How thinking about relapse now can help you avoid it during addiction treatment
Though identifying environmental and internal relapse triggers can help you steer clear of circumstances likely to lead you back to drug use, simply identifying these triggers is usually not enough to prevent relapse. To truly help yourself stay abstinent during the treatment of substance abuse in New York or Princeton, you’ll need to use the information you learn about your triggers to develop strategies that help you respond to those hazardous situations.
Creating a plan now can help you minimize your risk of relapse in the moment and take some of the stress out of making the right decisions. Your addiction specialist can help you develop a relapse prevention plan during treatment. In the meantime, you can start thinking about ways to prevent relapse by:
- Imagining the details of a relapse situation. Think of the things that are most likely to trigger a relapse during your recovery and dig into the minutiae of that theoretical situation. What would happen if you were to relapse and why? Go in depth and try to identify things you might be able to do to diffuse the situation if you find it becoming a reality. If you’ve already experienced relapse in the past, think through what happened—what warning signs were there, what factors led up to it, and what might be done to keep it from happening again?
- Discuss relapse possibilities with others. Thinking through a relapse situation on your own can be helpful, but discussing it with a group or therapist can give you insights that you may not have considered. It can also make the threat of relapse seem more real and give you perspectives from others on factors that may contribute to a return to drug use.
- Talk to your therapist about close calls. If you come close to relapse or experience serious cravings or vivid drug dreams, be sure to speak with your addiction specialist about them. Doing so can help you identify specific emotions and events that may have led to them, giving you a chance to steer clear of them or stay wary in the future. Discussing close calls and cravings can also help your addiction specialist identify psychological factors that may play a role in triggering relapse.
Relapse is a consistent concern among those in treatment for substance abuse in New York and Princeton, but creating a plan to deal with them now can help you stay abstinent in the future. Remember: if you ever come close to relapse or begin using drugs again, you can always turn to your addiction specialist for support and guidance.
