Addiction recovery is filled with many ups and downs. Just because you overcame your addiction and achieved sobriety doesn’t mean you’ll never face cravings or urges to abuse drugs or alcohol again. In fact, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, around 40-60% of people who are treated for substance use disorders relapse. Fortunately, coping with cravings in recovery and beyond doesn’t have to be complicated. Keep reading to learn more about how you can effectively cope with cravings to maintain your sobriety.
Maui Recovery is a luxury drug rehab in Maui, Hawaii that’s committed to helping as many clients as possible achieve lasting recovery. From marijuana addiction treatment options to depression treatment in Hawaii, we offer a range of addiction and mental health treatment programs to help you break free of addiction once and for all.
Contact us today to learn more about how we can best support your recovery journey.
5 Strategies for Coping with Cravings in Recovery
To maintain life-long sobriety, it’s important to know how to resist cravings, triggers, or urges to abuse drugs or alcohol that can jeopardize your sobriety journey. Below are several strategies for coping with cravings in recovery you can use to help you maintain lifelong sobriety.
- Identify and Avoid Triggers
When it comes to coping with cravings in recovery and beyond, it’s important to identify and avoid triggers that may bring about cravings in the first place. While avoiding triggers entirely is impossible, you can significantly reduce your cravings and urges to abuse drugs or alcohol by acknowledging your triggers and doing everything you can to avoid them. For instance, if you are a recovering alcoholic, spending time at bars where drinking is very prevalent can bring up cravings to abuse alcohol again. Therefore, identify these triggers early in recovery so you are aware of them moving forward.
- Practice Healthy Coping Strategies
Sometimes no matter what you do you’ll still experience cravings to abuse drugs or alcohol. This is why practicing healthy coping strategies is so crucial to get your mind off of abusing drugs and turning your thoughts toward a more positive outlet. Some common examples of healthy coping strategies you can do are running, journaling, or hiking. Not only are healthy coping strategies an effective way to reduce your risk of relapsing, but they help improve your overall health and well-being.
- Lean on Your Support System
It’s important to lean on a trusted support system of friends, family members, and other loved ones who can support you along your recovery journey and beyond. You should never feel like you have to cope with cravings all on your own. You should feel comfortable voicing your recovery goals and even concerns to close family members and friends.
- Attend Support Groups
Similar to the last point, attending support groups is another effective strategy for coping with cravings in recovery and beyond. Support groups allow you to be surrounded by peers who know what you’re going through. During support group meetings, you can not only share your experience but also hear from peers within the group who can offer up advice and keep you accountable, all of which further can help reduce your risk of relapsing.
- Seek Professional Support
Finally, if you ever feel like coping with cravings in recovery or beyond is too difficult, you can always seek professional support. Just because you overcame addiction does not mean you will no longer need outside support from addiction treatment specialists. Whether you are just starting your road to recovery, or have been sober for years, professional treatment programs offer effective resources for anyone on their road to recovery.
Help Is Available
As you can see, coping with cravings in recovery and beyond doesn’t have to be complex. Although it’s impossible to avoid cravings entirely, there are several ways in which you can reduce cravings and thus reduce your overall risk of jeopardizing your recovery journey. We’re here to help you every step of the way on your road to recovery.Maui Recovery is ready to help you transform your life for the better. We understand that no two recovery journeys are alike. Because of this, we offer a comprehensive range of treatment programs so you can receive the tailored care you need to best support your unique recovery needs. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you take back control over your life.
