How to avoid Relapses in Addictions?

An addiction is a disorder that is based on the impossibility of stopping impulsive behaviors, even if they are contrary to the will of the person who executes them. It is said that it is a disorder that affects both psychological and biological levels, since it brings a series of negative consequences for health in both areas.

The incidence of addiction in a person's life is transversal. Therefore, in a recovery process there is a possibility that people experience a relapse. In this article we will see what are the effects of addiction and how to avoid relapses in addictions in a safe way.

How does an addiction affect a person's life?

In the first place, dependence on a substance or activity produces an intense need and dependence due to the satisfaction that it originates in the person; which triggers a series of thoughts and behaviors in the addict that will star in the different areas of her life. Addiction reduces social relationships, routine activities, working life and, ultimately, mental health. On the other hand, the effects also affect a biological level, since that "pleasure" that the person experiences when carrying out the behavior problem implies a repeated activation of the reward systems, which will mean a reinforcement to the repetition of that conduct. And, of course, many of the substances that people become addicted to have negative effects of their own.

Definitely, the psychological and the biological feed back to generate a loop from which the addict has difficulty getting out. If you try to break this loop abruptly, you may experience high levels of anxiety and fall back into addictive habits. For that reason, let's see how to avoid relapses in addictions safely.

• Related article: "Drug withdrawal syndrome: its types and symptoms"

Strategies to avoid relapses in addictions

Relapses involve "setbacks" that occur during a process of behavior change, such as progress toward initiating or maintaining some specific goal (for example, sustaining abstinence from alcohol). The idea of ​​going backwards, however, could be questioned as the recovery process from an addiction is dynamic and as such is always subject to ups and downs. A relapse does not mean that the treatment has failed.

Living with an addiction can be difficult as the person is trying to change deep-seated behaviors, so it is important to emphasize empathy during this process; and although an addiction is not curable, can be treated to still build a full and meaningful life. These are some strategies in pursuit of it.

Accompaniment by a team of health professionals

Firstly, the best way to avoid a relapse into problem behaviors typical of a addiction is the accompaniment by a team of health professionals who attend to the particularity of each case. The treatments, likewise, are different according to the substance or activity to which one is addicted and they question more than one professional (to mention just a couple, psychiatrists and psychologists), so an addiction requires an approach interdisciplinary. For example, In drug addictions, a pharmacological treatment is usually combined with psychological therapy., generally of a cognitive-behavioral type.

Avoiding a relapse implies sustaining a new behavior over time, different from old consumption habits. However, in this task the person will probably experience anxiety, fear, insomnia, among other symptoms. It is essential to have a team behind that operates as a support network and support when these difficulties arise.

• You may be interested in: "How to detoxify a Drug Addict?"

Redefine the word "fun"

When a person who is recovering from an addiction faces complex moments during the psychological treatment, it is likely—according to clinical experience—that it tends to embellish your past. And it is that under stressful situations it is common to have thoughts like "I knew I couldn't handle this"; or that "recovery is very hard work, instead, using was fun." It is important to redefine this idea, since having positive expectations regarding the consequences of consumption is a risk factor which could imply a relapse.

What underlies these phrases is an underestimation of the consequences of addiction. That is, the person remembers the addiction as an easy and enjoyable moment; because we remember that perhaps, for him or her, it is very probable that consuming has been a certain share of fun (momentary, of course). However, through these statements he is not weighing the negative consequences of addiction in the couple, at work, in the family, with friends; nor the high share of suffering that comes from not being able to abandon a problematic behavior. Yes, treatment can be very difficult, but one of the strategies to avoid relapses in addictions implies that the person realizes that prolonged consumption is always worse.

• Related article: "These are the 8 dangers of self-medicating"

Have a support network

To avoid falling back into addictions, it is essential that the person has a network of contacts that serve as emotional support. As we have emphasized in this article, recovery brings with it the possibility of feeling emotionally unstable and vulnerable. One of the challenges of recovery is learning that experiencing discomfort will be part of the process and that this does not imply that the treatment is failing or that you are doing something wrong.

In fact, some authors have emphasized that ultimately learning to stay with our emotions and unpleasant thoughts is a challenge that all people must assume, even those who do not present a addiction. For their part, those who are recovering may mistakenly assume that only they feel anxious or sad, arriving on many occasions to believe that this experience is not common to all humans and, therefore, to feel alone. Consequently, having an emotional support network is key to avoiding a relapse.

Reduce accessibility: review of links and risky situations

Finally, something that many teams, groups or institutional groups that work with addictions point out is that during treatment it is better to stay away, at least temporarily, from old friends who are immersed in drug habits that the person in recovery tries to eradicate. The research indicates that remaining in the social ties gathered around consumption —called in many countries colloquially as the “bad meeting”— is a predictor of relapse.

In line with this, it will also be important (at least at the beginning of treatment) to avoid risky situations in which the problem behavior would be easy to perform. For example, a person who is just beginning the recovery process from an alcohol addiction might avoid going to a party where everyone will be drinking. Of course, you will eventually acquire the skills to expose yourself to events in which the substance in issue is present, always with the accompaniment of its support network and a team of professionals behind.