When an individual decides to enter rehab, he or she is making a lifelong commitment to maintain sobriety. Once in rehab, substance abusers learn that recovery isn’t a destination, but a life-long journey, one that they must learn to navigate to avoid the danger of a relapse.

The Relapse Process

The warning signs of a return to addiction can be better understood in the context of a relapse process, which usually begins inside the individual’s mind long before they actually relapse:

The individual stops making progress in recovery, which can happen they are faced with a challenge they feel unable or unwilling to deal with….

They then try to ignore the signs that they have stopped making progress…

The lack of progress begins to make life uncomfortable; the individual turns to poor coping mechanisms to deal with this…the frustration and internal discomfort continue to bubble away internally…

A trigger event provides the opportunity for this internal discomfort to rise to the surface.

“Keep Coming Back”

We have a saying in meetings, “Keep coming back.” This expression means a lot of different things to different people. To the newcomer it means, keep coming back to meetings. To some it’s a derogatory comment, meaning you’re in need of more meetings. To others it means you’re always welcome to the fellowship. In AA and NA, relapse is not a requirement; it is however, a reality.

We Have to Do it For Ourselves

The short answer to the question, “Is there hope for the chronic relapser?” is “yes!” As long as you are above ground, there’s hope. When the addict/alcoholic comes to recovery for the first time, they do so for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it’s to keep the family together, or the job or a “nudge from the judge.” Experience has shown that no matter what the reason we come to the rooms, only when we realize that we have to do it for ourselves, do we stay.

Non-stop Addiction Spanned for Decades

It was the first time in years that we had hope. It had been a rocky four weeks since my brother-in-law got out of jail on drug-related theft charges. And, for the first time, it was him who suggested that he needed help to combat a non-stop addiction that has now spanned decades.

He checked himself into a highly respected recovery center in New York. Cautiously, we were feeling optimistic; he seemingly was embracing the program and following a few weeks of treatment, they set him up in halfway house. It had strict rules, oversight, mandatory drug testing and of course, a zero tolerance policy regarding drug use. In addition to a warm bed and a safe room over his head, counselors worked with him to help find a skill he could apply to a steady job, or even better, a career.