Essay On Relapse Prevention

In relation to drug abuse, relapse is resuming the use of a chemical substance or drug after a period of abstinence. The term can be said to be a landmark feature of a combination of substance abuse and substance independence. The propensity for dependency, repeated use, and tendencies that take the form of the substance being used, are some of the issues that drug users’ experience. Substances that enhance most severe tendencies in users and pose high pharmacological efficacy, are those that are cleared quickly from the body, in addition to those that bring out the highest tolerance. There can be increased substance tolerance with the increasing dependency in relation to drug in question,

“Traditional… treatment approaches often conceptualize relapse as an end-state, a negative outcome equivalent to treatment failure. Thus, this perspective considers only a dichotomous treatment outcome—that is, a person is either abstinent or relapsed.” (Larimer, 1999). For a substance dependent individual like Rosa, equating abstinence to failure is counter-productive and ineffective. Considering her history of pain management, we can expect that Rosa may feel emotional and physical discomfort without her opiate and alcohol combination. A setback in treatment would be negative, but doesn’t warrant “giving up” on established treatment goals. Relapse may be anticipated with the relapse prevention model, but it is considered to be a part of “the

One way that someone could prevent a relapse is by having support from the patient’s family. In a study done by Mei Yang “Most participants (13 of 18) spoke of lacking family or social support during abstinence periods.” With this research it’s obvious that the lack of support from peers and family members has an impact on relapse. Without support from others, the patient feels as if there is no reason to stay abstinent. Even after going to a rehabilitation program Yang’s research stated “In China, relapse rates for drug use after discharge from treatment were generally above 90% after one year.” The period after being released from rehab are especially critical because this is the first time the user is out on their own making decisions. The decisions that the person makes right after leaving rehab are the most valuable and can decide how their abstinent period will go. Granted that sometimes when the user leaves rehab not being around the parents can be beneficial in ways. In a study done by Peter

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the relapse rate is 40-60%. Not only do we need better alternatives to recovery for alcohol and drug addiction, but we must lower the relapse rate. In order to successfully lower the relapse rate we must inform people on the effect gateway drugs can have on future addictions, educating about relapse and addiction and focusing on key factors to making a treatment a successful one. My research on lowering relapse rates taught me that the problem is not getting sober, its staying sober.

For this type of clientele, counselors need to be aware of the chances of relapse and how to address it, such as being knowledgeable between the differences of a “lapse” and a “relapse”. Jackson-Cherry and Erford (2018) state that a lapse is one episode of using a drug then becoming abstinence and a relapse is when the client begins to abuse the substance for a period of time following a phase of abstinence. Nevertheless, clients can attend support calls called Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) outside of therapy. Becoming a part of these support groups can influence the client in staying abstinence and form alliances with other members who desire to stay clean from drugs or alcohol (Jackson-Cherry & Erford, 2018).

If recovering from drugs and alcohol is a process, then a relapse is an event. However, how a relapse is interpreted can be debated. In abstinence-based programs such as Narcotics Anonymous (NA), the basic text notes that relapse does occur and may be the result of an individual not following the program. If an individual stops following the basic principles of the NA program, old thoughts and behaviors may return which can lead to them to engage in the use of drugs or alcohol. Furthermore, the NA text suggests that these behaviors are “reservations” (p. 79) and because addiction is a disease, relapse can occur. As such, any individual who begins using drugs or alcohol again has relapsed. The basic text of NA describes relapse as a “reality” (p. 78) and states “It can and does happen”. When it does, the individual

Counselor met with Pt. for his reschedules individual session and to discuss his current recovery issues and plan dealing with Relapse Prevention Strategies. Pt. reported that he is currently taking 40 mg of methadone and he is responding well. Counselor inquired if he has used any drugs since the last session, which he replied no. Pt. denied having any suicidal ideation and no mental health issues. Pt. reviewed his TX plans without objections. During this week, Pt. has been violating program rules and receiving several verbal intervention form AMS staff especially nurse. Pt. explained his struggles trying to provide a urine analysis because he is sick. Pt. indicated that he is dehydrated and he couldn’t urine when ask to do so. Pt. claimed

Relapse is highly prevalent following treatment for substance abuse, highlighting the need for more effective aftercare interventions. MBRP has the opportunity to improve treatment outcomes (Bowen, S., (2014). Roos et al., (2017) proposed an inverse relationship between treatment outcomes and the severity of Substance Use Disorder (SUD), with symptom severity effecting how much the individual benefited from MBRP treatment. Kelly, J. F., (2013) wrote that TAU, in this case 12-step participation before and after treatment, was able to build resistance to relapse among adults and adolescents. Research into treatment outcomes is essential when time and resources are limited. Information regarding treatment outcomes is clouded

A person enduring the trials of alcoholism will often suffer from a relapse. It is improbable, not impossible, that any person pursuing a life free from alcohol dependency will not have multiple relapses, which often are impulsive and craving like. Alcohol dependency is often a chronic and relapsing illness (“Factors In Alcoholic Relapse”). The best preventive measure to a life independent of alcohol is the understanding of the factors prior to relapse. During the recovery from alcohol dependency a relapse is often precipitated by emotional stress, boredom, and lack of support.

Just as relapse simple does not happen, neither does addiction. Addiction is quite readily accepted as a disease by the public and by professionals, and similar to the majority of diseases, its prevalence depends on a delicate dance of nature and nurture. Just as an individual that is predisposed to heart disease does not catch the disease by eating a single bag of potato chips, someone predisposed to alcoholism must develop a pattern of drinking before it reaches the severity of a “disorder.” The difficulty of avoiding and preventing relapse is wrapped up in all of these factors. While a person can unintentionally fall into alcoholism, it is much more difficult unintentionally fall out of it, and this is where John is struggling.

Second, a plan in place goal is to prevent any lapse from turning into full relapse. Next, educating an individual with addiction on relapse prevention, so that the individual understands each step of the relapse process, with resource and tools. To clarify,the relapse plan, educates the client with skills training, cognitive restructuring, and lifestyle changes, in order to be proactive.

According to the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment and the transtheoretical model of change, “for most people with substance abuse problems, recurrence of substance use is the rule not the exception” (Enhancing Motivation for Change, 1999, p. xvii). Relapse can and most likely will occur in recovery, and should be recognized as well as anticipated by substance abuse recovery counselors. The significant challenges to counselors are bringing a client successfully and securely through a relapse and eventually preventing relapse from occurring at all. For many, helping a client find faith in a higher power is an essential piece of the puzzle for overcoming addiction.

DATA: Today’s group has been facilitated by Kirsten again, and includes relapse, what it is, and how each client can prevent it. Being that relapse is a process, it is an ongoing situation that can be interrupted, rather than a static event that is over and cannot be changed. It involves the individual reverting to old attitudes, beliefs, values, and risk behaviors. These are part of a progressive pattern, and will worsen until the process is interrupted or changed. Relapse is not a sign of failure, and, at times, may be part of the recovery process. There are times when individuals are more vulnerable to relapse, specifically, when they are too hungry, angry, lonely, or tired (HALT), and need to be aware of this vulnerability, and take

These treatments could be given on out-patient basis, in-patient basis or on short-term or long-term residential basis. There are variety of professionals are giving service for drug addiction treatment. These professional are physicians, psychiatrists, psychologists, rehab counselors, social workers, nurses, etc..

Addiction is a “chronic disease characterized by drug seeking and use that is compulsive, or difficult to control, despite harmful consequences.” The initial decision to take drugs is voluntary for most individuals, but frequent drug use can lead to brain alterations that challenge an addicted person’s self-control and interfere with their ability to resist intense urges to take drugs. These brain alterations can be persistent, which is why drug addiction is considered a "relapsing" disease. People in recovery from drug use disorders are at increased threat for returning to drug use even after years of not taking the drug. It's common for an individual to relapse, but relapse doesn't mean that treatment doesn’t work. As with other chronic health conditions, treatment should be constant and should be adjusted based on how the patient answers. Treatment plans need to be reviewed often and modified to fit the patient’s changing desires.