You must have felt better after gathering the courage to acknowledge that alcoholism was becoming a deeper problem in your life and found help to eliminate the addiction. Unfortunately, a feeling of hopelessness crops up when, along the way, you deviate from the path to recovery.
An alcohol recovery program is an immediate instinct after discovering that you can no longer resist the urge to drink and moderate the intake. Unfortunately, going to rehab does not always lead to quick and permanent riddance from the problem. The relapse rate for those who enter recovery programs from alcohol and even drugs are high. It is essential to get into self-reflection to determine the triggers of your relapse and prevent a recurrence. Below are frequent reasons for relapse.
Stress and Self-Pity
Stress is a top trigger of addiction relapse. Stress that triggers an urge to resume taking harmful amounts of alcohol is from negative situations and the positive. Some of the scenarios that cause change that turns to stress because of difficulty in dealing with the matter include:
- Financial challenges
- Demanding tasks after a promotion or new job
- A new or ending relationship
- Loss of a loved one
Stress increases vulnerability to relapse because you reach for alcohol thinking it will help you cope with the overwhelming changes. It is crucial to shelf big changes in early changes of recovery. Discuss stressful situations with an addiction counselor, therapist, or close friends for solutions.
We all feel bad about ourselves at some point, but it becomes harmful when self-pity becomes an obsession. Self-pity creates room to justify taking a drink one more time when you focus too much on the past about things like:
- Situations that went wrong
- Things we should blame on other people
- Bad circumstances or mistreatment
Focus on the future instead of the negative past helps to eliminate self-blame and drowning hopelessness with alcohol.
Overconfidence and Denial
Self-confidence works wonders when recovering from addiction. However, there is a risk of confidence that affects the capacity to identify and stay within boundaries. Overconfidence in managing alcohol develops an assumption that you are in complete control of alcoholism and can take a small amount without damage. It distorts judgment that you start indulging in more alcohol with time until a relapse.
Denial causes alcoholics to relapse because they live a lie. A failure to face the truth that you are recovering from a disease of excess drinking means you will not own up mistakes. Denial also means that you will not take responsibility for too much drinking and the steps to fight addiction, so taking alcohol when recovering may not seem a mistake. Facing the truth of addiction is painful but helps in recovery.
Peer Pressure and Boredom
The chances are that you sank into alcoholism because your acquaintances are heavy drinkers. Spending time around the same friends who imbibe alcohol while in recovery is likely to cause a relapse. Enjoying social gatherings with friends who enjoy drinking should be something to avoid until recovery. You may have made the mistake of letting people who drink surround you, assuming you will resist the urge to drink, forgetting recovery is a journey. Avoiding peer pressure also means not going to when the people you know are likely to be drinking, like night parties, clubs, bars, and liquor clubs. Drinking might not be an intention when you visit places with alcohol but small things that cause a relapse because they take the mind back to drinking. They include:
- Popping bottles
- Clinking glasses
- Opening cans
Boredom might top the list of relapse causes among many people in their early recovery. The time before the recovery journey went to getting and drinking alcohol and recovering from the after-effects. You are likely to get much time when you start making the sobriety journey. You are a bad company to yourself when alone but bored or feeling that your friends are isolating you. Boredom creates an urge to try a little drink, and with time it becomes a habit. You may also get the temptation to find drinking friends, and they will entice drinking. Spend extra time engaging in things that eliminate boredom in a manner that supports recovery and add value to life, such as:
- Going to recovery-related therapy
- Visiting support groups
- Exercising
- Trying new activities and hobbies
Alcoholic relapse is a reality, but that should not scare you from enrolling in programs that help with recovery. Many people recover from alcoholism. We are ready to help you recover from alcohol addiction first time or after a relapse. Call us now on 844-903-2111.
