The former president of Indiana-based Business Consulting Incorporated, Thomas Stoughton built a career as an education, a management, and a technology consultant. Aside from providing knowledgeable advice to business and municipal leaders, Thomas Stoughton has a history of supporting addiction recovery programs, including Progress House in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Encouraging addicts to take the transformative step of committing to an addiction treatment program is not an easy task for family or friends, but it is an important one. Recovering addicts frequently cite pressure from family or significant others as the reason they sought treatment. However, recent research has indicated that confronting users about their addiction in a tense or heated way is not the best way to convince them to go to rehab. An alternative approach, called Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT), teaches effective communication skills to people hoping to reach an addict and motivate change.
Developed by Robert J. Meyers, PhD, the CRAFT program helps loved ones engage the substance abuser in a compassionate and culturally sensitive way. Using a positive approach, CRAFT focuses on accessing the addict’s internal value system and using positive reinforcement to motivate him or her to seek treatment. The CRAFT program also delivers benefits to the addict’s loved ones. Participants have reported a decrease in anxiety, anger, and depression after completing the training program, even if the addict they tried to help didn’t successfully complete treatment.
Thomas Stoughton 