Family Therapy · Southern Maine
Nobody gets addicted alone, and nobody recovers alone either
Family therapy at Portland Treatment gives parents, partners, siblings, and adult children a place to say the hard things out loud, with a clinician in the room to keep it safe. Available to families across Biddeford, Saco, Portland, and York and Cumberland County.
Confidential · Families welcome · Answered 24/7
Accredited & Licensed
LegitScript Certified
Joint Commission Accredited
Maine DHHS Licensed
Psychology Today Verified
Who this is for
You've been carrying this too
Families in active addiction learn to survive: walking on eggshells, covering for someone, checking phones, bracing for the call. Those habits don't switch off the day treatment starts. Family therapy is where the whole system gets to heal, not just the person in the program.
You are allowed to be angry, exhausted, and still love them. All of that is welcome in the room.
Parents
Watching your child use is a particular kind of helplessness. We help you separate support from enabling, without giving up on them.
Partners & spouses
Trust broke over months or years. Rebuilding it needs structure, honesty, and a neutral room where both people get to speak.
Adult children
If you grew up around a parent's drinking or use, the effects didn't end when you moved out. Family work names that, out loud.
Siblings & chosen family
The people who show up matter more than the ones on the birth certificate. Whoever your family is, they can be part of this.
In the room
What family sessions actually cover
Rebuilding trust, realistically
Trust returns through repeated small evidence, not one apology. We set expectations both sides can actually meet, and a timeline that doesn't set anyone up to fail.
Boundaries without abandonment
Learn the difference between a boundary that protects the relationship and an ultimatum that ends it, and how to hold one when guilt pushes back.
Support vs. enabling
Money, rides, rent, second chances. We work through the specific decisions your family faces, so kindness stops accidentally funding the illness.
Communication that doesn't detonate
Practical scripts and practice for the conversations that have gone badly before, relapse disclosures, curfews, finances, and holidays.
Understanding addiction as an illness
Education about what substances do to the brain, why relapse can be part of the course, and what recovery actually looks like month over month.
Care for the caregivers
Referrals and guidance toward Al-Anon, Nar-Anon, and family support groups across Southern Maine, so you have your own community too.
Medically reviewed
Benjamin Crocker, MD
Psychiatrist · Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Tufts University School of Medicine · MD, The Ohio State University · Residency & fellowship training at the University of Michigan and LAC+USC Medical Center
Last reviewed August 2026. Read our editorial standards & clinical review process
The quiet part
Everyone took on a role. Nobody chose it.
Families organize themselves around addiction without ever deciding to. Naming those roles is often the moment the room shifts.
You stop managing their recovery for them and start supporting the work they do themselves. Less exhausting, and far more effective.
Covering for someone protects the addiction, not the person. Family work makes honesty survivable for everyone at the table.
In addicted households, one person's crisis takes all the oxygen. Siblings and children get their own space to be heard here.
If they're not ready
You can start before your loved one does
One of the most common calls we get in Biddeford is from someone whose husband, daughter, or brother refuses to get help. You don't have to wait for them to be ready to get guidance yourself.
Our team will talk through what you're seeing, what levels of care exist, how to approach the conversation, and what to do if they say no again. There's no cost and no pressure to enroll anyone.
Insurance
In-network with almost every plan.
Portland Treatment is in-network with Anthem, UMR/UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, Harvard Pilgrim, Martin's Point, TRICARE and MaineCare, Cigna is our only out-of-network plan. In-network means contracted rates, lower coinsurance and no balance bill. We verify your benefits free, in minutes, with no obligation.
Free, confidential, no obligation
Or read the coverage guide for your plan, Anthem rehab coverage, Cigna rehab coverage, MaineCare rehab coverage and other accepted insurance plans.
Questions from families
What families ask us most
Does my loved one have to be in treatment for us to get family therapy?+
Family sessions are part of our PHP, IOP, and outpatient programs, but you can call 855-449-7674 for guidance even if your loved one has not entered treatment yet. Many families start by getting direction for themselves first.
Who counts as family?+
Whoever matters. Parents, partners, spouses, siblings, adult children, grandparents, and chosen family are all welcome. Your clinician will help decide who to include in each session and when.
Will I find out what my loved one said in their private sessions?+
No. Individual therapy is confidential and protected under federal substance use privacy rules. Family sessions cover what everyone agrees to bring into the shared room, nothing is disclosed behind a client's back.
Can family sessions happen virtually?+
Yes. We can arrange virtual family sessions for relatives who live outside Southern Maine or who can't get to Biddeford during program hours, so distance doesn't keep someone important out of the process.
Is family therapy covered by MaineCare or my insurance?+
Family therapy is included as part of your loved one's treatment program, and we're in-network with MaineCare and nearly every major insurance plan except Cigna. Call 855-449-7674 or verify benefits online for a free, no-obligation check.
What if our last attempt at family counseling made things worse?+
That's common when addiction was still active or the sessions weren't addiction-specific. Our clinicians are trained in substance use family work and set ground rules that keep sessions from turning into a pile-on.
Keep exploring
Related care at Portland Treatment
Levels of care
- Partial hospitalization program (PHP) in Biddeford
Our most structured day treatment, five days a week, home each night.
- Intensive outpatient program (IOP) in Southern Maine
Nine-plus clinical hours a week with day and evening tracks.
- Virtual IOP for anywhere in Maine
The same IOP curriculum by secure telehealth, statewide.
- Outpatient program (OP) for ongoing recovery
One to two sessions a week that fit around work and family.
How we treat
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
Practical tools for the thoughts that drive use and relapse.
- Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)
Distress tolerance and emotion regulation skills that hold up.
- Individual therapy in Biddeford
One-on-one counseling with the same clinician each week.
- Group therapy sessions
Small clinician-led groups with people in the same fight.
Where we serve
- Addiction treatment in Biddeford, Maine
Our home clinic, in the mill district off Route 111.
- Addiction treatment for Portland, Maine
A 20-minute drive down I-95 from the Portland peninsula.
- Addiction treatment for Saco, Maine
Minutes across the river from our Biddeford clinic.
- All Southern Maine areas we serve
Every city and town within driving distance of Biddeford.
Addiction happened to the whole family.
So does recovery.
855-449-7674Answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Free and confidential.