The biggest worry for most people entering rehab treatment is how to avoid relapse. But living after addiction does not need to feel as stressful as you think. Through a quality relapse prevention plan, you forge a clear path to living after addiction. So where do you get one of these plans and how does it work?
About Your Relapse Prevention Plan
One of your biggest goals in rehab therapy is creating your own relapse prevention plan. Many people assume this work starts toward the end of rehab. But it actually begins as you first walk into your treatment center’s doors. Whatever type of treatment you seek, ask about relapse prevention and the program meets those needs.
Programs offering planning for relapse prevention include:
- Detox programs
- Rehab treatment
- Addiction aftercare programs for women
- Addiction aftercare programs for men
- IOP and PHP programs
- Outpatient rehab treatment
You are the key element in your effective plan building. Because this plan centers on you and maintaining your sobriety, you create it with your therapist’s help. So no relapse prevention provides a one-size-fits-all approach. Instead, the program is highly customized to meet your unique needs.
How a Plan for Relapse Prevention Works
According to the American Society of Addiction Medicine, your relapse prevention must meet your individual needs. So this medical society also states that your planning process and treatment must also customize to you.
Your plan considers your relationship with your drugs or alcohol and past attempts to quit. Any hurdles you suffer in recovery change how your plan develops. In other words, you go with what works for you and avoid what does not work. You learn from missteps and mistakes, so no actual “failures” take place in recovery.
Your plan works by looking at your risks for using drugs or alcohol. These triggers and temptations lead you down the wrong path that ends with substance abuse. So you use your plan and learned coping skills from rehab treatment to stop triggers and temptations in their tracks. Relapse prevention largely comes down to stress reduction and building the coping skills you need for stability and harmony in your daily life.
Where to Build Your Relapse Prevention Plan
Building your plan for relapse prevention takes place in rehab treatment programs, as said before. The type of rehab program matters less than ensuring that treatment provides therapies and planning you need for a brighter future. So look for a program that meets your immediate needs to stay off drugs or alcohol in treatment, while building a solid foundation for a sober future.
A relapse prevention plan is not something to worry about as you enter rehab. Simply find the right program for your unique interests and needs and this planning will follow. A good rehab helps you learn how to prevent relapse, while also teaching you how to use learned skills to adjust your plan as needed. You become your own expert and advocate in plan building, for your own brighter future.