Family Care, Communication and Cohesion
Interruption, Participation and Imagination
We are aware of the grief and misery that comes from watching helplessly while a loved one battles disorders like autism, substance use disorder, depression, anxiety, and other afflictions. Our interventions (supportive diversion from a condition's symptoms) consists of our specialized services, skilling up the family as well as using our comprehensive 300 page Patient Success Handbook to make every part of care interactive.
If an individual quits going to school or work, isolates from friends and family, engages in damaging and dangerous behavior, stops doing the things they enjoy, and falls short of their potential, we can interrupt that process. But one requirement: no one travels alone. Our program is designed to work with the patient and 2-3 loved ones.
Families drift apart when pain gets loud. Families move from empathy to judgment when behaviors don’t match the values. Loved ones share less experiences when a mental illness or substance use disorder interrupt the bond of trust. Our intervention is a gathering of support giving the person options to get help. Our use of intervention here is more operational. An intervention is the travel plan and road by which one develops the skill to get to their goal. We are non-traditional practitioners in this way. Our interventions are tools (a disruption of an established process) that help people acquire skill sets so they may feel confident in their capacity to deal with life's unforeseen occurrences. Interventions are part therapeutic (action), part support system (people). There is no other way to heal from these conditions. We do not fly away to an island to live life on life’s terms. We walk through the discomfort in a community, learning and practicing new coping while accepting feedback and slowly increasing in self-awareness.
The Solstice Pacific team will bring together the skills (A), the family (B) and practice to help each patient thrive regardless of their chronic or intrusive illness. When skills are growing, stress is more manageable.
Instead of the island or spa, we create ways to rally around both interventions (skills and family) to practice life in a real way. Imagination and memory are important in the healing process. But, what is most important is learning. We change and grow when we are honest, open-minded and willing to live in the present. It will feel risky and unfamiliar to let go of living in the past or the future. You found the only clinic and subacute care of this kind. IF, you accept our support, ideas and presence - copiloting this journey - everything worth fighting for is closer in reach, and comfort looks a little different on the other side of practicing life with us.
Family engagement is crucial, but not everyone can do it. Some family members may feel emotionally and psychologically exhausted after coping with a loved one's behavior. They may also fear the unknown or be hesitant to discuss family issues with a stranger. Regardless of the reasoning, hiring a family therapist to speak with each member of the family individually about their worries is often beneficial. Family members can engage in treatment if they want to, and they can join later when they're ready. Either way, we will help you grow your support system so skills are not an idea but part of the fabric of everyday.
Family Intensive
The functioning, health, and general well-being of every family member can be negatively impacted by mental illness or addiction, both for those who are using substances and for those who are not; for those with a diagnosis, and those crushed by anguish witnessing their loved one’s grief, psychological change, loss and isolation.
Depending on who is receiving treatment and who is engaged, family therapy programs can take on a variety of forms, but they are all intended to support the individual in recovery and help families operate on a higher plane. Our Family Intensive is required for anyone who wishes to receive subacute services, partial hospitalization or intensive outpatient care. Once you and your Intake Clinical Advocate have determined that Solstice Pacific is the best venue for you, you will be given education and support through our online Family Intensive delivery. You will receive a series of steps that include videos, self-reflection and assignments to prepare you for treatment in subacute care, partial hospitalization or intensive outpatient care.
At Solstice Pacific, including the family and support network is of utmost importance. Your family members can offer support during the recovery process, but they also need to deal with the fallout from your addictive behavior. Although each family member has their own objectives and needs, our digital experience of Family Intensive gets everyone closer to the same page
The 2 or 3 biological or non biological support you identify with the Intake Team, once on Release for Information, must participate with reasonable expectations and the mental preparedness to do their own work not just point to the patient. Our program helps families communicate, resolve conflict, adjust expectations, exercise some cognitive flexibility and more.
Each family member receives psychoeducation and counseling once joining their loved one who is in care for subacute, partial hospitalization or intensive outpatient services. There is no room for pointing fingers or pretending, this is where the healing starts if everyone comes ready to raise the bar of empathy, awareness and self-efficacy. Those who engage Family Intensive with the patient will also be required to attend Family Sessions, sometimes weekly, sometimes every other week.
What are the goals of Family Intensive?
Family Intensive assists the family in implementing interpersonal, intrapersonal, and environmental adjustments that will have an impact on the individual using alcohol or drugs or the individual with frustrating and often daunting cognitive or behavioral symptoms.
What are the benefits of Family Intensive?
There is of course desire among you and your family for your small community to run more effectively overall, which might encourage you to seek treatment and/or to finish strong, despite any moments of doubt you may have about creating a lifestyle of contrary action and grounding.
Once our digital delivery of Family Intensive is successfully completed, the patient and family are ready to join our subacute care, partial hospitalization treatment.
Family Resources
It is no small feat to take on mental illness and go through our intensive programs.
Our family resources have been researched and vetted to ensure they are helpful for any family. Age, diagnosis, class, creed, gender, length of time in chronic illness … are secondary to applying these proven tools. Families will relieve themselves of stigma, receive encouragement and unite around education and new skills.
Here are resources we recommend:
- NAMI Family to Family
- NAMI Peer to Peer
- NAMI Warmline
- The Hope Line
- Helping Behaviorally Challenging Child
- Alcoholics Anonymous
- Narcotics Anonymous
- Co-Dependents Anonymous
- Celebrate Recovery
- Saddleback Peace Farm
- Suicide Prevention Hotline
- YMCA
Books
Our reading list is comprehensive from integrative psychiatry to mental health support. These books will help enlighten and educate you to be your most improved and optimum self. Knowledge is not just power but a tool while you and your loved one are committed to mental, physical and emotional health.
- The Four Agreements - don Maguel Luiz
- Healing the Shame That Binds You - John Bradshaw
- When I say NO I feel Guilty - Manual J. Smith
- The Explosive Child - Dr. Ross Greene
- Good Enough Mother - Hillary Barnett
- What Happened to You - Dr. Bruce Perry, Oprah Winfrey
- Getting Past your Past - Francine Shapiro, PhD
- The Body Keeps the Score - Bassel van der Kolk, MD
- Codependent No More - Melody Beattie
Coping Skills
There are many apps that can help learn and practice coping skills. It is imperative that you treat and implement these coping skills routinely and consistently as preventive practices. Imagine you are having an anxiety or panic attack or in crisis, now imagine yourself reaching out for a piece of paper/book/journal or some app to do a guided meditation, breathing exercise or other coping skill you know about, it is almost impossible to do them effectively let alone remembering to reach out for them. This is why it is important that you practice them daily multiple times to ensure they become habitual and automatic.
Consistent practices will lead to less frequent and shorter episodes of anxiety, depression, and prevent extreme reactions and emotional dysregulation. You will be calmer and more stable in your mind, body, and improve your focus and concentration to be more present and productive.
Apps You Can Find in the Android Play Store or Apple App Store:
Self Help Workshops:
What We Practice:
- Journaling
- Progressive Muscle Relaxation
- Sun - 15 minutes a day before 11am
- Mindful Walking
- EFT Tapping
- Breathwork
- Yoga
- Creative Expression like Cooking or Painting or Pottery
- Stretching
- Guided Meditation for Sleep
- Guided Meditation for Anxiety
- Guided Meditation for Stress
- Guided Meditation for Children
- Guided Healing Meditation
- Reading a book (for your heart, for your mind, for fun)
- Listening to classical music
- Playing a musical instrument
- Petting and playing with a pet
- Exercise/Walking
- Nature
- Grounding with all 5 senses
- Automatic Thought Logging
- Storytelling
- Singing
Taking Care of the Entire Family
At Solstice Pacific, we are committed to ensuring that the support system is educated and equipped. You will get out of this what you put in. So, give this 100% and you will feel the relief and see the changes in time. Consistency is key and the best way to get through the hard days is to have others around you get it. Join Celebrate Recovery, an Anonymous community, a support group or come to our once monthly Monday education nights. You are the pilot, we are your copilot and the road ahead is unknown to you, but not to us. You have found Orange County’s best resource for family resilience.