Involuntary Commitment: The Solution to Your Family Crisis
by Laurel Considine
“My mother has been in treatment for alcohol five times in the last three years.”
“My son is so intelligent and driven, but he’s been so different these last few years on drugs.”
“I don’t recognize my child.”
“Nothing has worked thus far.”
As a law firm specializing in mental health law, this is the type of testimony we hear from clients every day. We listen to the most desperate stories from family members who have tried everything for their loved ones to help them get clean and sober. Families that have invested years of effort, energy, and significant financial resources.
By the time a family calls us, they are exhausted. Caring for the impaired individual becomes a full-time job. So, what’s the solution? What will work that hasn’t already been tried?
The solution is involuntary commitment, also known as, The Marchman Act.
The Brain on Substances
Medical experts know that impaired individuals are not acting in their best interests. They are not making safe or sound decisions for themselves. There comes a point for intervention. Their brains have been “hijacked” by drugs and alcohol.
Judith Grisel, author of Never Enough: The Neuroscience and Experience of Addiction, acknowledges in her book that each drug interaction creates lasting changes in neural pathways, making addiction a deeply ingrained neurological experience.
In short, drugs are impacting your loved one’s neural pathways. And after years of drug and alcohol abuse, it’s naturally going to take substantial time to rewire these pathways.
This is where involuntary commitment comes into play.
Why Involuntary Commitment Works
Involuntary commitment, known as The Marchman Act, works for a multitude of reasons. But there are two in particular: leverage and monitoring.
A court order for an impaired individual to participate in treatment is leverage. A court order in a nutshell says, “you stay in treatment, or you go to jail.”
A court order is typically in place for 90 days and can be renewed for subsequent 90 day periods. Our firm has seen folks under a court order and leveraged for up to a year.
We know that it takes significant time for individuals to recover, and that the standard 30-day treatment protocol is often not enough.
We look to the most successful programs for getting individuals sober. One in particular stands out: the program for Commercial Airline Pilots.
Since the mid 1970’s, 6,000 pilots have been treated and returned to the cockpit. In order to fly again, pilots are monitored and drug tested for at least three years.
Dr. Lynn Hankes, who worked in addiction in south Miami, has said that airline pilots are more likely to get sober and stay sober.
“A member of the general public, he notes, is three times more likely to have a relapse than a pilot.”
“There’s a key element missing in the general public, and that is, we don’t have the leverage.”
The Marchman Act gives us that leverage and monitoring are needed to increase the individual’s chances for long-term recovery and ultimately, to save their life.
How to Get Help for Your Loved One
If this story is familiar to you, and you want to know you’ve done everything possible for your loved one, call our law offices.
As a small family firm, we are here for you. We provide consistent experience, expertise, and compassionate care.
We know that substance abuse is devastating not just for the individual, but also for the family. Let us help get your loved one back. Call 561-655-8081 for more information or visit joeconsidinelaw.com.
