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Over 98% of people who attend family therapy services find them beneficial. Family therapy can be used to treat a variety of emotional and mental health issues, including substance use disorder. While all recovering addicts can benefit from individual or one-on-one therapy models, sometimes family therapy is also recommended as part of a patient’s treatment plan. The most notable difference between family therapy and individual therapy in drug addiction treatment is that family therapy focuses on specific goals with solutions that have an end-date in mind. Individual therapy in drug addiction treatment is used as part of ongoing maintenance.
Patients recovering from drug addiction often need to attend individual therapy off and on for years after initial sobriety is achieved. Attending family therapy can give recovering addicts and their supportive loved ones the tools they need to navigate life after initial sobriety is obtained under the guidance of a trained and experienced therapist.
What is family therapy?
Drug or alcohol addiction and abuse take a significant toll on family dynamics and personal relationships. In many cases, a person’s family dynamics may have contributed to the cycle of abuse. What family therapy aims to do is create a safe space under the guidance of a neutral, trained third-party to improve communication between family members and resolve conflicts.
When a family goes through the stress of watching a loved one struggle with addiction, there is significant, unresolved anger and blame, and family members often struggle with a range of painful and conflicting emotions. Without access to therapy, family members will have a difficult time resolving these conflicts and learning how to communicate with each other in a healthy way.
During family therapy sessions, a social worker, psychologist, or a licensed therapist assists family members and recovering addicts with processing these emotions and learning healthier ways to communicate and resolve the conflict. It’s also possible for family therapy sessions to deepen the emotional bond between family members.
Family therapy sessions are usually short-term, and they can include all members of the family who wish to participate. Family therapy isn’t something that everyone in recovery for addiction will need or will want. In some cases, patients may come from such toxic families of origin that it is not good for their continued sobriety to put them into close contact with enablers or abusive family members.
Addiction disorder may be a common disease, but it afflicts people in various ways, and treatment plans for the disorder must be customized to the individual and their unique circumstances. While one individual in recovery may find family therapy extremely helpful, another may find it equally harmful. It is up to each patient and their team of doctors if family therapy is something that will benefit their recovery efforts.
What happens during family therapy?
In most cases, several members of the family will attend a session together. But, family members do have the option of seeing the therapist on an individual basis. Family therapy is usually assigned for only twelve sessions, with each session lasting up to an hour. However, some families may need more extensive sessions, and their circumstances may dictate that treatment sessions should go beyond the standard twelve.
During a family therapy session, a licensed therapist or social worker will encourage members of the family to express their thoughts and feelings. The therapist is there to keep things on topic, and to prevent communication from escalating out of control. When emotions run high, people can become offended all too quickly when trying to solve conflicts without the aid of a trained counselor. Family therapy aims to keep the discussion centered around the matter-at-hand and to focus everyone’s attention on how to resolve the conflict and obtain their goals for deepening their ties and getting through stressful times.
Sessions will also revolve around the family’s particular dynamics, such as everyone’s role in the family, the spoken and unspoken rules they observe, and individual behavior patterns that are contributing to the conflict. Therapy sessions will be focused on exploring these dynamics and how to create better, healthier ways of communicating. Therapy sessions will also help individuals identify family strengths and weakness.
How does family therapy help a recovering addict?
For one thing, family therapy can help bring family members closer and get everyone on board with a recovering addict’s ongoing maintenance and aftercare plans. Family therapists can help family members understand and identify risk factors for relapse, and what to do if those risk factors arise or if a person relapses. Also, resolving conflict can lessen a patient’s stress, and stress is a known contributor to relapse rates.
In the context of addiction, family therapy sheds light on to how the family’s particular dynamics may have influenced the cycle of addiction, and how to break free of that cycle. Overall, family therapy arms individuals with knowledge and education on how addiction works and how to overcome it and become more supportive and less likely to enable a recovering addict.
Family members of recovering addicts frequently struggle with anger, frustration, and worry. What a family therapist can do is validate these feelings, and then reframe into a context that is more helpful for approaching the recovery period and creating stronger bonds between family members and recovering addicts. For example, scared and frustrated family members may focus solely on a person’s addiction and the choices they’ve made in the past. A family therapist could turn that around, and ask the family what they would talk about if they were not so focused on past mistakes and trauma. This can help ease some anxiety and worry and put things into a more positive context when family members are focused on progress and no regrets about what has happened in the past.
Are you or a family member in recovery for addiction? Ongoing conflict and stress in the family can make the road to lifelong sobriety more difficult than it has to be. The trained and caring therapists at Mission Harbor Behavioral Health are experienced with helping family members, and people in recovery create more positive methods of communication and resolve the ongoing conflict. Please contact the representatives at Mission Harbor today to see what we can do for you and your family.
The facilities at Mission Harbor are staffed with trained experts to best assist patients with their mental health issues. We are capable of dealing with any and all cases with a licensed staff, equipment, and approved techniques. Our mission is to help those who want to help themselves, and we support your decision in seeking help.
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