Addiction Intervention Resources, Inc. (A.I.R.) Guidelines

A.I.R (www.intervene.com) maintains that no alcoholic just decides to go to treatment—there is always an intervention of some kind. Betty Ford needed two interventions. The first failed. The second, by her own admission, saved her life.

Goals of Intervention:

1. Preserve Dignity
2. Reduce Shame
3. Avoid arousing defense mechanisms
4. Break through the barriers of denial by showing love; alcoholics do not feel loved

Key Points to Keep in Mind:

• Provide honesty without judgment
• Offer a sense of hope, future, and family
• Remember that intervention is a direct call for action and the result of intervention is treatment
• Plan, Plan, and more planning—success in the intervention comes from planning
• We ask the alcoholics as part of the intervention process to accept help and go to treatment in a way that makes it very difficult for them to say no
   

Steps in the Intervention Process:

1. Work with a professional
2. Pick a treatment program
3. Select an intervention team
4. Determine time and place
5. Prepare for the intervention by writing letters

Addiction Intervention Resources argues that certain widely-held suppositions are no longer true. They disagree with the following longstanding assumptions:

1. You can't help an alcoholic until they want help

• Alcoholics don't know what is happening inside of them—they are experiencing a loss of control
• Alcoholics don't know why they act the way they do
• Every part of the brain lobes is affected by alcohol
• Alcoholics make excuses for what is irrational and destructive behavior
• Denial is strong
• What will get them to want help?

2. An alcoholic must hit bottom

• Hitting bottom leaves them trying to find help on their own
• Alcoholics may never hit bottom or may bounce around it with denial
• The family will end up going along for the ride, bouncing at the bottom too

3. Addiction is a lack of willpower and a character flaw

• Addiction dismantles will

4. Treatment only works if the alcoholic wants it

• A 25 year study at resulted in no statistical difference between self-referred clients and clients that entered treatment due to an intervention. It's not the willingness to go to treatment that matters. It's the willingness and commitment to continue working toward a healthy lifestyle when one leaves treatment that matters.