If there is one thing you learn in alcohol rehab, it’s that alcohol relapse is not a sudden event. Instead, relapse creeps up on you and passes through several phases before you consider picking up a drink. However, treatment helps you learn how to recognize early signs of potential relapse, so you can address them early. This is a very important part of your recovery and something you must take seriously.
Common Causes of Alcohol Relapse
There are many reasons for alcohol relapse after alcohol addiction treatment. For example, some key triggers include withdrawal symptoms, poor self care, people with whom you engage, places you go, and things that remind you of using. Uncomfortable emotions, relationships, isolation, and your own ego also trigger you into alcohol relapse. These triggers of relapse affect you quietly at first. For example, maybe you start going back to places where you used to drink. The sights smells and sounds trigger memories of your drinking. However, perhaps you stop taking good care of yourself, such as not keeping up with a daily schedule. This can trigger a relapse into motion, too.
Stages of Alcohol Relapse
Relapse on alcohol or drugs follow the same stages. This is a process, as said before, not one single event of relapse. Moreover, the earliest signs of trouble occur weeks ahead of your actual use of your substances. Therefore, you must know these signs and how to stop them, before your alcohol or drugs stop your recovery. The three stages of relapse are emotional, physical, and mental. Furthermore, emotional relapse occurs when your behaviors and emotions create the potential for a return to drinking. Signs of this stage include anxiety, anger, mood swings, isolation, not attending meetings or support groups, eating poorly, and not sleeping well. Mental relapse is like a war inside of yourself. You start thinking about drinking, with part of you wanting to while the other part wants sobriety. Specifically, this stage involves thoughts of how to drink without anyone knowing, promising yourself “just one” drink, and seeing yourself drinking in your mind. Signs of mental relapse include memories of drinking, glamorizing past alcohol abuse, and lying. With alcohol relapse, you can lose control completely in a matter of days. The third stage of relapse is a physical relapse. This is the most troublesome stage because here you leave your recovery. Physical relapse is going to get a drink after all this time sober. You need to catch yourself before relapse reaches this point, or you find yourself needing to return to recovery. In fact, sometimes the physical relapse spins out of control and is hard to break. An important thing to remember is that recovery is work, so you cannot let your guard down, or you risk alcohol relapse. This relapse occurs at any time in recovery, even decades after going through a rehab treatment program. However, relapse is not a failure. It’s simply a wake-up call that you need to get back to your sobriety basics.
Learning the Right Skills to Prevent Relapse
Preventing relapse starts in your substance abuse programs. At Crest View Recovery Center, your individual treatment plan focuses heavily on keeping your recovery safe and strong. For example, programs of Crest View Recovery Center include:
- Rehab treatment and IOP program
- Evidence-based therapies
- Behavioral therapy, CBT, and DBT
- Life skills and coping skills in reality therapy
- Relapse prevention
- Dual diagnosis treatment
- Individual, family, and group therapy
An important part of rehab is learning how to prevent alcohol relapse. Crest View Recovery Center provides this education and practice, so you leave rehab ready to meet your challenges head on. Therefore, call Crest View Recovery Center now at 866-327-2505 to learn about CVRC’s programs.
