How Family Therapy Can Help Families Affected by Addiction
As a family and couple therapist, I believe that the family is one of the most important aspects of life for most people. However, sometimes family relationships can become strained or damaged by various factors. One of the most common and challenging issues that families face is addiction - whether it is alcohol, drugs, substances, or gambling. Addiction can have a devastating impact on the well-being of the addicted person and their loved ones. That is why I recommend seeking professional help from a family therapist, rather than trying to solve the problem on your own.
Family therapy is a form of psychotherapy that works with the whole family, not just the individual. The main idea behind family therapy is that the family environment shapes the person’s personality, behavior, and mental health. Therefore, to improve the situation, the family therapist helps the family members to communicate better, understand each other’s perspectives, and resolve their conflicts. In healthy families, people show love and respect for each other, listen to each other’s opinions and needs, and cope with stress and difficulties together.
Family therapy can be especially helpful for families that are affected by addiction. Addiction is a complex and chronic disease that affects not only the addicted person, but also their relatives. Family members may develop unhealthy patterns of coping, such as codependency, enabling, denial, or avoidance. They may also experience anger, guilt, shame, fear, or depression. Family therapy can help them to break these patterns, support the recovery of the addicted person, and heal their own emotional wounds.
Some of the goals of family therapy are:
- To provide emotional and practical support for the addicted person during their treatment and recovery;
- To reduce interpersonal conflicts and increase harmony in the family;
- To create a positive and supportive atmosphere in the home;
- To cope with personal crises and transitions;
- To deal with infidelity and restore trust in the relationship;
- To improve the quality of parent-child interactions and foster healthy attachment;
- To overcome codependency and establish healthy boundaries with the addicted person;
- To enhance the intimacy and satisfaction in the couple’s relationship;
- To create a positive and supportive atmosphere in the home;
- To identify and treat psychosomatic disorders that may result from family stress;
- To prevent and stop any forms of physical or psychological abuse in the family;
- To promote the social and personal development of each family member;
- To adapt to the changes in the family structure and roles.
Before starting family therapy, it is important to set clear and realistic goals. The family therapist will help the family to identify their strengths and weaknesses, their needs and expectations, and their desired outcomes. The family therapist will also explain the rules and procedures of the therapy, such as confidentiality, frequency, duration, and fees. The family therapist will then work with the family to achieve their goals, using various techniques and methods.
Some of the tasks that the family therapist will do are:
- Support the family members through the crisis and change processes;
- To observe and record how the family members communicate and interact with each other;
- To explore and reveal the hidden or suppressed feelings and thoughts of the family members;
- To teach and practice constructive ways of expressing and managing negative emotions;
- To pinpoint and analyze the main sources and triggers of the family conflicts;
- To facilitate and mediate the dialogue and negotiation between the family members;
- To challenge and change the dysfunctional beliefs and attitudes of the family members towards the problem;
- To help the family members to develop and maintain caring and trusting relationships.