work alongside an addiction specialist when planning a family intervention. Professional interventions are led by someone with experience in the mental health field and usually occur in a neutral setting, like a therapy office. The goal is to provide information, education, and motivation for your loved one.

Why Participate in an Intervention?

Interventions show that you care about the health and safety of your loved one and that you have concerns about their risk-taking behaviors. People with SUD have low self-awareness because of maladaptive behaviors, lack of essential skills, and changes to the brain caused by substance abuse. Interventions can provide the insight they may not currently have the capacity to achieve independently.

Family members often participate in or host an intervention due to the following:

  • Concern for their loved one’s mental health
  • Physical health scares caused by substance abuse
  • Legal or financial issues related to substance abuse

Realistically, all these reasons and more can warrant an intervention. You should feel motivated to host an intervention from a place of love and concern.

Why Do Some Interventions Not Work?

Interventions do not always work because every case is unique. Some people don’t receive the kind of encouragement they need. Other people may not be ready to hear the reality of their situation. In addition, well-meaning family members or friends may conduct poorly constructed interventions. Some common mistakes people make when attempting an intervention include:

  • Setting unrealistic expectations
  • Blaming, accusing, or using judgmental language
  • Not educating themselves about the realities of addiction
  • Setting the intervention in a location that puts pressure on the individual with SUD
  • Not actively listening or attempting to communicate honestly
  • Expecting immediate results or giving them an unrealistic ultimatum

Any small hiccup can derail an intervention. As such, participants should practice what they’re going to say and the words they’ll use.

What Are Essential Elements of a Successful Intervention?

As we just discussed, there are many ways a person can mess up an intervention. Luckily, this isn’t a hopeless situation bound to fail. Interventions that work involve the following four features.

#1 Honest Communication

When planning an intervention, you need to assess your own pain points related to your loved one’s substance abuse. In the intervention, you can address these honestly. Honest communication will allow you to stay compassionate during the intervention. You should avoid using blaming words to the best of your abilities. Make factual statements, actively listen to their concerns, and provide relevant responses.

#2 Neutral Territory

Where you choose to have an intervention will affect the outcome. If you choose a space that puts your family member on edge or makes them feel threatened, they may not listen to what you have to say. Hosting an intervention in your home or a place with negative memories for your loved one may set them on edge before you even start. The last thing you want is for them to feel threatened or uncomfortable. A neutral location is best.

Examples of neutral locations include:

  • The home of your loved one
  • A mutual friend’s home
  • Your therapist or counselor’s office

When choosing a space for the intervention, look for the following:

  • Privacy
  • Comfort
  • Convenience
  • Safety

If the person receiving the intervention knows about the plans, you might consider asking them where they would feel most comfortable. They may open themselves up more to the possibilities if they feel like they’re actively participating in the planning.

#3 Nonjudgmental Language

Words matter, and how you choose to talk about the person and their substance abuse will impact the intervention. Nobody likes to feel judged, and language should remain supportive or neutral even if you want to use “tough love” to wake your loved one up to their current circumstances. Nonjudgmental language can stop them from automatically going on the defensive.

#4 Professional Consultation

You want to see your loved one heal and recover from substance misuse. Addiction recovery professionals like the ones at Newport Beach Recovery Center can help determine if your loved one would benefit from an intervention. When you reach out, we can guide you through how best to approach it. We can also provide you with information, referrals, and educational resources to help you prepare for the intervention.

Interventions are a helpful tool for families and mental health professionals who want to help someone struggling with substance use disorder. You can improve the likelihood of success by setting the intervention in a neutral space after consulting with mental health or addiction recovery professionals. If you have previously tried an intervention and it did not work, then your loved one may not have been ready to hear the reality of their current circumstances. You cannot control their response, only how you prepare for the intervention and react to them. Interventions can fail if you get too emotional or try to set unrealistic ultimatums. Instead of using an intervention to force your loved one to change, you can use it as an educational moment to give them critical insights into their condition. To learn more about how we can help, call Newport Beach Recovery Center today at (855) 316-8740.