Most books on recovery from addiction focus on either the addict or the family. While most alcoholics and addicts coming out of treatment have a recovery plan, families are often left to figure things out for themselves. In It Takes a Family , Debra Jay takes a fresh approach to the recovery process by making family members and friends part of the recovery team, beginning in the early stages of sobriety. Through straightforward, compassionate language, she outlines a structured model that shows families how to work collaboratively and as individuals to find an appropriate balance between personal responsibility and building a circle of support to meet the challenges common to the first year of recovery. Together, family members will address the challenges of enabling, denial, and pain, while developing their communication skills through practical, easy-to-follow strategies and exercises designed to create transparency and accountability. With this invaluable guide, family members work together as they reinvent their relationships without the all-consuming dysfunction of active addiction.