relapsed | TOUCHPOINTS, from Personal Growth Concepts, Inc.

Most alcoholics and addicts in sobriety and/or abstinence have relapsed. “You are not alone.”

If you have relapsed, now or in the past, it is a part of your process. What is most important is that you do not let a “slip” become a “slide.”

Catch yourself, get back in the saddle, get back to meetings and to a sponsor who cares and has time, time in the program and time for you! I believe it’s important that you also take the time and figure out what that slip was about. As Terrence Gorski, a well-known relapse prevention specialist has told us, you and a trusted person need to do an autopsy on the slip to find out where you began to drift, what those issues or feelings were, and to develop specific strategies when you encounter those early warning signs again. Failure to do so will likely result in another slip down the road. Do you want that? Isn’t it easier to relearn and have more resources available to you. The choice is yours.

“Be proud that you’ve tried.” Many don’t try, they just wallow in it and die. “You can recover!” Try saying over and over to yourself, “I am recovering.” Recovery is a process that needs regular tending – it does not happen just by itself. Learning (“what did you learn” from your relapse), persistence in thinking differently and making different choices will get you there. Are you willing? Earn the success you deserve by making those changes. Believe in your self, believe in the program, engage in and trust the process. I believe you can and you will!