Overcoming addiction is the first step for many in a lifelong management journey of remission. Addiction is an ever-present disease that requires daily maintenance to keep at bay. While you cannot help your genetic disposition, you can take active steps to reduce the influence of addiction in your life. Addiction management can be broken down into two main categories that you’ll want to stay aware of to prevent relapse. These categories are cravings and emotional triggers. You may desire to receive the relief that drugs provided you out of want or need, and these urges can be compelling.
Once you have safely detoxed, you can learn to manage urges in order to get on with your life. Thankfully, there are skills and outlets for support that you can begin implementing to maintain your recovery. If you’ve recently completed a detox program or are looking for additional support on preventing relapse,
Read on for five essential tips that can make a big difference in your ongoing drug recovery.
Table of Contents
1. Learn Emotional Regulation
Emotional relapse is a possibility if you don’t have the tools to manage your stress. An inability to process and respond effectively to difficult emotions can easily lead someone to relapse. One of the reasons that a critical aftercare suggestion following drug and addiction recovery is to engage in therapy, is so you can learn to manage your feelings and do more than detox.
By learning the skills you need to stay calm and stable, you can avoid relapse and seek out beneficial forms of self-help that nurture your well being instead. Be aware of the signs indicative of your vulnerability towards relapse.
If you find yourself fantasizing about drugs and alcohol, considering the idea of relapse, or romanticizing your addiction, these are red flags that it’s time to integrate the tools you’ve learned to manage these feelings and to get additional help to maintain your drug recovery.
2. Avoid Triggering Environments
There is no shame in staying away from the places that fuel your addiction. If you were previously struggling with alcohol, avoiding bars and parties with alcohol may be critical, particularly in the early stages of your drug recovery. It is essential to gauge your emotional state to decide how vulnerable you may be should you find yourself in these environments.
You might ask friends and family to extend their awareness of your drug recovery by not ordering alcohol when they are around you at get-togethers. If you are staying clear of triggering environments, don’t be surprised if your mind begins to look for new outlets to partake in compulsive behavior. It may be wise to avoid additional areas where addiction can manifest, such as shopping centers (reckless spending), casinos, (compulsive gambling), or delivery service apps (binge-eating).
Engage in healthy distractions to keep yourself preoccupied until these urges pass. The more you practice, the more chances your brain has to train itself to choose healthy alternatives when cravings strike.
3. Get Daily Exercise For Drug Recovery
Exercise not only floods your body with feel-good chemicals that can help reduce your cravings, but it also puts your mind and body in a health-conscious state. The more you commit to exercising, the more likely that you’ll want to continue these habits and maintain drug recovery because you will physically feel healthier.
4. Find Healthy Replacements
For some people, finding healthy replacements for harmful substances and alcohol is helpful to mimic relief without the destructive consequences. For example, an alcoholic in remission might sip on a ginger beer or sparkling water to keep something on hand throughout the day. The use of menthol-based hair care products might provide relief for those who have abused painkillers.
It’s about finding what works for you. You might also consider finding healthy outlets for aggression and stress, such as going to rage rooms, batting cages, or other recreational places to blow off steam.
5. Get Social Support
Talk to others who have struggled with addiction in the past. Attend group meetings regularly to maintain your sobriety and connect with others who share your struggle. You will feel greater accountability with the support and consistency of speaking with others in your shoes. Depending on your preferences, you can find support groups for addiction online or in person.
You might also consider listening to podcasts or reading books about others who have battled addiction to relate and learn their strategies to maintain their drug recovery. Give yourself the ability to see that you are not alone in your drug recovery so that you can push through alongside everyone else in your position.
Continue on The Recovery Path
Preventing a drug relapse is about the daily steps you take to maintain your sobriety. Consider the ideas above as you work to continue on the path of drug recovery. If ever you fully decide to counter and battle this addiction, we recommend you to seek help from a professional that offer medication-assisted treatment since they also offer effective behavioral therapies and counseling.
