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Relapse Prevention Activities for Adults

Relapsing is recognized by drug and alcohol treatment professionals as a natural part of the recovery process, with over half of people in treatment for addiction relapsing during the first year of recovery. It is important that a recovering user understands that relapse is natural and not a sign of failure. Relapse prevention plans are encompassed within individual treatment programs and promoted as a part of the journey toward becoming clean of alcohol or drugs.

  1. Weighing the Pros and Cons

    • An early exercise that alcohol and drug users are encouraged to take part in, and one that can be renewed regularly, is to weigh the pros and cons of using alcohol or drugs. What is the best and worst thing that can be expected to happen if alcohol or drugs are avoided? What is the best or worst outcome if alcohol or drugs are used again? The person in recovery should write down the answers to clarify ideas and provide a reference to return to if relapse is a possibility. This is a central element in substituting permission thoughts with nonpermission thoughts on the road to recovery.

    Identifying Triggers

    • Understanding what leads alcohol or drug use is an important element of recovery and relapse prevention. Based on the last use, a recovering user should consider external triggers, such as the influence of other people or situations, summarized as who, what, when, why and how. He should also consider internal triggers, such as moods, thoughts, emotional feelings and physical feelings as well as what could have been done differently and what should be done differently next time. Triggers may be such things as hanging out with friends who do drugs but could also be innocuous events like hearing a song or seeing a photo that produces an emotional response.

    Dealing with Cravings

    • Once triggered, a recovering user will naturally seek to justify use of alcohol or drugs in her own mind. These cravings and internal processes can be dealt with in a number of ways. A basic method is to write down a list of ways to deal with cravings--things the recovering user can tell herself or ways to distract or relax herself. This can all be part of a personal relapse plan, which a recovering user can make herself. Further methods of dealing with cravings include developing a plan of substitution activities, such as exercise, meditation, gardening, eating or drinking, and finding which activities work.

    Seeking Personal Support

    • Personal support is an essential part of recovery and can come in the form of support groups or therapy sessions, or even just a trusted person to turn to when the impulse to use returns. Addiction treatment featuring individual counseling, group counseling and outside support will help most recovering users to prevent relapse. Once a user has relapsed, these same resources can help him regain sobriety and understand the cause and future prevention of relapse. A person may relapse because he has difficulty dealing with social pressure, interpersonal conflict or his own negative emotions. A therapist or drug counselor can help with interpersonal skills training to lessen the likelihood of such relapses.

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