An article in the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment states that family support and integration during treatment can improve outcomes. The journal article cites a variety of studies that reveal the importance of family involvement during treatment. Clearview understands this importance, which is why we created our programs to integrate family and help family members learn to help their children in treatment and recovery.
The Importance of Family During Therapy
Familial relationships provide a support system that is different than any other. These unique family bonds help a struggling girl feel more connected, cared about, and loved throughout treatment. Meanwhile, these positive feelings are linked with higher success rates and decreased rates of relapse compared to those who don’t have family support. Because these outcomes are known, there is no doubt that family members should be integrated into treatment whenever possible.
Rebuilding Relationships
Family can be included in therapy sessions to help rebuild relationships and practice healthy communication. These sessions provide a student with a safe environment where she can express what she is feeling. What’s more, family sessions create a forum for discussing her behavior and having important realizations. These sessions also allow the family to share how they have been impacted by their family member’s behavior and their feelings related to it.
Going through this process during therapy allows both the student and family members to discuss their feelings in a controlled environment with an unbiased, trained professional. This compassionate professional acts as a mediator and teacher. The professional is there to ensure the discussion stays productive while still allowing all parties to express themselves.
Further, the professional also teaches the family and student healthy communication methods. This way, the family can continue to rebuild and maintain the relationship outside of treatment.
Setting Boundaries
Another role of a professional is to work with students and families in setting boundaries. These boundaries help define each family member’s role and expectations. Boundary setting allows each member to know what they are required to do. Establishing boundaries ensures that family members know how to act with each other and how to communicate when their boundaries are being crossed.
Becoming a Support System
Another way the importance of family is honored during treatment is by helping them become a solid support system. This can be done through family participation in workshops and becoming educated about what their family member is going through. As a result, the student will feel less like an outcast in the family. Furthermore, becoming educated allows the family to better connect with their family member and show unbiased support.
These workshops can also teach families ways to help their struggling family member with what they are going through. Knowing these helpful tips and interventions can help the student feel more comfortable outside of treatment with the family. It also will help them stay on the path to achieve their goals.
Clearview Horizon Understands the Importance of Family
At Clearview Horizon Girls Academy, we provide residential, therapeutic treatment at our boarding school for girls from 12 to 18 years old. We focus on helping girls who are struggling with emotional and behavioral concerns. During their time in treatment, girls also maintain their studies. This means that they do not need to take a break from their education to get the help they need.
Family is a major part of our treatment programs because we understand the importance of family during recovery. The program at Clearview includes a weekend full of workshops for the parents of the student. These workshops involve learning healthy communication techniques, relationship-building skills, and self-awareness exercises and talks. The goal of these workshops is to teach parents and their children long-term communication methods. Families then implement these communication methods to help them enhance the family dynamic.
Family Sessions at Clearview
As mentioned before, another way family is integrated into treatment is through weekly designated family sessions. These sessions can occur in person, on visiting days, as well as over the phone. Moreover, these sessions ensure that communication between the parents and student stays open, issues and concerns can be addressed, and parents feel involved with their child during treatment. This also helps students to feel connected to their families and outside community while getting the help and education they need.
We at Clearview Horizon want to ensure that everyone is happy with our program. This includes not only the student but also the family. Involving the family in the therapeutic process helps families see what the student is going through and provides a feeling of security. The family becomes more confident in the process as they learn what is being taught to the student and observe the gains being made. Also, parent involvement gives us a chance to address any concerns that may arise. During parent participation, we can answer any questions about the treatment interventions and education we are providing our students.
Family involvement can significantly increase recovery success rates. Therefore, family involvement is extremely important. During therapy, families can work to repair dismantled relationships, build trust, learn to communicate effectively, and create a support system to lean on outside of treatment. Making amends with family members can also help students come to terms with their behavior and accept responsibility for the consequences. Having family involved in therapy also helps our students learn more about family members’ experiences. They also can establish boundaries and receive more help from family. We at Clearview Horizon understand all of the benefits that come from having family integrated into therapy and make a point of doing so. For more information, call today at 866-584-4788.
