Help for a Loved One FAQs

If you’re concerned about a loved one’s alcohol or other drug use, you might have questions about how an intervention works or what’s involved in addiction treatment. Here’s a quick Q&A about finding help for your loved one.
Couple holding hands

An intervention is a process designed to help a person who is in active addiction see the destructive path they’re on and choose to change course (typically, to enter an addiction treatment program). In conducting an intervention with a loved, family members, friends and other persons of influence such as clergy members or work colleagues share their feelings and concerns in direct and firm but compassionate and hopeful ways. A professional interventionist can help you plan and conduct the meeting with your loved one, offering guidance for staying positive and focused on solutions. While the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation does not have interventionists on staff, our recovery experts can provide you with information and contacts for professional intervention services.

Yes. Hazelden Betty Ford provides virtual addiction treatment programs as well as mental health services. Patients can access our telehealth services by using your smartphone, tablet, laptop, desktop computer or any device with an Internet connection and a camera. In addition to the easy-to-use video conferencing platform, our virtual systems comply with federal and state health care privacy regulations (e.g., meets HIPAA-compliant telemedicine standards).  

Whether your loved one comes to us for inpatient rehab or an outpatient program, core addiction treatment activities will include:

  • Group therapy
  • Individual therapy
  • Educational presentations and workshops
  • Special-focus groups
  • Mental health services
  • Mindfulness and relaxation practices

Your loved one’s treatment plan will be structured and individualized based on their clinical needs. If they are in one of our residential treatment programs, they will receive a schedule each day with the individual and group sessions to attend. 

Hazelden Betty Ford offers a full range of residential (inpatient) and outpatient alcohol and drug addiction treatment programs and services, including specialized services for opioid addiction, older adults, teens and young adults and professionals. Our outpatient programs range from high-intensity (five to seven days a week) to intensive (four days a week) to low-intensity (up to a few sessions per week) care. In addition, our addiction treatment experts are skilled at assessing and addressing co-occurring mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety and trauma.

The Twelve Steps are a set of principles that can help guide your loved one’s recovery from addiction. Essentially, the Steps outline a course of action your loved one can follow to help restore manageability and order to their life. Through the practice of principles such as acceptance, humility, courage, honesty, compassion, forgiveness and self-discipline, the Twelve Steps offer new pathways to positive behavioral change, emotional well-being and even spiritual growth. Also worth noting: Twelve Step Facilitation is recognized as an evidence-based treatment approach that promotes long-term recovery by encouraging active participation in mutual-support peer groups. 

The admissions process begins when you call our recovery experts to discuss your situation. That initial process helps us identify the most-effective treatment options available. Our recovery experts are committed to providing help as quickly as possible. Learn about our assessments and admissions process, or call us any day, any time to ask questions or to begin the admissions process at 1-866-831-5700.

Following admission to a Hazelden Betty Ford residential addiction treatment program, patients can contact their family to provide you with the phone number and times when they can be reached as well as the address for sending mail. Kiosks are set up for patients to access email, make bill payments, etc., but online time is limited. Our admissions staff can help you with more specific information about contacting your loved ones while in treatment.

The Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation has sites throughout the United States. If you aren’t located near one of our facilities, we offer virtual addiction treatment and mental health services.

No, a physician referral is not required for admission to treatment programs at Hazelden Betty Ford.

Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation offers a number of programs and resources to inform, guide and support your family. Our one-day, virtual Family Program is designed to help you and your loved ones learn about the disease of addiction, the process of recovery and the importance of healthy boundaries, coping skills and self-care. You can take part in our Family Program even if you don’t have a family member in treatment at Hazelden Betty Ford. We offer a Spanish-language Family Program, a Native American family program, and a program for parents, guardians and siblings of loved ones ages 12-25 as well. You and your family members might also be interested in our web and phone-based counseling services, called Connection for Families™.