An Intervention is the act of entering a situation in order to change its course.

The majority of patients enter treatment for their addictions voluntarily.  For some the depth of denial is so great that they continue on the destructive path of drinking or using drugs or engaging in addictive behaviours

oblivious to the damage they are leaving in their wake.  Although the family, friends and colleagues may have made comments or even threats about the behaviour it is not enough to break the cycle. Something else needs to be done before the inevitable consequences of broken lives, marriages, families and even, possibly, premature death.  This is where interventions are a vital part of the addictions treatment process.

Interventions and the involvement of families, friends and colleagues are proving to be an essential part of engaging those suffering from the illness of addiction in treatment. However an intervention needs to be skilfully conducted in order to bring all those affected together, singing from one hymn sheet, and all fully aware of the nature of the problem.  Often it is a lack of knowledge or the depth of the family denial that jeopardises a successful outcome from an intervention. Interventions take time and often it is not just a case of confronting and packing them off to treatment.  This seldom works.

Together with Paul Gallant, one of the eastern seaboard of the USA’s leading interventionists, and others in the USA, professionally qualified to conduct interventions, Nova Vida has worked to develop their own intervention programme in Europe in recent years.  As a consequence we are now able to offer a much more independent and effective service in conjunction with our sister organisation ‘Recovery in Reality’. Where clinically indicated to be of benefit to be admitted to Nova Vida recovery Centre we will of course recommend this but where we recognise that other centres offer a more appropriate programme for the individual we will make that recommendation.  It is senseless to go through the difficult and often painful process of an intervention only to end up with inappropriate treatment.

For more details on interventions and other pre- and post- treatment services please visit www.recoveryinreality.com