Alcohol Intervention | How to Stage One & What to Expect

An alcohol intervention (sometimes also known as a brief or alcoholic intervention) is a formal meditation overseen by a healthcare professional. These are typically arranged when ‘an individual is engaging in healthy drinking.’ Brief interventions can be organised in several different ways, either

• By a provider of primary, speciality or hospital care, or
• By a loved one

Why are they needed?

The role of a brief intervention is to help the individual struggling with their alcohol consumption to recognise that they are dealing with an addiction. This is a very essential part of the recovery journey. Addiction leads to significant changes in the ways that we think, feel, and make connections. An addiction to a substance, for example, means that our perspective on drugs will be inherently skewed. This means that we can naturally become defensive over our addictive substance (or behaviour). If someone starts to tell us that we have a drinking problem, we are likely to struggle to accept that. To an extent, this means that addiction involves a level of denial. And to overcome that denial, we often need to contend with the reality of the situation.

But in such a high intensity situation, these kinds of conversations can be difficult to have. When they are not conducted appropriately they can lead to feelings of resentment, anger, and even leave to fracturing of the family unit. This is where a brief intervention comes in.

If you are looking into what happens during a brief intervention, the chances are that you are either:

1. Staging an alcohol intervention for a loved one
2. Taking part in an alcohol intervention

Regardless of your role in the intervention itself, it is important to know what the goals of an alcohol intervention typically are. Usually, brief interventions aim to:

• ‘Reduce drinking to recommended low-risk patterns and levels’
• Reduce binge drinking
• Lower likelihood of negative health consequences
• Lover likelihood of negative social consequences
• To educate individuals on the risks involved in chronic or excessive alcohol consumption

The key aim of a brief intervention is always to remain non-judgemental. Having a clinical professional present can be useful here. This is because it is often easier to have complicated conversations when we are slightly detached from a situation. When difficult things are happening to someone that we love, it can be tricky to stop our own emotions from colouring our perspective. By implementing the support of a brief interventionist, you can reduce the risk of your feelings running away with you. This can help to keep tensions from rising and eliminate potential perceptions of blame that either party could identify.

An appropriate time to stage an alcohol intervention would be if:

• Your loved one’s drinking is causing them to be unpredictable
• You fear for your loved one’s safety due to their drinking
• You fear for the safety of you or others due to your loved one’s drinking
• Your loved one appears to ‘change’ when they drink
• Your loved one is not receptive to conversations around potential drinking issues

If you are planning on staging an alcohol intervention, you can contact us for advice and support on how to do this safely.

If you are taking part in an alcohol intervention, then you may feel nervous about what to expect. The most important thing to remember here is that interventions are staged out of a place of concern. This means that the people around you care for you very much and wish to prioritise your wellbeing. The best way to approach the intervention is to be open, honest and receptive to what your loved ones and interventionists have to say.

Discussing difficult topics can quickly become heated. But when conducted in a measured and respectful way, alcohol interventions are an opportunity for each party to have their voice heard, as well as to receive specialist advice from an addiction professional.

Whilst difficult, an intervention can offer a gateway into an addiction recovery journey.