How do I prevent a relapse?

The best thing about addiction recovery is the feeling of accomplishment you enjoy after successfully completing your recovery session. Armed with a new lease on life, many graduates of an addiction recovery program charge out of rehabilitation with a fresh, can-do attitude and the tools and skills they need to truly grab the world by the horns. Just like with anything new, however, the novelty of a new life wears off, and many individuals that have recovered with the aid of a robust rehab program find themselves facing new and unfamiliar (or, in some cases, a bit too familiar) environments, people, and experiences. In order to cope with these challenging situations, it is important to take certain steps sooner, rather than later. For some, the stress of temptation and old triggers can be too much too handle, and they will find themselves relapsing after months of sobriety. The first thing you should do to avoid a relapse is to remove yourself from circles of colleagues and friends that still take part in the activities of your past. This might seem obvious to some, but statistics show that a large percentage of individuals that successfully complete rehab return right back to the same people that got them to the point of addiction in the first place. In removing yourself from circles of old friends and colleagues that mean you no good, it also pays to make a note of places from your past to avoid. These places can include bars, local hangouts and haunts, and places that you used to get your fix. They can also be less obvious areas, like a certain park, or a street at a particular time of night. The key here is to avoid anywhere that may cause old, dormant triggers to flare up, or make take you back to a bad memory of addiction. Next, creating a relapse-prevention plan will help tremendously. This plan should be comprised both of things to avoid to prevent a relapse, and new activities and things to enjoy to keep your mind off what it shouldn’t be on. There is no right or wrong way to make this plan, but when finished, it should be placed somewhere where you can view it regularly, make changes if necessary, and keep track of how well you are doing. Finally, if you were prescribed any medication for any other issues you may have had during recovery, it is important that you remember to take the medication as it was prescribed. Just because you have left the recovery center does not mean that your prescribed treatment should stop!