by Christiana Care

There are reasons that are too many to mention here, but substance abuse relapse can be avoided if addressed properly.Substance abuse relapse is something that many families have to endure over and over again. This is not intentional that the addict wants to happen, but it happens for a number of reasons:

1. The addict did not get the right treatment

2. Treatment was not personalized

3. The addict did not get involved with a follow up program

4. The addict only underwent a thirty day rehabilitation process

5. The addict returned to old friends

6. The addict returned to old habits

7. The addict was not committed totally to treatment

8. The addict did not receive support from important family members, which could be a parent or a child

9. The addict did not take the treatment seriously

10. The addict did not learn and adapt to the tools and resources provided while in the treatment center.

There are other reasons that are too many to mention here, but substance abuse relapse is something that can be avoided if all of the above reasons are addressed properly. If the addict had to go through an outpatient treatment program, then it is likely that this could also cause relapse because the addict will have structure within the program, but outside of the program, there is no way that they can be supervised. This is difficult for all involved; the addict, the therapist and family members. Outpatient treatment allows the addict to go on with some type of normal life and keep their jobs and be with their families. However, it has its disadvantages because the addict who is recovering is able to still be around the same friends that influenced them. Of course, drug addiction treatment is a choice and the therapist can tell the addict not to hang around these people, but cannot force them to do so. In fact, the therapist is not aware of the addict’s external activities unless it is mentioned during therapy.

Family members who are afraid of substance abuse relapse should lend a hand in ensuring that their loved one does not cling to those that are a bad influence to them during their treatment process. Those addicts who have gone through numerous treatment programs and returned to their old destructive habits will find that it is like a revolving door and family members get tired of the same old story and want to move on and forget about everything. However, family members cannot do this or they will be contributors of a destroyed life. They should probably think about an aggressive intervention that will either allow the individual to accept rehabilitation or reject it.

In the rehab center, the addict needs to stick close to other residents who are doing well. They can both support each other and motivate each other to keep focused so that they can experience full recovery. All it takes is encouragement to stay on the course that has been set by the therapist for the addict. It calls for willpower and the strength of God in order to make it to complete recovery.

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