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Three Possible Outcomes of Drug Intervention

Drug addiction is a serious and dangerous problem. Often the addict will not realize how out of touch with reality he is and he will often believe that nothing is wrong. The addict may rationalize his behavior and become defensive about being confronted. It is important that the intervention be conducted when the addict is not high and in a safe environment.

  1. Reform

    • The most positive outcome of any drug intervention is a complete reform of the addict -- she decides to quit right there and then. She asks for help from those in the intervention and begin seeking treatment immediately. She is grateful for the intervention and wants to change her life. It can take several interventions to get to this stage. Unfortunately, complete reform is not that common.

    Aversion

    • Many addicts will have a very adverse reaction to the intervention. It may come as a total shock, and they will not want to participate. This signals that at some level they know something is wrong with their behavior but do not want to confront it. The addict may run away or become violent if forced to stay. If the addict does not want to be there, those taking part in the intervention should remain calm and try to coax the addict into staying.

    Denial

    • The addict has to want to quit. Without his commitment no amount of interventions will change anything. The addict may participate in the intervention, humoring those in attendance. The addict will take part for their benefit and to get everyone off his case. The addict will internally deny that there is a problem and feel that everyone is overreacting. The addict will not change his behavior.

    Realization and Relapse

    • The addict may participate in the intervention and genuinely want to quit using. These types of interventions are generally emotional as the addict realizes she has a problem. The addict knows how weak and powerless she is against the addiction and that quitting will be difficult. The addict may make an attempt to quit and even ask for help but relapse because quitting is hard.

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