If you are back from drug or alcohol rehab treatment programs it is important for you to know how to avoid a relapse. There are very few people who do not relapse after rehab; most others do. The article lists a few steps which you can take to avoid a relapse.

Drugs and alcohol rehab is an ongoing process, and completing a treatment program is only the first step towards complete recovery. Very few people never relapse after rehab; most others don’t have that same experience. 

If you are back from a drug treatment program you need to know how to avoid a relapse.

Here are 5 best practices to avoid relapse after recovery:

1. Avoid Triggering Situations

A host of things can act as a trigger. For example:

• Withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety, nausea, physical weakness, mood swings, poor sleep
• Poor self-care leading to stress, and eating and sleeping disorders
• People, places, and things that remind you of your old habits like friends who are addicted, bars, clubs, certain areas of a college campus, etc. 
• Uncomfortable emotions like hunger, loneliness, exhaustion, anger, etc.  
• Relationships and sex 
• Isolation 

It becomes important to avoid all these triggers, especially in the early stages of recovery when temptations are often strong.

2. Get Rid Of Toxic People

Once you’ve decided to give up on drugs or alcohol, you need to change your day to day life. The first step in this direction would be to get rid of the toxic people in your life. Spending time with people who are addicted is not going to help and you may not succeed in giving up on addiction. 

Surround yourself with people who would support you to live a substance-free lifestyle. Whenever you have an urge to use, call a friend or someone in recovery. Just talking to them about your urge going through would do the magic.

You will see that the minute you start to talk about your feelings your urges begin to disappear. 

3. Stay In Therapy

It is important to continue with your therapy and attend group meetings for at least a year or two after getting sober. This will provide you the much needed coping mechanisms to maintain sobriety.

4. Do Not Give Up Your Medicines

Psychological disorders like anxiety, depression, anger, mood swings, etc are major factors leading to the use of drugs and alcohol. Most rehab programs prescribe medicines to control the symptoms of these diseases.  However, just a disappearance of symptoms does not mean that you are cured. So, continue taking your medicines throughout the recovery period as suggested by your therapist at the drug rehabilitation center.

5. Practice self-care

The most important thing that you can do to prevent relapse is to take good care of yourself. Most people take to addiction as a way to escape or relax. You relapse when you don’t take care of yourself and create situations that are mentally and emotionally draining which makes you want to escape.

For example, if you don’t take care of your eating and sleep habits, you may feel tired and try to escape. But if you take care to eat nutritious food and sleep properly you can avoid exhaustion, urge and consequent relapse.