Family Counseling

Drug and alcohol addiction impacts the entire family. Family counseling in Atlanta, Georgia is indeed an essential component of any effective drug and alcohol addiction recovery program. Moreover, it further provides many benefits to both the client and their family as a result.

Our family counseling program at the Retreat of Atlanta acknowledges that addiction is best addressed when the entire family unit heals together. Family therapy isn’t just for the individual with an addiction. Therefore, each family member can further benefit from our family counseling program.

Benefits of Family Counseling

At the Retreat of Atlanta, you will find a community of well-trained professionals that cater to your family’s needs. As a result, our family counseling in Atlanta can help you and your family throughout the recovery process.

Some of the benefits of family counseling include:

• Motivating your loved one throughout drug and alcohol rehab
• Improving communication and conflict resolution skills
• Understand the nature and causes of addiction
• Address any underlying mental health concerns within the family
• Create a safe environment for the family to voice feelings and concerns
• Offer support to your family members during treatment
• Enhancing your natural support system to include family members

Addiction impacts the entire family and takes the entire family to heal. Fortunately, some family members put aside their own emotional needs to help the person with the addiction. Other members appear fine on the surface; however, consequently, they are filled with anxiety, stress, and concern over their loved one’s behaviors. 

Oftentimes, family members take on unhealthy relationship patterns or use maladaptive coping skills to deal with addiction in the family. Thus, family counseling addresses these issues as well as improves mental health outcomes for everyone involved.

The Impacts of Family Counseling for Addiction

The impact of family counseling for addiction includes:

• Supporting everyone in the family
• Family can hold you accountable for your recovery goals
• Addressing unseen issues among family members
• Helping families create healthy boundaries with one another
• Increased autonomy among each family member

Fortunately, family counseling in Atlanta helps families heal together, hence improving the outcomes for everyone. To add to this benefit, when families support each other and feel close, they therefore feel secure enough to thrive in their own lives. Thus, the end result is families who are close create a safety net for each member to gain autonomy and work on creating satisfying relationships inside and outside of the family.

Substance Abuse Warning Signs

Initially, before the family begins family counseling in Atlanta or other drug recovery therapies, they might need help identifying substance abuse in the home. To further explain, granted not all addictions are as dramatic as those depicted in films and on television. Additionally, in some cases, for instance, a family member who abuses substances leads a normal life—except for small signs showing that something is off.

According to the Mayo Clinic, the following are signs of a substance use disorder:

• Cravings to use or drink frequently, sometimes throughout the entire day
• Needing more of the substance for the desired effects
• Using or drinking more than intended
• Financial issues from buying drugs and alcohol
• Maintaining supplies of drugs and alcohol
• Failing to fulfill work, school, or family obligations due to substance use
• Loss of interest in social activities that don’t involve alcohol or drugs
• Continuing to use or drink despite negative consequences in your life
• Engaging in reckless behaviors under the influence of drugs or alcohol
• Going to great lengths to obtain drugs and alcohol, including stealing or lying to others
• Unable to stop or cut back on drinking and using
• Spending significant amounts of time recovering from substance use, engaging in addictive behaviors, or obtaining drugs and alcohol
• Withdrawal symptoms appear when you stop using or drinking

To summarize, when you or a family member exhibit these behaviors and signs, they might have an issue with substance abuse. Additionally, you will notice multiple signs occurring at once, as these signs are related to one another. For example, if much of your day is spent recovering from hangovers, then you will have little time for social activities and family obligations for instance.

Types of Family Therapy in Atlanta

Family counseling in Atlanta can help you understand the nature of your loved one’s addiction. In turn, the more you understand about addiction, the better equipped you and your family will be at helping your loved one.

Thankfully, there are several types of family therapies including:

• Structural: Structural therapy helps with creating boundaries and hierarchies for a healthy family environment. For example, these forms of therapies can help parents maintain an active role in their children’s life.
• Bowenian: This form of family therapy is done for self-differentiation. Instead of a group therapy session with the entire family, the therapist provides an individualized treatment plan for each member.
• Systematic: The therapist in systemic family therapy is a neutral figure who listens to every member of the family and provides assessments.
• Narrative: By separating each family member from their issues, narrative therapy helps individuals gain an objective view of familial problems.
• Transgenerational: Transgenerational therapy looks at the past to uncover unhealthy behavioral patterns learned from one generation to the next.

Most family counseling programs will use multiple approaches to address underlying issues within the family. For example, understanding the family dynamics over time in transgenerational therapy can help provide context for structural issues occurring today.

What to Expect at the Retreat of Atlanta with Family Counseling

At the Retreat of Atlanta, you can expect comprehensive family counseling to help each individual family member deal with the current family crisis of addiction. In fact, unfortunately for families with one or more members struggling with addiction, the emotional health of the entire family suffers as a result. 

Furthermore, while your loved one is in our treatment programs for addiction, we invite you to engage in family counseling. Family involvement is essential for success in recovery. Thus, we aim to restore families to improve the mental health and quality of life for everyone.

Begin Family Counseling in Atlanta, GA Today

Drug and alcohol addiction are family diseases that require help for each person involved. Therefore, family counseling at the Retreat of Atlanta, Georgia can help you and your loved ones address issues within the family surrounding the crisis of addiction. Our Alpharetta location also provides family counseling. To learn more or get started in treatment and family counseling, visit our admissions page today.