At Beach House Center for Recovery, we recognize that substance use disorder affects more than the individual using substances. Entire family systems can be hurt and even destroyed under the weight of a loved one’s addiction.
Substance use disorders affect entire families. Our Wellness Program helps families heal while providing needed support during and after their loved one’s recovery.
Without addressing addiction in the context of the entire family system, treatment may not address the full impact of addiction on the family. At Beach House Center for Recovery, we believe involving the family in evidence-backed therapeutic interventions can support the recovery process for both patients and their loved ones.
When your family is affected by substance use disorder, it’s not just your loved one with a drug or alcohol problem who needs love, connection, and support on the road to recovery. That is why we created our family wellness program.
Family counseling for addiction is about prioritizing your wellness throughout a family member’s recovery journey.
Substance use impacts every family differently. The following issues are shared among the children and family members of people struggling with addiction:
Additionally, the children of people with substance use disorders may have an increased risk of developing a substance use disorder.
Substance use disorder is a condition that can create distance and strain within families, but relationships of love and connection are essential to recovery. Research suggests that family support and involvement can play an important role in treatment and recovery.
Based on this research, we developed our Wellness Program for families of Beach House Center for Recovery patients and alumni to provide more recovery-related guidance, support, and involvement.
The goals of family counseling for addiction include:
Through our family-based program, we aim to strengthen communication with family members of those in our care so that they can have greater peace of mind and a sense of connectedness and involvement in their loved one’s recovery process.
Our Wellness Program is available to all family members of a loved one who is in treatment or has completed treatment at Beach House Center for Recovery.
Our approach to family support is an important part of our addiction treatment program, where it’s not uncommon for families to feel excluded from a loved one’s treatment plan.
To protect your loved one’s privacy, Beach House Center for Recovery requires the patient’s signed consent before family members can enroll in the Wellness Program. Consent can be provided upon admission or at any time after.
But unlike many treatment centers that discourage communication with family members or the engagement of close relatives in a parallel recovery process, Beach House Center for Recovery firmly believes that an open line of communication and greater engagement with family can support the recovery process.
Family members who participate in our Wellness Program receive the following services from a team of empathetic and experienced Wellness Coordinators:
We place a strong, research-based emphasis on the healing power of relationships of love and connection as an important part of recovery. This belief shapes how we work with families, whom we consider an important part of the Beach House Center for Recovery community.
There are various approaches to family therapy, each with its framework and techniques.
Families may also find it helpful to read about how family therapy can help rebuild relationships affected by addiction and the role of family involvement in addiction recovery.
Four of the most common types include:
Developed by Murray Bowen, this approach emphasizes understanding and addressing family dynamics and intergenerational patterns. Family members examine their roles and emotional triangles during therapy and work toward healthier relationships.
Developed by Salvador Minuchin, this approach focuses on the structure of the family system, including boundaries, hierarchies, and power dynamics. Families work with an experienced therapist during therapy to reshape and reorganize dysfunctional family structures, often through techniques like boundary-making and reframing.
Systemic or family systems therapy looks at the family and how individual members’ behaviors and emotions affect the entire system. It emphasizes circular causality, where each family member’s behavior is seen as a cause and an effect of others’ actions. During treatment, a therapist helps family members gain insight into these patterns and make changes to promote healthier interactions.
This approach focuses on identifying and changing specific, problematic behaviors within the family. The goal is to disrupt established patterns and encourage change in a relatively short period.
Each of these family therapy approaches has its strengths and limitations, and the choice of which to use depends on the specific needs and dynamics of the family in therapy, which will be determined during your personalized sessions.
Family therapy is a valuable approach involving family members’ participation in the recovery process. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the therapeutic techniques often incorporated into family therapy for addiction treatment, along with letter writing, role-playing, and communication techniques.
CBT is a widely used therapeutic approach that identifies and changes thought patterns and behaviors contributing to addiction.
In family therapy, CBT can help family members better understand the underlying issues and triggers that drive substance use in their loved ones.
Family members learn to recognize enabling behaviors and develop strategies to set healthier boundaries.
Along with family therapy, patients may participate in individual therapy as part of a personalized treatment plan.
Letter writing can be a powerful therapeutic tool in addiction and family counseling. Family members may write letters to their loved ones struggling with addiction, expressing their feelings, concerns, and support.
These letters provide a safe space for family members to communicate their emotions and expectations, fostering open and honest dialogue.
Role-playing helps family members practice effective communication and problem-solving skills in a safe and controlled environment.
Family therapy sessions may involve role-playing scenarios where participants take on different roles to experience various perspectives and responses to addiction-related issues.
Our Wellness Program helps keep families informed and supported throughout their loved one’s treatment and early recovery. For additional guidance on healing family relationships, read How to Rebuild Family Relationships in Recovery.
At the end of their loved one’s treatment program, which naturally can be a tense and potentially scary juncture for patients and their families, family members enrolled in the Wellness Program can expect to receive a call within 72 hours of their loved one’s discharge.
For the next three months after your loved one’s discharge, you will receive two weekly calls from a Wellness Coordinator. They will support you, answer any questions, and serve as a liaison to other recovery groups, providers, and resources as you transition into this next phase of early recovery.
At the end of the first three months following treatment, a Wellness Coordinator will reduce their call frequency to one every three weeks. After that, family members enrolled in the Wellness Program can expect to receive a call once monthly for a lifetime (or for as long as they desire).
The Family Wellness Program is part of the support provided to families of Beach House Center for Recovery patients. The program gives loved ones guidance and resources throughout their family member’s recovery.
No. Beach House Center for Recovery requires the patient’s signed consent before family members can enroll in the Wellness Program. This allows Beach House to protect the patient’s privacy while giving family members the opportunity to participate in their loved one’s recovery.
Family members receive regular contact from a Wellness Coordinator throughout their loved one’s treatment and after discharge. The Wellness Program begins with an introductory call within 72 hours of admission, followed by two calls per week during treatment. After discharge, families receive two calls per week for the first three months, followed by less frequent calls as recovery continues.
Beach House Center for Recovery was founded on the belief that love and connection are instrumental in the recovery process.
We believe that a strong and united family system can help patients achieve long-term recovery. That’s why we provide customized treatment programs designed to empower patients and their families with practical addiction management tools and strategies, including specialized treatment for substance use disorders.
For more information about our family addiction wellness counseling or to enroll your family, please contact our admissions counselors today.