When people attend any type of recovery program. they most often return to the same home environment they were in before treatment. This can be a good thing if the environment is a supportive one. Both mental illness and addiction, however, are family disorders. When one member of the family is experiencing problems, the entire family is affected. Over time, adjustments are made that may cause unhealthy interactions between family members. That is why our family therapy program is so important. It offers our clients the chance to return to a stronger family unit that will aid in recovery and not undo all the effort they have put into starting to heal. Let’s take a look at the benefits of family therapy. In the end, not just the client gains from this program. The entire family becomes stronger overall. Learn more about the addiction therapy programs that we offer today.
Learning to Set Boundaries
Healthy boundaries are necessary for any relationship. In families that have been touched by addiction or mental illness, these boundaries are often missing or distorted. Every family member has the need to set boundaries for their own safety and mental health and this is one of the skills that a family therapy program can teach. These boundaries can involve words or actions. Boundaries give others guidelines to how you expect to be treated and lets you know what they expect from you in the way of treatment. Without personal and family boundaries, chaos becomes familiar and everyone suffers. With boundaries, everyone can feel both loved and valued.
Better Communication
Communication is key to a healthy relationship. Too often our clients have spent many years with the inability to experience proper communication. Maybe nobody in the family ever learned this skill. One of the benefits of family therapy is being able to learn the skill of better communication in a safe environment.
Improved Problem Solving
More often than not lack of problem-solving skills added to the issues that brought our client to us in the first place. Not only is it important for our client to learn how to effectively solve problems in a productive way but it is also important for the rest of the family to learn these skills. As time goes on, it becomes easier to do this.
Deeper Empathy
Empathy is the ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and view things from their perspective. As communication breaks down, the ability to empathize also disappears. Once you can view things as the other person does, you are able to at least understand how and why they do what they do. This does not mean you have to agree with them. It only means that you understand why. This is the first step in moving forward.
Better Conflict Resolution
One of the most important benefits of family therapy learning to better manage anger and finding better conflict resolution. This also falls under the better communication issue. When people effectively communicate, they can better empathize. This understanding leads to less anger and better conflict resolution. All the benefits of family therapy work together to create a healthier, more supportive environment for all family members, not just the client.
Get Help from Viewpoint Dual Recovery Center
Here at Viewpoint Dual Recovery Center, we realize the importance of family in the healing process. When a client reaches out to us at 855.746.3633, part of our intake process is to find out what their home environment is like and determine how much and what kind of family therapy may be needed. We want our clients to be able to enjoy as much support as possible when they continue their recovery outside of our program. Contact Viewpoint Dual Recovery Center today.
