Are you falling victim to any of these relapse symptoms? Find out if you are and what to do about it by reading further.
Many people in addiction recovery relapse. Quite often the relapse symptoms are identifiable before returning to drug or alcohol use.
There are many, many signs and symptoms of relapse. The key is being knowledgeable about enough of them to be able to identify them and act on them before disaster strikes. A general rule is that if you are feeling ‘restless, irritable or discontent’, that is a danger signal.
We need to get a bit more specific. Here are 5 common relapse warning signs and what to do about them:
1. Exhaustion – Becoming worn to the bone can interfere with making good decisions and being able to prioritize the importance of tasks and goals. Sometimes there is an urge to do too much too quickly. Becoming exhausted can also occur if you are not eating or sleeping well.
What to do - The first thing is to take care of your body, plan to get enough sleep and eat a proper diet, take a multi-vitamin. There is an old saying ‘bring the body and the mind will follow’. Slow down. Prioritize. Ask yourself does this have to be done right now?
2. Impatience – A prominent feature in people with addiction is that desire for instant gratification, the need for things to happen right now. There is a tendency to try and force things to happen according to our timeline, which is often an unrealistic one. There can also be frustration of you have high expectations of others and they don’t seem to be moving fast enough.
What to do – A good start is to lighten up on your self a bit. While a few things in life require a sense of urgency, certainly not everything does. Recognize that the only thing you can really control is yourself, in the present moment. Other people, or events not moving the way you want can lead to resentments.
3. Complacency- Attention, danger, warning, stop! Do I have your attention? I believe this is the most deadly relapse symptom of them all. It is also the sneakiest and hardest to identify. Why? Because it is characterized by a lack of action and not paying attention. Believing the problem is gone because ‘I don’t even think about using anymore’ is skating on thin ice. The natural tendency is to let up when things are going well; that is a setup for failure. When other things in life become more important than sobriety, relapse is just around the corner.
What to do - It is important to weave relapse prevention tactics into your daily life. Keep your awareness level high. One reason people still attend 12 step meetings years into recovery is to be reminded of the dangers of relapse and continue their personal growth. Daily prayer or meditation can be helpful. Rather than not thinking about using, it is much more powerful to say each day in the morning ‘I will not use’, and then go to bed each night and realize that you accomplished the one thing you have to do perfectly, not use.
And now it might be a good idea to suggest that the whole concept of relapse prevention revolves around being aware of as many danger signs and having a plan to deal with them.
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