CRAFT approach is a system for helping friends and family members change the way that they are interact with a loved one who has a substance use problem

Research on CRAFT shows that about 70% of families who receive CRAFT are able to get their loved ones into treatment within a year (Miller, Meyers, & Tonigan, 1999). CRAFT also helps family members improve their own lives, whether their loved one ends up seeking treatment or not.

CRAFT teaches family members how to:

1. Identify their loved one’s triggers for and results of their use.
2. Break the patterns that lead to or increase a loved one’s drinking or using.
3. Develop and improve communication skills to more effectively express their needs and requests.
4. Help their loved one access effective addiction treatment resources when they express interest in treatment.
5. Learn or re-learn how to take care of themselves and reconnect with their values so that, regardless of their loved one’s use, they can still lead a life that is centered on their values and not their loved one’s drug/alcohol use.
6. If violence or the potential for violence exists, help family members identify triggers for violence and develop plans to keep themselves (and their children) safe.

CRAFT teaches how to break unintentional participation in patterns related to their loved one’s use. You will learn how to stop your engagement in these patterns in ways that keep you safe, set appropriate boundaries, and are consistent with the type of person you want to be.

CRAFT is about learning skills to improve your relationship with yourself and with your loved one. learn practical skills to help one disengage loved one’s use. You will also learn ways to take back your life from your loved one’s addiction and to reconnect with the things that are important to you.

CRAFT gives you the skills to invite changes in your loved one and make changes in your own lives.

CRAFT can be done one-on-one with a provider or in a group of other family members.