How To Prevent Addiction Relapse Archives | 1000 Islands Addiction Rehab Centre

The end of addiction rehab is a momentous occasion. However, it also raises the question of how to prevent addiction relapse. As you graduate from your inpatient addiction treatment program, you are filled with a sense of accomplishment – and you should be. You have worked hard to mend your relationships and explore the causes lying beneath your addiction. And if you did not attend an inpatient program, you have resisted the urge to give in to cravings, and you have managed to avoid addiction relapse.

While you have earned the right to feel great about what you have accomplished, it is important for you to recognize that this is not the end of your journey. The end of addiction treatment is the beginning of the rest of your life in the outside world – a place where you will not be protected from relapse triggers, and where you will have easy access to the substance you once relied on.

Accept That Transitioning From Rehab To Life May Be Difficult

Inpatient addiction rehab makes it very easy for you to not use drugs or alcohol. You are in a place where you do not have access to your substance of abuse. Nor are you spending time with the people you used to use drugs with. You are completely removed from the stresses of daily life, and you are in a place where you can completely focus on your recovery.

Even if you are recovering with the help of an outpatient addiction treatment program, you have some protection. You have a daily schedule that you are expected to follow and people to check in with each day. While you are not as isolated from life as those in an inpatient rehab program, just having a routine to follow may be enough to keep you from using drugs or alcohol. Part of preventing an addiction relapse is understanding the peculiarities of the situation.

It is no wonder, then, that when addiction treatment ends, your risk of relapse is at its highest. When you go back to your real life, you may feel overwhelmed by the fact that you suddenly have to assume old responsibilities, talk to people who may have had a negative impact on your life, and go to places that you associate with your period of active addiction.

But if you can get through that first month post-treatment, your risk of relapse drops sharply, and it continues to steadily decline with each passing week.

Related article: 8 Signs Of Addiction Relapse

Continue Some Of Your Rehab-Era Support

One of the problems with leaving rehab is that you are also leaving behind your therapy, your education workshops, and your group supports.

But if you talk to your rehab facility, they may be able to connect you with services and supports in your area that can help continue with the work you started during your addiction treatment program. These support services can be crucial to helping you prevent addiction relapse.

Rehab-Era Support — talk to your rehab facility

Examples of supports that you should consider continuing include the following:

Individual therapy

Some of the issues that you delve into during addiction treatment can take a long time to fully explore and resolve – a lot longer than the typical rehab stint. Most communities have several therapists for you to choose from.

If you live in a small community with limited options, or if you have a disability, illness or condition that prevents you from seeing a therapist in person there is a growing number of digital options that you can explore.

12-step programs

Initially created to help recovering alcoholics in the 1930s, 12-step programs are one of the most successful tools for maintaining sobriety. There are several reasons for this: you have some specific steps to carry out, which can give you a sense of purpose and closure while contributing to your healing and that of your loved ones.

Furthermore, it gives you access to a group of people who, while they have their own unique stories, can empathize with what you are going through. As you strive to cut off former friends who were a force of negativity in your life, you can replace these connections with ones that are rooted in recovery and positive goals.

Healthy living programs

Exercise and nutrition are a big part of many rehab programs because addiction robs you of physical health as well as mental health. By staying healthy, it is easier for you to achieve dopamine boosts in natural ways, meaning you do not need to use drugs.

Join a gym, maybe get yourself into some personal or group training sessions, and have a consultation with a nutritionist.

Yoga and meditation

Yoga and mindfulness techniques are increasingly used in addiction rehab. More importantly, they are effective tools for addiction relapse prevention.

Both of these can easily be continued when you return to the real world. These pursuits can go a long way toward keeping your body and mind connected.

Embrace What Technology Has To Offer

There is a lot of material available on the Internet that can point you in the direction of preventing addiction relapse. In fact, you can supplement the support you get from other sources with this content. This includes:

Groups on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram
Educational sessions in the form of audiobooks, podcasts and YouTube videos
Apps to track sobriety, when and where you can find 12-steps meetings, and how much money you have saved by not using drugs or alcohol
Online therapy sessions that are run via instant messaging or video

Find A Non-Related Interest

By joining a sports team, taking classes or participating in community events, you can find people to talk to who have nothing to do with the world of addiction or recovery.

Your 12-step friends are, in all likelihood, going to be an essential part of your life for years to come, but having friends outside of that community can help you find balance and regain a sense of independence that you may have lost. Sometimes, this makes all the difference in preventing addiction relapse.

If You Fall Off The Wagon, Just Get Back On

A lot of people believe that if a recovering addict suffers a relapse, their addiction rehab has failed. This is not the case at all. Many life-improvement journeys include setbacks. Someone who is training for a marathon will miss a run, or someone who is on a weight-loss plan will eat a chocolate bar. The same goes for drug and alcohol recovery: if you suffer a relapse, it does mean failure, it is just a setback. Learn from it, identify what the trigger was so you can avoid it, and simply try again.

And remember – the longer you go without using drugs or alcohol, the less likely you are to experience a relapse. This means that every day you are becoming stronger.

Call 1000 Islands Addiction Rehab & Treatment Centre for addiction treatment programs.

Related article: How To Prevent Addiction Relapse

So you have spent a few weeks at an inpatient addiction rehab facility, and you have dealt with some difficult issues. You understand why your addiction happened, and you have learned better ways to cope with stress. Also, you have been taught ways to avoid addiction relapse. Your relationships are on the mend, you have been taking care of your physical health, and you have never felt better.

You feel ready to leave rehab and rejoin the rest of the world. But you quickly discover that it is not as easy as you thought it would be. You are no longer in the cocoon of safety that rehab provided you with. All of a sudden, you have to worry about your daily routines, paying the bills, and being constantly around the relationships that you were gently and slowly working on rebuilding.

And before you know it, you find yourself fighting the kind of craving you thought you had left behind forever. Why is it so difficult to transition from rehab to real life? Why do addiction relapses happen? And most importantly, what can you do to protect yourself? Keep reading to find out all the answers that you need.

Why Does Relapse Happen?

One of the first things you should know before you even enter an addiction treatment program is that recovery does not end when rehab is over. For many people, it is a lifelong process that involves support groups, therapy, fitness regimens and a lot of determination.

But if the whole point of rehab is to help you overcome an addiction, shouldn’t it be easier to fight relapse? A lot of the answer comes down to how you manage the transition from your inpatient rehab program back to the real world.

Take a moment to think about the rehab environment: you have food and shelter, you have a schedule that is decided for you, you have round-the-clock support any time you need it, and you don’t have access to drugs or alcohol. Even if you have a craving, there’s no way for you do anything about it. The only thing that craving can do is go away.

When you’re back home, all of this changes. You no longer have a schedule that tells you where you have to be at what time. If you’re not employed, you suddenly have great stretches of time that you have to find ways to fill.

A lot of people are fine until they run up against a stressful event. This could take a number of forms, such as:

Your first post-rehab argument with your spouse
Being turned down for a job
Carefully laid out plans for the day being disrupted
Receiving a phone call from someone who used to use drugs with you

The scary part is that, unlike when you were in rehab, you now have access to the substances you are craving. The good news is that you can set your life up in a way that makes it easier for you to avoid relapse.

Lifestyle Tips To Prevent Drug Addiction Relapse

To make sure that you avoid drug addiction relapse, follow these helpful tips:

Support Groups

The first thing you should do when you leave rehab is get connected with a 12-step program such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous. Many recovering addicts actually start this process during their inpatient treatment phase, and when you leave, it’s simply a case of continuing the same routine, but with a group that is convenient to where you live.

12-step programs are very effective at helping people prevent relapse, for several reasons:

You can connect with people who understand what you are going through
The 12-step program gives you specific tasks, which can give you a sense of purpose – and a sense of accomplishment when you complete them
You can form lasting friendships that will make it easier for you to stay away from the people you used to use drugs or alcohol with
It provides you with a support system that you can turn to in times of crisis
Most communities have many 12-step programs to choose from, so you will be able to find one that is the right fit for you

Online Support

The 12-step community has done a lot to make their system inclusive and easy to find, but there will always be those who are not able to participate in the meetings. There can be several reasons for this:

You live in a small community where it’s difficult to find a group that you feel comfortable in
You suffer from social anxiety that makes attendance at group meetings difficult and stressful
You have a physical disability and there are no accessible groups near you
You simply feel more comfortable interacting with people online

The advent and evolution of the internet has made it increasingly easy to find online recovery communities, not only for those who cannot or will not attend meetings, but for those who need additional support between meetings.

Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram provide recovering addicts with a way to ask for advice, give and receive support, and celebrate their sobriety milestones. There is also an abundance of educational material posted online, such as videos, podcasts, sobriety tracking tools, and educational programs.

Physical Activity

Being physically active has multiple benefits. Not only does it improve your physical and mental health, it provides a natural release of dopamine – the feel-good hormone that spikes after drug use. Many recovering addicts cope with cravings by engaging in rigorous exercise like running and weightlifting. By the time they are done, the craving is gone, because that elevation in dopamine has been accomplished in a healthy, natural way.

You don’t have to run a marathon to raise your dopamine, levels, though. Just going for a 20-minute walk can reduce your stress levels and make it easier for you to cope.

Therapy

Addiction relapse usually results from the recovering addict being unable to cope with certain triggers and temptations. A highly effective way of managing this is through Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), which is designed to help you achieve a specific goal.

In this case, the goal is to successfully show you how to avoid addiction relapse. CBT can help you identify your triggers, along with healthier ways of dealing with them. So when you experience a craving, you will have the tools and techniques to overcome them.

Do Something Fun

When you emerge from inpatient addiction treatment and immerse yourself in the world of 12-step programs and therapy, you may find that your life more or less revolves around your quest to stay sober. While this is important, it can be overwhelming, and it can be helpful to find an interest or activity that has nothing to do with addiction.

Everyone needs balance and the opportunity to have some fun, and there are many ways of doing this without needing drugs or alcohol. Examples include sporting activities, dance classes and book clubs. Volunteering is also a great way to do something that makes you feel good, that also helps other people.

What To Do If You Are In Immediate Danger Of Relapse

Putting together lifestyle changes that set you up for success is a critical element in preventing addiction relapse. But these things can take time to implement: it may take a couple of weeks for you to find a 12-step program that works for you, and support systems don’t just spring up overnight.

So what happens if you are experiencing a craving that seems overpowering? How then do you avoid an addiction relapse? There are some things that you can do in the moment that can get you over the danger.

First and foremost, call someone, whether it is a family member, a sponsor, or the support line at you rehab facility
Drink some water and have a snack, because your body may be interpreting thirst or hunger as a craving
Do some physical activity, like running or weightlifting, to give yourself a natural dopamine boost
Ensure that you distance yourself from the object of the craving: if you are anywhere near drugs or alcohol, leave and go to a safe place

In Conclusion

The first month after leaving rehab is when your risk is at its peak. If you get through that first month, your chances of relapsing drop sharply. It is difficult in the beginning, but it does get easier.

And if you do suffer a relapse, whether it is after a day, a month, or several years, just try again. It is important that you regard relapse as a setback, and not a disaster. If you don’t get it right the first time, don’t be too hard on yourself: use it as a learning experience that will help you as you move forward in your new life.

Call 1000 Islands Addiction Rehab & Treatment Centre for addiction treatment programs.