A denial intervention model:If a person close to you is using a chronic behavior pattern of denial injurious to his mental health, then the following intervention model may be useful in helping him break through this debilitating denial.
Step 1 Prepare a written script of incidents characteristic of the target person's denial pattern of behavior. For each incident list the following:
-
The incidents where denial was used.
-
When it occurred.
-
What loss or problem was involved.
-
What the negative consequences of the denial were.
-
What could have happened if denial had not been used to resolve the problem or loss.
-
Why and how this incident of denial has affected you personally.
Step 2 Seek out other people who are closely related to the target person. Ask these people to prepare a written script, as in Step 1, for incidents of denial with which they know the target person has been involved.
Step 3 Seek out the assistance of a counselor or mental health professional, if you believe the aftermath of a denial intervention with the target person may result in that person needing to get ongoing help. Invite this professional person to the intervention rehearsal (Step 4).
Step 4 Meet with everyone who has written a script of denial incidents. Rehearse how they will be presented to the target person. Choose a moderator for the intervention.
Step 5 Set up a date, time, and place for the denial intervention session. Make sure that all of the variables of location, timing, and schedule are conducive to helping the target person relax and listen to what is being shared. (Have the session at a neutral site; not at a psychiatric hospital or chemical dependency treatment center).
Step 6 Invite the target person to meet at the scheduled date, time, and place of the planned intervention. Do not reveal the agenda of the meeting or the participants. This is important as he may resist coming to such a meeting if he suspects he will be confronted with his denial.
Step 7 Bring the target person to the meeting, and introduce the intent of the meeting to him. It is to share the love and concern of his family and friends who are in attendance. The family and friends are there because they are concerned about the target person's health and happiness and about how the denial pattern is affecting their relationship.
Step 8 A moderator (selected by the group in Step 4) then introduces each intervenor, one at a time. The intervenors use the written scripts to explain all of the denial incidents. Each speaker continuously reassures the target person that he is loved. They share their concern about his welfare if he continues to use the denial pattern.
Step 9 Once all of the intervenors have presented their scripts, the target person is faced with verbal and written evidence of the denial pattern. The moderator then shares with the target person an outline of steps to be taken to assist the person in overcoming the denial pattern. (These steps are decided by all of the intervenors at the meeting in Step 4.)
Step 10 The target person may then be introduced to the counselor or mental health professional, if present, who shares a clinical perspective on the denial pattern and can explain what treatment is available.
Step 11 The intervenors then let the target person react to all that has been presented. The group “problem solves'' with the target person about the next steps in breaking the denial pattern.
The eleven steps in the denial intervention are repeated as often as needed to keep the target person from reverting to the old pattern of denial.
