Creating a Relapse Prevention Plan: Step-by-Step Guide

Making daily efforts to prioritize your overall well-being not only helps you manage stress but also reinforces your sense of self-worth and value. The warning signs of relapse often come well before a person falls back into old habits, so it’s important to be able to recognize the red flags. Perhaps high levels of stress at work lead you to fall back into substance abuse. Or maybe problems with your spouse seem unmanageable, so your tendency is to rely on alcohol to help you through it.

If you fear you are at imminent risk of relapsing, contact a trusted group member immediately. Write down a schedule of your favorite support groups and attend a meeting for additional guidance. People might not realize they are at higher risk for relapse during this stage, and therefore continue to think of opportunities where they can use again. They might also bargain or justify a future relapse, such as using during a holiday or birthday. Relapse is an obstacle on the path to recovery, but it’s an obstacle that can be overcome.

Identify Actions to Take When Relapse Occurs

Experts in the recovery process believe that relapse is a process and that identifying its stages can help people take preventative action. A https://ecosoberhouse.com/ isn’t just a strategy; it’s a gesture of self-love. It’s an affirmation that you value yourself enough to anticipate and prepare for challenges.

However, people who slip and don’t seek help often experience a physical relapse. They begin using obsessively or compulsively, and they start to experience negative consequences from that use. Using drugs once during relapse prevention plan recovery doesn’t necessarily mean that a person has relapsed. A single use is usually referred to as a “slip.” Some people can slip without relapsing, but drinking or using increases the chance of relapse.

Why Do Relapses Occur?

Denied users will not or cannot fully acknowledge the extent of their addiction. Denied users invariably make a secret deal with themselves that at some point they will try using again. Important milestones such as recovery anniversaries are often seen as reasons to use. Alternatively, once a milestone is reached, individuals feel they have recovered enough that they can determine when and how to use safely. It is remarkable how many people have relapsed this way 5, 10, or 15 years after recovery.

• Making daily efforts to prioritize your overall well-being not only helps you manage stress but also reinforces your sense of self-worth and value.
• A relapse or even a lapse might be interpreted as proof that a person doesn’t have what it takes to leave addiction behind.
• Attending or resuming attending meetings of some form of mutual support group can be extremely valuable immediately after a lapse or relapse.
• If you are an alcoholic in early recovery, is it safe to take a cruise where alcohol will be all around you?
• Write out a step-by-step plan detailing what you will do if you relapse.
• In a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, relapsing in substance use disorders was compared to relapsing among those suffering from hypertension and asthma.

This is a group of people that includes family, doctors, counselors, self-help groups, and sponsors. Individuals are encouraged to be completely honest within their recovery circle. As clients feel more comfortable, they may choose to expand the size of their circle.

The Stages of Recovery

How individuals deal with setbacks plays a major role in recovery—and influences the very prospects for full recovery. Many who embark on addiction recovery see it in black-and-white, all-or-nothing terms. There is an important distinction to be made between a lapse, or slipup, and a relapse. The distinction is critical to make because it influences how people handle their behavior. A relapse is a sustained return to heavy and frequent substance use that existed prior to treatment or the commitment to change.

• A severe relapse may require inpatient treatment, but outpatient therapy may be appropriate for some people.
• Addiction Resource is not a healthcare provider, nor does it claim to offer sound medical advice to anyone.
• Alternatively, once a milestone is reached, individuals feel they have recovered enough that they can determine when and how to use safely.
• Cravings can be dealt with in a great variety of ways, and each person needs as array of coping strategies to discover which ones work best and under what circumstances.
• Ask your clients to keep their relapse prevention plan so they can refer to it during cravings or when they know they will be confronted with triggers.

Some examples include visiting a bar where substances will be involved or spending time with old friends who drink. People who attend therapy learn skills and strategies for preventing relapse. During rehab, many people create specific plans for risky situations or times when they feel tempted to use drugs or drink alcohol.

Reach out for support

Only trained and licensed medical professionals can provide such services. If you or anyone you know is undergoing a severe health crisis, call a doctor or 911 immediately. By knowing the triggers, the patient can put mitigation measures in place. That’s where getting help and pursuing personal development come into play, to help counter them. Determining what caused a prior relapse is vital in avoiding them in the future.