At Victory Recovery Partners, a network of eight addiction-recovery centers on Long Island, New York, we provide outpatient services and complete care under one roof. This includes behavioral health, psychiatric, wellness, and medication-assisted treatment services. During your recovery journey, you may face hardships and obstacles; for example, you may feel the need to re-engage in substance use. After you’ve made weeks or even months of progress, a relapse may feel like a setback. This could make you feel discouraged and frustrated. You may also feel as though the progress you’ve made has been worthless. With all of this being said, it is important to understand that relapse is not a sign of failure; it is just another bump in the road on your long recovery journey.
The addiction-recovery process is a journey where you will learn new habits, ways of thinking, and coping skills. Keep in mind that addiction affects the brain – during recovery, your brain will need to “rewire” itself until you get to the point where you are no longer craving the substance. Just as you would drive a car along a bumpy road or highway, the recovery process is not a straight line. Learning new ways of handling life’s stressful events, along with new thinking patterns, will help with long-term recovery. During this journey, relapses may happen. If they occur, do not become discouraged. A comparable example would be a weight loss journey. If you were to go off your diet and eat some unhealthy foods, the scale may show a higher number. However, this one deviation from your typical routine does not erase all the hard work you have put into the weight loss journey. The same can be said for addiction recovery. If you have a relapse, all of your prior effort is not erased. You can get right back on track and continue the journey.
There may be an underlying reason for your relapse that you may not be aware of. For example, are you suffering from increased emotional issues and disorders such as depression or anxiety? If so, do you know what is causing those feelings? When you relapse, it is often due to underlying issues that haven’t been resolved. At Victory Recovery Partners, our behavioral health counselors will work with you to help you understand what these issues are, and how you can work through them. Being patient is key – it takes time to overcome life’s obstacles.
Another point worth noting is that the act of relapsing isn’t the main problem. Rather, the guilt, shame, and frustration that results from the relapse could even be more harmful than the act of relapsing. You may be tempted to simply quit, give up, and not continue on with your goal of recovery. If you start to develop these feelings, you must think about the total picture. Look at how much progress you’ve made. You’ve come a long way, and you’re in this for the long term.
Victory Recovery Partners is a network of eight addiction-recovery centers on Long Island, New York. We currently have outpatient addiction-recovery centers in Hicksville, Massapequa Park, Shirley, Hempstead, and Farmingville. In addition to this, Victory operates three methadone centers which are located at the Hicksville, Shirley, and Farmingville centers. While relapsing may be frustrating, it is not a sign of failure – and it is certainly not a sign that you should give up. Rather, relapsing is a normal part of the recovery journey. How you handle and react to the relapse is what matters most.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance use disorder and addiction, Victory would like to help. Please visit our website to learn more about the services we offer.