Relapse Prevention Programs in Mesa, AZ

Addiction isn’t a disease that can be “cured.” It is a chronic condition that can be managed on a daily basis. Even if an individual has been sober for a decade, they can still struggle with the urges to return to drug and/or alcohol addiction. Drug Detox Centers Mesa offers connections to relapse prevention programs as a service to help a person stay sober for a lifetime.

Statistics of Relapse

Substance abuse addiction has a relapse rate similar to other chronic medical conditions, such as hypertension (high blood pressure) and heart disease, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. An estimated 40 to 60 percent of those who experience an addiction to drugs and/or alcohol that become sober will relapse. These numbers can vary based on the substance abused and the individual person.

Addiction is known as a chronic, relapsing disease. Unfortunately, this means that when a person becomes sober, they are likely to relapse. However, there are many ways that people in Mesa and beyond overcome these odds every day. One such way is participation in a relapse prevention program.

How Relapse Occurs

Many people are surprised to learn that relapse is a process, not a moment-in-time occurrence. When a person returns to drug and/or alcohol abuse, they can often think back to mindsets and events that contributed to their relapse.

Substance abuse experts have identified three main phases of relapse. Emotional relapse is the first. In emotional relapse, a person stops taking care of themselves as well. They may not sleep or eat as well as they were. They may stop going to meetings or attending counseling sessions. While the person isn’t necessarily thinking about using again, emotional relapse causes the person to slide into a negative way of thinking.

The second stage is mental relapse. This means a person is thinking about using again. They may start to think about times when they were using drugs as “the good times” and start to hang out with people they used to do drugs with. This can be very dangerous behavior that leads to a relapse.

Physical relapse is the third stage. During this stage, a person starts to use drugs and/or alcohol again.

Physical relapse doesn’t have to mean a full-blown return to abuse. But it does present an opportunity for a person to engage in a relapse prevention program to identify areas where they started to relapse.

Goals for Relapse Prevention Programs

Relapse prevention programs offer many valuable tools, education, and training to help a person prevent relapse. Examples of common aspects of relapse prevention program services include rehearsing situations where a person will need to say no to drugs, teaching stress management techniques to prevent emotional relapse, and creating a plan of action to prevent future relapses.

Through a relapse prevention program, a person can learn how to better take care of themselves, recognize the signs a relapse could be near, and identify and correct potentially self-destructive behaviors.

Drug Detox Centers Mesa utilizes a multidisciplinary approach to help addicts get sober and stay sober. Contact our recovery advocates at (480) 750-2471 for more information.