Managing Cravings/Triggers and Tips/ Resources for Addicts

Manage Cravings and Triggers

A craving is a longing for or a desire to use a substance. They can be mild or very strong; they can be a desire for the good feelings that come with using or a desire to avoid bad moods or withdrawal symptoms.

An urge is your intention to use substances once you have a craving. You can have a strong craving with very little urge to actually use or drink. But if your intention to use or drink is high, this makes you more vulnerable to relapse unless you use active coping strategies to help you through your craving and urge.

Identifying the people, places, events, and situations that trigger your cravings or urges helps you anticipate triggers, which can in turn help you plan coping strategies. This is one of the most powerful steps you can take toward reaching your goals. Sometimes cravings and urges happen randomly without any trigger. Other cravings are more likely to occur at specific days or times. Think about your triggers and what kind they may be:

External Triggers:

People
Places
Events
Situations
Objects
Internal Triggers

Feelings
Thoughts
Memories
Physical sensations
Negative emotional feelings (most common reason people relapse)
Positive thoughts and memories of using/drinking

Coping with Triggers
There are different coping strategies for corresponding triggers.

Environmental Coping Strategies

Reduce environmental cues by getting rid of the substances you are trying to quit using. If you are quitting smoking or drinking, there is no need to keep cigarettes or alcohol in your house for other people.
Get rid of paraphernalia used to prepare or ingest drugs (lighters, ashtrays, needles, mirrors, papers)
In early recovery, when possible, avoid people, places, events, and things that you feel represent a high risk of relapse.
Cognitive coping strategies

Talk yourself through the craving
Tell yourself that you are capable of coping with a craving no matter how strong it is
Remember that cravings always pass in time
Buy yourself time by saying you?ll put off using for a few hours
Remember the troubles caused by using alcohol or other drugs
Ask for help and strength from a higher power
Imagine the cravings as a wave that you are surfing to safety. Rather than fight against the wave, you ride it to shore without getting engulfed in it. ?Ride out? the craving and it will eventually leave you.
Delay you decision by telling yourself you?ll wait until later in the day or tomorrow before you use. By that time, your desire may have decreased or left completely
Behavioral Coping strategiesBehavioral Coping strategies

Distract yourself with an activity
Do something physical, such as take a walk, jog, or work out to release tension
Write in a journal or complete a daily craving record
Read recovery literature for help and inspiration
Internal Coping strategies

Talk to friends in recovery
Talk to family or other supportive people
Go to a self-help recovery meeting and share your cravings
Leave situations immediately if the pressure to use feels too strong to resist
Avoid interpersonal ?set-ups.? These are relationships or encounters that influence you to use.

Example: dating someone who gets high on alcohol and drugs?you may not feel like using at first, but later your desire to use may increase as you spend time together and the person may invite you to use or may use in front of you.

Substitute Coping Strategies

Smokers find it helpful to chew gum or eat mints or hard candy when they feel like having a cigarette
Substituting a soft drink or other non-alcoholic drink is helpful during times or situations associated with alcohol use, such as the pre-dinner cocktail hour

RESOURCES FOR ADDICTS

https://www.hazelden.org/
Best resource for addiction

Inpatient/Outpatient Treatment/Detox

Depending on the severity and where you are in your disease you may need to advance services.Go to your local ER or call your local detox center or rehab facility. You may need Inpatient or outpatient treatment.

Recovery Meetings

Some people get sober through the recovery programs, such as AA and NA.

https://www.aa.org/pages/en_US/find-local-aa
AA Meeting Search

https://www.na.org/meetingsearch/
NA Meeting Search

Go to 90 meeting in 90 days
Get a sponsor (temporary by ur second meeting)
At first try go to same sex meetings and closed meetings
Share as much as possible (you can pass at your first couple meetings if you do not feel comfortable
Ask for a meeting phone list for nunbers so you can call someone if needed
Volunteer to help at meetings

Recommended Addiction Resources:
*If you suffer from addiction, and whether you are just struggling, you are going to AA/NA for the first time, or going to detox or 28-day center, make sure you have a copy of the Blue "Big Book" for Alcoholic's Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous as well 12 step workbooks. Books are available on Amazon for purchasealsoavailable at most meetings and recovery centers for purchase or to borrow. But it's nice to have your own to keep notes in.

-Also, recently in the past 10 years there has been a surge in self biographical fiction memoirs about addiction and recovery that can help you identify with others you have struggled with addiction(i.i.,"A Million LIttle Pieces of Me," "Broken," "Pill Head,")