Three Stages of Relapse

Relapse is when an addict chooses to abstain from drinking from alcoholism or substance abuse and suddenly gets back to the old habits. Relapses are usually brought back on by triggers. These triggers are classified into three types; emotional, environmental and exposure. Old memories, friends, events, older relationships and locations, seeing or feeling an object of addiction, social pressure are potential triggers for a relapse. Negative emotions such as shame, guilt, fear, anxiety, pain, loneliness, etc. often are some of the main triggers of relapse. Also, the positive urges to have fun or celebrate could also trigger a relapse. During the process of relapse, the addict conveniently justifies his reason to get back to his/her old habits.

There are three stages of relapse:

Stage I: Emotional relapse

Emotional relapse is a stage when you start to experience negative emotions that are hard to handle. You embark on self-destructive behaviour that may undermine and jeopardize your process to your continued recovery. Emotional relapse being the earliest stage, you might not even have thought about drinking or going back to substance abuse.

Intolerance, mood swings, defensiveness, anger and anxiety are a few signs of emotional relapse. The cognitive function of the brain gets impaired due to the poor response of the nervous system caused by severe stress. You generally effuse to co-operate with others and a fear about new sober life creep up in your mind. Also, feelings of resentment and absence of control over your feelings are a major sign of emotional relapse.

These negative emotions cause disrupted sleep patterns, emotional eating, social isolation and severe mood swings in a few people. At this stage you might not consider going back to your old habits, but this stage if not treated paves way to mental relapse which is hard to treat. Self-awareness, self-care and nutritious intake coupled with nurturing positive thoughts and trusting the process can help you get back on track to recovery.

Stage II: Mental Relapse

Mental relapse is the second stage of relapsing. The signs of Mental relapse include thinking about using substance, loss of interest in job or any activity for that matter, thinking about people with whom you used to use substance and spending time with such individuals, irregular eating patterns, shortage of sleep and dishonesty. If you have recently started about substance use and going back to your older habits, you might have already experienced the above-mentioned negative emotions and left them undressed. Hence you landed up in this second stage of relapsing. Here the urge to have liquor or drugs is strong and pushes you back to the same miserable life if you yield to your temptations.

Understanding that the process of recovery takes a long time, it is better to take the help of your support groups when you feel back the cravings you earlier had. Knowing that the urge to relapse is part of recovery process and observing your triggers and choosing to not act upon them is the key. At stage two you still need not fear because there is still a good hope for recovery. Bargaining is one significant sign of a mental relapse where you find excuses to make it seem ok to drink or use substance. Examples are family holidays, occasions to celebrate etc.

Some tips to overcome mental relapse are:

• Actively engaging yourself with your favourite hobby.
• Letting the thoughts come and go and choosing not to act upon them. This is possible with daily practice of meditation.
• Spending quality time with friends and family.
• Finding purpose in life etc.
• Imagining the consequences of addiction.
• Waiting for 30 minutes before you act upon your craving.

Stage III: Physical Relapse

When a person doesn’t take the time to acknowledge and address the symptoms from emotional and mental relapse, it doesn’t take long to lead down the path to physical relapse. This includes the act of drinking alcohol or using other drugs. The key is to reach out for help if you find yourself in physical relapse immediately in order to stop the vicious cycle of addiction before it is too late. This is a stage where there is very less you could do to help yourself and seeking help is necessary.

GET HELP NOW!

If you recognise the early warning signs of emotional or mental relapse and understand the symptoms and preventative strategies to turn your path around, you’ll be able to catch yourself before it’s too late. Help is out there, whether you’ve reached physical relapse or not. If you find yourself in any of the 3 stages of relapse, you are encouraged to seek help by talking to a dedicated treatment provider today. There are many support groups and treatment centres available to assist you on getting back on track.