10 Tips to Avoid Drug Relapse After Recovery

Whether you are in recovery or out of rehab for a while, you will be at risk of relapse. Even if you hadn’t had a substance for 10 years, you would still be at risk of relapse, and that’s okay, but how much of risk you are at is what matters the most. If you are in recovery or just fresh out of rehab, you are at the highest risk, but as you move on with time, the risks begin to subside. But what causes the relapse? And what can you do to avoid a drug relapse, especially after your recovery? Today, we will answer both of these questions.

What Causes a Relapse?

Drug addiction is a chronic and relapsing disease, and it has no cure, just like there’s no cure for hypertension and asthma. No pills, medications, or surgery can turn an addict into a non-addict, which doesn’t work like that. Like many other chronic diseases, it is managed and controlled with treatment programs that include AA meetings, therapy, and much more. Addiction to drugs changes one’s brain psychology and creates a compulsion to use again. This compulsive need is very hard to resist, and not many people can, which is precisely what causes a relapse. The more one relapses after recovery, the harder it will be to resist the compulsive need again, and the cycle continues. As you already know, there’s no cure, and only through proper care, rehab, and therapy can you ever hope to beat the addiction. But if you need a recommendation for rehab, Eagle Recovery is one of the best recovery centers in California. They have the best substance abuse treatment facility and easily one of the best recovery centers in Van Nuys.

Top 10 Tips to Avoid Drug Relapse After Recovery

• Do The Heavy Lifting

People always talk about getting fit and that they would do this or that and get their body back in shape. But only a very few do. So, what happens? Well, talking about getting fit doesn’t get you fit. One has to do work and put in their efforts to make it work. The only way to make it work is to do the work, do the heavy lifting. Now, what does it have to do with addiction and recovery? Well, everything. You have to follow through with the treatment program. Go to the meetings, go to the therapy, NA, AA, or anything needed for treatment to work. Can’t skip on anything. Only through hard work can you hope to beat your addiction.

• See Through the Entire Treatment Program

Many people tend to skip meetings after the first day or not join at all. As we discussed, you have to do the heavy lifting. The addiction recovery treatment programs include various meetings and therapy, and there’s a reason they are included, and that’s because they have been proven to work. But it can only work if you go to the meetings and therapies.

• Follow Your Aftercare Plan

Your counselor will provide you with an aftercare plan towards the end of your treatment program. The aftercare plan is all about support once your treatment ends. You may graduate from the treatment program and think you are safe, but an aftercare plan may go a long you to make sure you don’t relapse, especially after you have a bad day.

• Keep in Touch With Your Support Network

You could be completely clean and free from drugs for a year, but one bad day at work or when you feel down could be the one that sends you back to the road to drugs. Keeping in touch with your support group lets them check now and then about how you are doing and can be their support when they feel down.

• Keep Your Therapy

Individual therapy allows you to discuss things that are bothering you. You can talk to a therapist about anything, even things that you can’t in meetings or things that are too intimate. A therapist may also help you clear any doubt or confusion you may have.

• Attend the 12-step Meetings or Any Other Alternative Meetings Recommended To You

The 12-step meetings or any other alternative meetings allow you to talk to people in the same boat as you and who have struggled or are still struggling. Being in a company of people in similar situations will help you open up about your issues and problems without much hesitation.

• Discover Some New Hobbies or Get in Touch With Your Old Ones

Staying cooped up in a room or sulking is not healthy and a potential risk that can send you back to drug abuse and destroy all the hard work you managed to achieve. Go out, get in touch with your family or old friends. If you used to play sports, join again or pick some of your old hobbies that you once did.

• Keep Moving On

The key to beating addiction is to move on. Staying on the same old lifestyle may remind you of your issues and troubles. Join the gym, work out and get back in shape. A healthy mind leads to a healthy mind and lifestyle. The key is to keep yourself active and busy.

• Try Writing

You have been keeping yourself busy to keep your mind away from drugs as much as possible, and that’s excellent progress. Why not write about it? Take a journal, pick up a pen and start writing. You can write anything you want, but starting with how you started the day is a great way to start.

• It’s Okay To Ask For Help

You may mess something up, or maybe you are just feeling down, but you can always ask for help. It’s okay to ask for help, and no one will judge you, whether that’s your counselor or your support group.

Wrapping Up

While these ten tips will provide you with a rock-solid guide to avoiding relapse, remember it’s okay to ask for help if you mess up. If you think you are addicted to alcohol, you most likely are. You cannot help yourself in this condition, and the only way to overcome your addiction is to seek treatment and enroll in a drug rehab center in Van Nuys, CA at reputable alcohol rehab institutions such as Eagle Recovery, which comes highly recommended. They assist a patient in dealing with the underlying cause of addiction as well as all of their alcohol addiction symptoms, including alcohol withdrawal. Call us now to get help:   (888) 512-1378