Relapse Prevention

For many individuals, the hardship of staying sober after completing rehab has to do with their proclivity to relapse into alcohol or drug addiction. Familiar circumstances, people, and places very often contribute to the addict resuming their alcohol and drug abuse post recovery.

The good thing, however, is that there is hope for those suffering addiction in the form of relapse prevention. Relapse prevention is a learned set of coping skills that people can apply to their daily lives, and in so doing, make it possible for them to live without the burden of addiction.  

Relapse Happens Gradually

Getting help in the form of detox and rehab therapy is an essential aspect of overcoming the harmful effects of addiction. For many individuals, however, the hardship of maintaining sobriety begins again after they have completed their time in rehab. While some individuals begin using right after rehab, others fall back into addiction weeks or months later. Clearly there is no way of telling who will fall back into addiction, but there are coping skills that everyone can learn in order to successfully stay clean and sober. These coping skills are known as relapse prevention methods, and are taught to those in recovery in order to detect the early warning signs of creeping addiction cravings.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

The purpose of cognitive behavioural therapy is to teach those in recovery how to change their negative thinking and how to develop positive coping skills past their rehab stage. There have been numerous studies which assert the effectiveness of CBT as a successful method against slipping back into the grip of addiction.  

Very often, negative thinking manifests itself as catastrophizing, disqualifying the positives of completing rehab, and having a general negative self-image of oneself as a life-long addict. In time, those overcome with negative emotions can develop anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues which can easily lead them back into relapse. Cognitive behavioural therapy is a mind and body relaxation method which helps in acquiring new thinking capabilities, while at the same time, breaking old habits which can potentially lead one back into addiction.  

Learning From Setbacks

Those in recovery are usually very hard on themselves if or when they encounter a setback with regards to their using drugs or alcohol again. Some examples of setbacks can include:

• Resuming the abuse of drugs and alcohol. 
• Not asking for help. 
• Not avoiding high-risk situations.
• Not setting healthy boundaries. 
• Not practicing self-care.

In many cases, negative thinking about suffering setbacks can bring an individual back to using drugs and alcohol.

Their sense of failure is so overwhelming that they forget the positives of completing rehab, and instead accept their fate as a life-long addict. 

However, setbacks are a normal part of the process of recovery. Medical professionals and counselors encourage clients to look at their past successes and to acknowledge their strengths and learned coping skills while being in recovery. Through this, one can overcome their negative thinking and develop a positive plan to face each day with a proven and successful strategy to stay sober, happy, and healthy. 

If you or your loved one is suffering a relapse and would like to learn more on how to develop and maintain effective relapse prevention strategies, please contact us today and we will help you on your way to recovery.