Addiction is a chronic, often debilitating disease. It changes people in ways that are sometimes hard for their loved ones to reconcile. Misuse of alcohol and other drugs has a profound impact on the brain. It is not uncommon for someone who suffers from an addiction to do or say things that inflict emotional trauma on those they care for deeply. Those closest to individuals struggling with addiction often suffer the most. Family and friends are forced to watch their loved ones transform and change in harmful and self-destructive ways. Because of this, family therapy and support groups can benefit all family members.
What is Family Therapy?
Addiction is sometimes referred to as a family disease because the challenges the addicted family member faces inevitably affect the entire family. When family members attend therapy sessions, it also impacts the family as a whole. Family therapy can be highly beneficial in helping the family heal from the dysfunction addiction causes. It also increases the chances that their loved ones will seek help for their addiction and maintain sobriety and long-term recovery. Family support for addiction takes many forms, including family therapy at a Michigan treatment facility like Liberty House Recovery Center.
What are the Benefits of Family Therapy?
Individual therapy sessions focus on one person’s behaviors, thoughts, and emotions, while family therapy focuses on the relationships shared within the family as a whole. Family therapy aims to develop a deeper understanding and acknowledgment of all family members’ experiences. Family therapy can also help repair strained relationships by improving communication.
A family therapist will work with the family to explore how substance abuse interferes with communication and effective family interaction. Family therapists also educate about substance use for the whole family and support family members in reducing harmful behaviors like enabling while increasing behaviors that support recovery.
When family members see a loved one suffering from substance addiction, loneliness is one of their most common challenges. In some cases, feelings of loneliness combine with stronger emotions of anger or depression. The anger people feel is directed in different ways. Sometimes it is aimed at the individual with an addiction, and sometimes it is turned inward.
Family members sometimes become angry because they feel they have failed as a parent or spouse due to their loved one’s addiction. Family therapy in addiction treatment helps family members find the support essential to understanding their loved one’s substance use disorder. Family therapy can also help to ease anxiety and frustrations by allowing family members to realize that their loved one’s addiction is likely not something they could have controlled.
The goal of family therapy is to provide individuals and their families with support and education on the disease of addiction and how addiction impacts the family unit. Our family therapy programs at Liberty House Recovery Center are designed to assess your family’s needs and provide education about chemical dependence while offering ongoing family support during and after your loved one completes substance abuse treatment.
How to Find Family Therapy Programs in Ann Arbor, Michigan?
Encouraging your loved one to seek treatment is only the first step on their recovery journey. Next, you must find an appropriate evidence-based program with the proper programs to suit their needs. Addiction is a chronic disease that affects each person individually, and therefore, the best treatment programs are designed with the individual and not the disease in mind. The best programs offer comprehensive medical and mental health support throughout all stages of your loved one’s recovery journey.
Liberty House Recovery is a Michigan rehab center providing alcohol and drug addiction treatment near Ann Arbor.
Our family therapy programs near Ann Arbor, Michigan, offer a wide variety of therapy options designed to treat your loved one’s addiction and help them maintain long-term sobriety. We also understand the vital role that family plays in maintaining lasting recovery. We strive to ensure family members have access to the essential help and support they need as well. Don’t let addiction control your family for another day. Contact a member of our admissions team today to learn more about family therapy programs near Ann Arbor.