Addiction Recovery Obstacles

Recognizing addiction recovery obstacles gives a person the best chance at recovery. Knowledge is power. It’s usually the unexpected in recovery that causes relapse. Complacency and ignorance are dangerous. One of the major benefits of a support group in recovery is to learn from the experiences of others. In every group there are people who didn’t deal with addiction recovery obstacles and relapsed. A person new in recovery can learn from the experiences of others without having to actually relapse. As they say in Alcoholics Anonymous — it’s easier to stay in recovery than to leave and try to come back. It takes some people years to get back into recovery and many never make it back.

I suggest to all recovering addicts that they study what’s been written on relapse prevention. You’ll learn what obstacles to expect in recovery, how to recognize them, how to deal with them and how to make it past the obstacle without drinking or using. Here’s an excerpt from an article with some good information for starters:

The first six months of recovery is when a large percentage of relapses occur—studies demonstrate that between 66% to 80% of relapses occur in the first 6 months after treatment.¹ Relapses can be motivated or influenced by changes made previously to the brain during active drug use, or by the experience of uncomfortable feelings, pain, stress, or a combination of these factors. With this in mind, creating a solid drug relapse-prevention plan before you leave inpatient treatment is a great proactive step to protect your sobriety.

Terence Gorski has probably done the most comprehensive work on relapse prevention. Here is a link to his blog. If you read his literature, you’ll discover relapse prevention worksheets and ways to develop comprehensive relapse prevention plans. Those who plan to avoid relapse usually do avoid relapse and maintain a healthy recovery. Relapse happens, but it doesn’t have to happen. Addiction recovery obstacles can be headed off or overcome, and each time a person overcomes an obstacle they become stronger in recovery.