Family Therapy for Substance Use Disorders

Addiction affects the entire family, not just the person who misuses substances.¹ In addition, unhealthy family dynamics can impact addiction and other mental health disorders.² Family therapy for addiction can support a person’s recovery efforts and help repair and heal the entire family unit.²

If you or a family member are struggling with substance misuse, you may be interested in learning more about the benefits of family therapy for addiction. This article will help you understand what family addiction therapy is, types of family therapy, how it works, benefits, whether insurance covers family therapy, and how to find family therapy and treatment for substance use disorders.

What Is Family Therapy?

Family therapy is a type of treatment that focuses on the family unit as a whole as well as the relationships and interactions between family members.² Families are viewed as a system that tries to maintain homeostasis, with each member playing a part in maintaining balance and order.²  When something is out of balance with one member, such as with addiction, all members are affected and disorder is likely to occur.²

Family therapy for substance use disorders (SUDs) examines the dynamics between family members and considers these dynamics as potentially playing a role in the development of or perpetuation of addiction.² Family drug addiction therapy recognizes that addiction and other mental health disorders can create a chaotic and unstable environment for everyone in the family.² It aims to improve family functioning and relationships, address underlying issues that may impact substance use and other unhealthy or maladaptive behavior patterns, and help people make specific, positive changes that can benefit everyone in the family unit.²

Types of Family Therapy

There are four main theoretical models that constitute current approaches to family therapy for drug addiction, which includes:¹

• Chronic disease model. This model views SUDs as chronic diseases that are similar to other chronic medical conditions and takes into account the influence of genetics on SUDs. SUDs are seen to affect all family members and cause negative changes in the family’s emotions, behavior, relationships, and functioning.
• Family systems theory. This model is based on the idea that families tend to organize themselves around the maladaptive family member and try to adapt to the substance misuse as a way of maintaining homeostasis.
• Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). In this model, maladaptive behaviors, such as substance misuse, are seen to be reinforced by the interaction between family members. CBT family therapy in addiction treatment attempts to identify and change maladaptive behaviors and interactions that contribute to substance use, helps improve different relationship skills and coping skills, and aims to strengthen the family as a whole.
• A multidimensional, integrative approach. There are several types of multidimensional approaches, such as multidimensional family therapy, that involve different techniques examining the connections between emotions, thoughts, behavior, and the environment.

Family therapy approaches can take different pathways, including:¹

• Parallel, meaning that people receive SUD treatment and family therapy at the same time from different providers.
• Integrated, which means that the person receiving SUD treatment participates in family therapy that is integrated into their SUD treatment.
• Sequential, which means that family therapy is provided after a person has completed some form of initial SUD treatment.

How Does Family Therapy for Addiction Work?

Family therapy for alcohol addiction or other forms of compulsive substance use usually works by having the whole family meet together with a therapist.² However, in some cases, only some family members will meet, depending on the objectives and needs of the family.² Sessions usually last around an hour and can focus on the person who is receiving SUD treatment, other family members, or the entire family.²

Generally speaking, the therapist will ask questions, encourage discussion and reflection, provide direction, or just listen to gain information and allow family members to share their feelings and experiences.²  Therapists will use different techniques depending on their particular approach, and they may introduce different topics, such as communication skills, coping skills, dealing with difficult emotions, or establishing healthy boundaries.²

Research has shown that treatment that includes family therapy is generally more effective than treatment that does not involve families.²

The core objectives of family therapy for SUDs include:¹

• Leveraging the family to influence change. Family members can motivate each other to make and maintain changes.
• Using a strength-based approach to involve families in treatment. Families can positively influence a person’s willingness to enter and remain in treatment, but can also negatively impact this if they’re unwilling to actively participate in therapy. Strength-based treatment addresses problematic family dynamics and patterns of behavior, such as ineffective parenting practices.
• Changing family behaviors and responses that may support continued substance misuse. Families are guided to work on unhelpful or negative behaviors, thoughts, and emotional responses that could influence their loved one’s substance misuse.
• Preventing SUDs from occurring across family relationships and generations. If a parent misuses substances, their children may be more likely to develop an SUD, and if a teen misuses them, their siblings can also have an increased risk. In family therapy, addiction recovery treatment aims to reduce the chances of the development of SUDs in family members and prevent it from being passed down in generations.

Benefits of Family Therapy for Addiction

In addiction rehab, family therapy can provide many benefits, not just for the person in recovery, but for all family members.

Family therapy for SUDs can help with:

• Treatment retention and engagement. Families play an important role in encouraging people to seek and stick with treatment.¹
• Improving abstinence and reducing substance use. Research has shown that family therapy can increase negative urine screens and increase the rates of abstinence.¹
• Involving families in treatment can positively influence a person’s motivation to change, and families can support a loved one’s recovery in other positive and helpful ways.¹
• Strengthening family coping strategies. Family therapy helps people learn new skills to support a person in recovery and improves the family’s overall ability to cope with stress.¹
• Improving family functioning. Family therapy can address underlying issues that may affect their loved one’s addiction, improve psychosocial functioning, strengthen relationships, decrease conflict, and improve communication.¹
• Reducing the risk of being exposed to violence, SUDs, and other mental health disorders in children and teens.¹  It can also address safety concerns, such as domestic or sexual abuse.¹
• Reducing co-occurring problems. This can include suicide attempts, externalizing disorders, such as those related to emotional dysregulation or impulsivity, and internalizing disorders, such as anxiety or depression.¹

Does Insurance Cover Family Therapy During Treatment?

Insurance often covers family therapy, but the extent of your coverage can depend on your specific plan, so it’s a good idea to check specific details with your insurance carrier. The Affordable Care Act states that substance use disorder and mental health treatment are essential benefits, and marketplace insurance plans must provide a similar level of coverage for these treatments as they do for other medical and surgical types of care. You can read more in our guide about using insurance to pay for rehab.

Family Addiction Therapy in Orange County

If you or a family member are struggling with addiction, we’re here to help. You can start addiction treatment today at our Orange County rehab, or call to speak to an admissions navigator about addiction and family therapy and receive more information about your rehab options. You can also learn about our levels of care for substance abuse treatment and find out how to pay for rehab.