Drug Abuse Intervention
When Is Xanax Abuse Intervention Necessary?
Xanax, also known as alprazolam, is a powerful anti-anxiety medication that is commonly heavily abused. Many calls we get about Xanax abuse interventions actually end up being for an alcoholic or drug addict, one who was diagnosed with depression from a psychiatrist who had no idea whether the person was an alcoholic or abusing other drugs. Mixing benzodiazepines such as Xanax with alcohol or drugs is dangerous and makes for an increased chance of overdose.
Xanax abuse intervention demands that the family be educated and made aware of what is going on, what needs to be done, and how to do it. Most of the Xanax interventions we perform for families and substance abusers occur when the addict is unable to make rational decisions for him or herself.
Up until the point of the intervention counselor’s arrival, the Xanax abuser has been running the show. Addicts begin by selling the family hope that things will get better, and then they convince them that they will quit tomorrow. However, tomorrow never comes, and the insanity cycle plays over and over again. Families are almost always the last people in the substance abuser’s life to look into an intervention for this individual.
If the family does not initiate the change, who will? The Xanax abuser? If the substance abuser could change for the better, that would already have occurred by the time you start reading this
“The most formidable challenge we professionals face is families not accepting our suggested solutions. Rather, they only hear us challenging theirs. Interventions are as much about families letting go of old ideas as they are about being open to new ones. Before a family can do something about the problem, they must stop allowing the problem to persist. These same thoughts and principles apply to your loved one in need of help.”
Mike Loverde, MHS, CIP
What Does Being Addicted to Xanax Entail?
Xanax, when used as intended by responsible people, can be an effective medication. However, in the hands of a substance abuser, Xanax becomes an extremely dangerous pill.
Interventions for Xanax addiction alone are not as common as:
- Interventions for alcohol and Xanax,
- Interventions for opiates and Xanax, or
- Interventions for cocaine and Xanax.
Many Xanax abuse interventions are for people who are mixing medications, which makes the threat of overdose and death more likely. Cocaine users are often Xanax addicts because at the end of a long binge of cocaine, people take large quantities of Xanax to help them come down, to fight depression, and to be able to go to sleep
Abusing the Drug Because a Doctor Prescribed It
Most of our interventions for Xanax deal with substance abusers who present a severe loss of motor skills and cognitive functioning. Like other medications prescribed by a doctor, Xanax often gets abused because people think it is their right to do so because their names are on the bottle prescribed by a doctor or psychiatrist.
Simply having a prescription in their name, however, does not give Xanax users the right to abuse the drug and cause their loved ones so much pain. An intervention for Xanax addiction can help avoid many of the heartaches that can, and will, come from your loved one’s addiction to this drug.
Take the Initiative to Request a Xanax Abuse Intervention
Because Xanax is a highly abused recreational drug, Family First Intervention has been asked to perform an increasing number of Xanax abuse interventions over the years. Xanax is dangerous when taken alone, but when it is mixed with other drugs, it can be deadly.
Families often wait to call us only when things have become really bad, not only for the Xanax abuser, but also for every member of the family. Addiction is not a victimless crime, contrary to what many substance abusers seem to think. Addiction affects all people involved.
Families initiating a Xanax intervention program are in a far better position to help their loved one over families who either do nothing or try to correct the addiction and behaviors of the abuser themselves. Unfortunately, the addiction will likely will not correct itself, and the family is powerless to make it just go away. Without the help of an interventionist and a treatment program to follow, the family can almost never help its loved one get better.