At Crestview Recovery in Oregon, we provide tools for our clients to succeed during and after our addiction recovery program. A relapse prevention plan outlines your triggers and ideas on how to avoid them. It also contains practical ways to overcome cravings to prevent relapse. Below, find examples of triggers and strategies to overcome them that you can use in your own plan.
What’s in a Relapse Plan?
A relapse prevention plan includes triggers, strategies to overcome them, and other elements that can help you cope with intense cravings. Your plan is personal and should reflect all the elements you need to maintain sobriety. Add any sections that may help you, such as inspirational quotes or personal affirmations. In short, do whatever it takes to make this plan your own.
Be specific. That’s the best way to stick to your relapse prevention plan. Additionally, remember what you learned in your recovery program. In our men’s rehab programs and women’s recovery programs, we give you the skills you need to cope with cravings and prevent relapse. However, the hard work comes once you leave our recovery center. So, why not make a cheat sheet while you feel confident and committed?
Daily Goals for Ongoing Recovery Program
Your road to clean living may begin in a recovery center. However, it continues every day of your life. Begin by setting personal goals you can actualize on a daily basis.
Examples of personal goals include the following:
- I want to take care of myself. I will eat better and maintain a fitness routine.
- I would like to get a job. I will take online classes to improve my interview skills.
- I will attend Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous meetings to gain support from my peers.
- I wish I had a better relationship with my family. I will work on fixing broken trust with my parents.
List of Personal Triggers
Just like your goals, make this section personal. It should contain people and events that trigger your addiction.
- Going to clubs and bars with my friends
- Hanging out at my cousin’s house and drinking
- Financial issues such as not being able to pay my rent
- Attending house parties where they serve alcohol
- Fighting with my spouse
Coping With Triggers
Your relapse prevention plan may change on a daily basis. Just as you can add additional triggers, you should include a section where you can list strategies for resisting cravings. Some clients include techniques they learned in our mindfulness meditation therapy. Others focus on practical goals and strategies such as those learned in the following addiction treatment programs:
- Residential addiction treatment
- Intensive outpatient addiction treatment
- Sober living program
- Medical detox
You can also include self-care plans in this section, including specific plans for staying healthy and strong.
Consequences and Accountability
When you write things down, they take on a life of their own. Use this to your advantage.
Here are examples of entries for your consequences an accountability section:
- If I use drugs once, I will continue to use them every day and lose the progress I have made
- I am grateful for my sober friends and support system.
- My family depends on my income for financial well-being. I need to stay sober to make a living.
- This plan is more than say something written down on paper. I promised myself to stay clean and live a life of recovery.
- I deserve a sober life and the hope and promise of tomorrow.
Recovery Center in Oregon
At Crestview Recovery, we offer inpatient addiction treatment and outpatient options for care. If you reside in the Pacific Northwest, consider coming to our recovery center to build the skills you need to have the life you deserve. Creating a relapse prevention plan gets you one step closer to living that life every day. Contact us at 866.262.0531 for more information on getting started.
