When a family member has an addiction problem, it impacts the entire family. There is usually a lot of dishonesty, hiding, and shame associated with drug abuse. When individuals enter rehab, their family members should also receive counseling with and without the individual in recovery. This can help each member of the family heal and work towards repairing any damaged relationships and hurt feelings.
Family counseling allows for family engagement where all members of the family are invested and involved with helping the person in recovery. It enables the individual have support during the recovery process. So often, someone in recovery feels unseen and unheard. This is an opportunity for them to feel heard.
Family counseling involves intervention that helps each person work towards focusing on the relationships. This process helps to remove the negative feelings and emotions each person may have about one another. Often times when parents of someone in recovery express their concern, it sounds critical to the individual in recovery. Most people in recovery feel bad about themselves and their addiction already. It does not take much from a family member to sound critical, and oftentimes, people begin to shut down. Therapy can help each family member understand their feelings about what has happened in the past and what they may think will happen in the future because of the drug use. Most family members are worried and scared.
Family therapy can help shift the behavior of the family. This counseling helps each person in the family learn coping skills that are different from ones they have used in the past. When each member of the family changes some things about their behavior, it can make a significant difference in the way everyone feels about each other. These new behaviors are coached and reinforced positively for everyone as a group and individually. These new skills may include better and more assertive communication. It may consist of boundaries and negotiation. It may consist of ways to express feelings that are effective. In therapy, there will be a conversation about rules and which ones really need to be in place.
In family therapy, changes are made to the way the family creates rules and handles situations. For example, when there was a problem in the house in the house, it may not have been addressed. Each person may have had to work through their own issues alone because there was fear or shame. Therapy helps the family to understand that it is not the best way to deal with problems and emotions. Therapy helps the family understand the value of talking through feelings and emotions, as well as the importance of understanding each other. The dynamics of the family are studied and understood in therapy. A therapist encourages everyone to think about how the current dynamics create problems and work towards changing them. Therapy can help parents understand how they can be resources for their children, but they are not able to control their children. Therapy works on the relationships within the family and starts from a place of understanding that those relationships are most important. If you are interested in family counseling or any other type of rehab for you or your family member, contact Pinnacle Recovery Center.
