Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsHow Common Are RelapsesIs Relapse a Sign of Failure?StagesCausesTreatmentsCopingPrevention

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

How Common Are Relapses

Is Relapse a Sign of Failure?

Stages

Causes

Treatments

Coping

Prevention

A relapse is the worsening of a medical condition that had previously improved. When it comes to addiction, it refers to a person engaging in addictive behavior after a period ofabstinence.

The American Society of Addiction Medicine  (ASAM) defines relapse as the recurrence of behavioral or other substantive indicators of active disease after a period of remission.

During a relapse, a person returns to using a substance. A single use might cause a person to feel unmotivated, guilty, or ashamed of their actions. It can also result in intense cravings that then lead to further use. After a relapse, getting back on track as soon as possible is important.

Examples of Relapses

For example, for someone who had completely stopped drinking for a period of time, say six months, with the goal of total abstinence, it would be problematic if they had even one drink. If they had just one drink, they might be considered as having a “slip” but not a complete relapse.

For people trying to control their behavior rather than trying to quit entirely, a relapse happens when the individual hasgained control over the behaviorfor a period of time but is re-experiencing a period of uncontrolled behavior.

For example, someone who had developed enough discipline to drink on occasion according to social norms could slip into a session of binge drinking. For a shopaholic trying to follow a budget, a relapse could be going on a full shopping spree.

Relapses can also occur in physical and mental health conditions. In a health condition, they involve the return of disease symptoms. In mental health, they involve the return of symptoms after a period of recovery.

If you or a loved one are struggling with substance use or addiction, contact theSubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helplineat1-800-662-4357for information on support and treatment facilities in your area.For more mental health resources, see ourNational Helpline Database.

If you or a loved one are struggling with substance use or addiction, contact theSubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helplineat1-800-662-4357for information on support and treatment facilities in your area.

For more mental health resources, see ourNational Helpline Database.

How Common Are Relapses?

Relapse is a hallmark of addiction. It is common, even expected that people who are attempting to overcome addiction will go through one or even several relapses before successfully quitting. The American Addiction Centers report that 40% to 60% of people will relapse.

Relapse is even considered a stage in thestages-of-change model, which predicts that people will cycle through a process of:

Sometimes, people will cycle through these stages several times before quitting for good.

Even though relapse is a well-recognized aspect of recovery from an addiction, many people attempting to quit an addiction will feel they have failed if they relapse. They might abandon their efforts, feeling that quitting is too difficult. Even some treatment programs take a hard line on participants who relapse.

Accepting that relapse is a normal part of the process of recovery is a more helpful way of looking at relapse. It can be seen as a sign that something in their treatment plan needs to be modified to maintain sobriety.

Individuals and treatment programs that take this view are more successful, and in the long run, those who accept and work to try again after a relapse are more likely to overcome their addiction eventually.

The Stages of Relapse

To understand how toprevent relapse, it is essential to first understand the relapse process itself. Relapse isn’t a sudden event; it occurs over a period of time that can range from weeks to even months.

The stages of relapse include:

Causes of Relapse

Relapse Risk Factors

Risk factors that can increase the likelihood of relapse include:

Relapse Treatments

There are three primary areas of focus in RPT:

Coping With a Relapse

If you or someone you know experiences a relapse, there are things that you can do to cope and get help.

It is important to remain focused on recovery immediately after a relapse. Thinking through what led to the relapse is an important step in preventing it from happening again. For example, were there any triggers, either positive or negative, that happened just before the relapse?

Sometimes, stressful events can trigger a relapse, particularly if the addictive substance or behavior is used to cope with stress. But happy events can also trigger a relapse, especially if others celebrate with alcohol.

How to Prevent Relapse

Relapse prevention is important in recovering from a substance, alcohol, or behavioral addiction. While each person’s recovery plan will differ based on their needs, some strategies that can help reduce your risk for relapse include:

Identify and Avoid Triggers

Work on learning to recognize the variables contributing to relapses. This can include moods, attitudes, situations, behaviors, and environmental changes that tend to precede a relapse.

Get Treatment and Support

Participating in a recovery program and building a support network is essential to preventing relapse. In addition to seeking professional treatment, you might consider joining a12-step programor other mutual support groups.

Getting appropriate treatment for co-occurring mental health and medical conditions can also help reduce your risk of relapse.

Care for Yourself

Caring for your mental and physical health is critical for effective relapse prevention. Work on adopting ahealthy lifestylethat includes regular exercise, a balanced diet, and plenty of sleep.

Manage Stress Levels

It is also important to find ways to deal with stress that don’t involve relying on alcohol, substances, or harmful behaviors. Stress relievers that might help you manage acute and long-term stress include deep breathing, meditation, andmindfulness practices.

RecapIn addition to getting professional treatment, avoiding your triggers, finding social support, caring for yourself, and managing stress can help prevent future relapse.

Recap

In addition to getting professional treatment, avoiding your triggers, finding social support, caring for yourself, and managing stress can help prevent future relapse.

Final Thoughts

Remember, if you are trying to quit, you should plan for and try to avoid relapse. But if youdorelapse, you should give yourself grace, accept that it is a normal part of quitting, and resolve to learn from the experience.One goal of treatment is to help people learn to recognize the signs of relapse during the early stages in order to quickly course-correct and get support before the full physical relapse to increase the chances of a successful recovery.

Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention

6 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Society of Addiction Medicine.Public policy statement on relapse in healthcare and other licensed professionals. 2011.Parks GA, Marlatt GA.Chapter 6: Relapse prevention therapy. In: Heather N, Stockwell T, eds.The Essential Handbook of Treatment and Prevention of Alcohol Problems. J. Wiley; 2004.AmericanAddictionCenters.Alcohol relapse and recovery statistics.Hendershot CS, Witkiewitz K, George WH, Marlatt GA.Relapse prevention for addictive behaviors.Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. 2011;6(1):17. doi:10.1186/1747-597X-6-17U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.Reducing relapse risk.Melemis SM.Relapse prevention and the five rules of recovery.Yale J Biol Med. 2015;88(3):325-332.

6 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Society of Addiction Medicine.Public policy statement on relapse in healthcare and other licensed professionals. 2011.Parks GA, Marlatt GA.Chapter 6: Relapse prevention therapy. In: Heather N, Stockwell T, eds.The Essential Handbook of Treatment and Prevention of Alcohol Problems. J. Wiley; 2004.AmericanAddictionCenters.Alcohol relapse and recovery statistics.Hendershot CS, Witkiewitz K, George WH, Marlatt GA.Relapse prevention for addictive behaviors.Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. 2011;6(1):17. doi:10.1186/1747-597X-6-17U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.Reducing relapse risk.Melemis SM.Relapse prevention and the five rules of recovery.Yale J Biol Med. 2015;88(3):325-332.

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

American Society of Addiction Medicine.Public policy statement on relapse in healthcare and other licensed professionals. 2011.Parks GA, Marlatt GA.Chapter 6: Relapse prevention therapy. In: Heather N, Stockwell T, eds.The Essential Handbook of Treatment and Prevention of Alcohol Problems. J. Wiley; 2004.AmericanAddictionCenters.Alcohol relapse and recovery statistics.Hendershot CS, Witkiewitz K, George WH, Marlatt GA.Relapse prevention for addictive behaviors.Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. 2011;6(1):17. doi:10.1186/1747-597X-6-17U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.Reducing relapse risk.Melemis SM.Relapse prevention and the five rules of recovery.Yale J Biol Med. 2015;88(3):325-332.

American Society of Addiction Medicine.Public policy statement on relapse in healthcare and other licensed professionals. 2011.

Parks GA, Marlatt GA.Chapter 6: Relapse prevention therapy. In: Heather N, Stockwell T, eds.The Essential Handbook of Treatment and Prevention of Alcohol Problems. J. Wiley; 2004.

AmericanAddictionCenters.Alcohol relapse and recovery statistics.

Hendershot CS, Witkiewitz K, George WH, Marlatt GA.Relapse prevention for addictive behaviors.Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. 2011;6(1):17. doi:10.1186/1747-597X-6-17

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.Reducing relapse risk.

Melemis SM.Relapse prevention and the five rules of recovery.Yale J Biol Med. 2015;88(3):325-332.

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