On the Bookshelf
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Get Your Loved One Sober Hazelden Publishing, 2004 by Robert Meyers, Brenda Wolfe. |
Meyers helps families of the addicted cope
By Steve Carr
It is a well-known fact that alcohol and drug addiction leads to devastating results. There are many treatment methods available to users. However, individuals associated with addicts often find few alternatives for themselves to cope with and try to help loved ones.
Robert Meyers, Ph.D., research assistant professor in the
Department of Psychology at the Center on Alcoholism, Substance Abuse and Addictions at UNM and associate director of the LifeLink Training Institute in Santa Fe, hopes to change all that with his new book, “Get Your Loved One Sober: Alternatives to Nagging, Pleading and Threatening” (Hazelden Publishing and Educational Services).
Co-written by Brenda Wolfe, a clinical psychologist specializing in the treatment of substance abuse, eating disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder, the book provides basic guidelines for spouses, parents or children of problem drinkers or drug users.
Based on the scientifically validated CRAFT (Community Reinforcement and Family Training) model created by Meyers, the book provides guidance and tools to help you recognize how you interact with loved ones and how to change those patterns to achieve healthier and happier results.
Meyers feels the main difference in the success of CRAFT is the involvement of family members as part of the overall treatment. “This book is for consumers,” Meyers said. “We teach several things in the book. We teach family members how to stay safe, how to take care of themselves, and how to gently persuade their user to enter treatment. We want family members of the users to lead more balanced lives even if the user never enters treatment.”