Relapse Prevention — Strategies For Staying Away From The Brink

By August 16, 2016Uncategorized

Getting sober or clean is hard, but for some people, staying on the path of recovery can be even more challenging. Luckily, there are several strategies you can use to make it easier.

Building a life of long-term recovery often begins with a solid drug or alcohol rehab program. At Clean Path Behavioral Health, we offer many different treatment options to help you kick your addiction — and to explore the emotional and psychological factors that may have fed into it.

Working closely with our experienced and caring staff as recovery continues will help you stay focused on your goal, as you develop new tools to deal with triggers and other temptations.

Attending twelve step meetings and working a program with a trusted sponsor is another key to keeping your sobriety strong.

But outside of working a program, there are a few very simple ways to stay on track.

First, keep yourself centered and healthy: in your body, mind, and soul. Nutrition and exercise are an important aspect of a life in recovery, and our staff can give you tips about how to make a plan that works for you. Most importantly, make sure you’re eating enough and getting enough sleep.

Try to keep your stress levels low with meditation, journaling, and fun leisure activities.

And don’t be afraid to try new things! It’s important to build a life in sobriety that you love even more than the life you lived while using.

Healthy relationships with sober friends are an essential safety net — especially if all of the strategies above don’t work, and you find yourself on the verge of a slip.

If that happens, the best thing to do is pick up a phone — instead of picking up a drug or a drink. Call your sponsor, call a friend, call anyone who might be able to serve as a lifeline. And if they don’t pick up, go to a meeting.

Overall, just remember: Although relapse is normal in recovery, it is absolutely not mandatory!

For more on how to build a successful relapse prevention strategy, contact us at Clean Path Behavioral Health.