Convincing someone to enter a heroin addiction treatment isn’t easy. Sometimes, what you need to get them the help they need is to through intervention.
By making the difficult choice to stage an intervention, you may be actively saving someone’s life from the devastating effects of heroin addiction. Helping them commit to heroin abuse treatment is sometimes challenging because most of them are in denial about their condition.
Why Should You Write an Intervention Letter?
Thinking of ways on how to face your loved one, and encourage them to begin their heroin addiction treatment can be daunting. You are uncertain how your loved one will react and so practicing the words you’re going to say is necessary.
Addiction specialists require writing an intervention letter during the intervention. To keep things in order, and avoid things to be missed out, a letter is the best strategy. On the day of the intervention, each letter will be read aloud.
This letter is a crucial part of the intervention, as it allows people to be honest and coherent about how addiction is hurting someone they love. Often, someone deep in heroin addiction will not realize the full extent their drug use affects their family and friends. Your intervention letter may serve as the convincing tool for them to start an inpatient treatment program, or attend heroin detox treatment, both of which are necessary to rebuild a drug-free life.
How to Craft a Powerful Intervention Letter?
There’s no right or wrong way of writing an intervention letter. However, to write a good one without offending your loved one, you need to understand how they feel by placing yourself in their shoes.
The best way to write an intervention letter is to write it straight from your heart. Be honest about your feelings and emotions, and let the person know you love them. Include the suggestion or need for them to enter treatment. The letter should make it clear that they need help, and they need help now.
Bear in mind that although you’re disappointed and hurt by what happened to them, consider that they did not wish to be in their position right now. Know that they are also deeply hurt. Be careful in expressing your thoughts and keep a non-confrontational tone of voice.
To get an idea of what to write, you may brainstorm with other people, who will be participating in the intervention. When done, read and share the letter to other participants to get their insights and make possible corrections. Remember that the intervention letter you’re making could make or break your loved one’s decision to start a heroin drug abuse treatment.
Four Tips on Writing An Intervention Letter:
- Start with a statement of compassion.
Tell your loved one that you love them. Remind them of the times that they’ve helped you in the past. Starting with these statements can get their attention and could help easily convince them to begin their heroin addiction treatment.
- Let them know how their substance use has affected you personally.
By citing examples of the times that their heroin use has affected you, can help them realize the extent of their addiction. It is also a good way of opening their eyes that their addiction is directly impacting many people outside of themselves.
- Assure them that addiction is a disease.
Don’t blame them, rather, let them know that you’re aware that their heroin use is a disease and it’s not their fault. Remove the blame from the situation, and instead talk about it like a disorder that needs proper medical treatment to recover from.
- Assure them of your love and concern.
You can tell your loved one their options in getting a heroin abuse treatment. Reiterate also the consequences if they decide to decline to push through with their heroin addiction treatment.
The intervention letter may be the most memorable and significant letter that you’ve written in your life. It’s life-changing because, through it, your loved one may decide to change their life by getting the treatment for heroin addiction that they need.