If you are struggling with a substance abuse issue, it can be challenging to find the best treatment that meets your needs, especially if you are a working professional. This is where mindfulness based relapse prevention comes into play.
Battling an addiction while maintaining a career can be difficult and deciding to enter treatment can be worrisome if you are concerned about how the decision will impact your career.
About Mindfulness Based Relapse Prevention Programs
Luckily, many treatment programs allow you to continue working while receiving treatment. Treatment options vary significantly. Residential based programs and inpatient programs require a significant time commitment, ranging from 28 days to 90 days or more, while outpatient-based programs can allow you the flexibility of meeting your career and personal obligations while engaging in treatment.
Regardless of the treatment program you choose, mindfulness based relapse prevention can significantly improve your recovery chances. Mindfulness-based relapse prevention focuses on utilizing holistic and evidence-based therapies to help you combat cravings.
One of the most common reasons why people relapse during recovery is stress. Mindfulness based relapse prevention focuses on how you can change the way you perceive situations and cope with negative emotions in order to prevent and control negative stress, which in turn decreases your chances of relapsing.
What is Mindfulness Based Relapse Prevention?
Mindfulness-based relapse prevention strategies focus on blending evidence-based treatment techniques with holistic addiction treatment to help you learn how to cope with cravings and triggers without using drugs or alcohol. Some examples of evidence-based treatment techniques include cognitive and dialectic therapy, individual therapy, and group therapy.
Holistic based strategies are based on treating the body, mind, and spirit, and can include:
- Acupuncture
- Yoga and Pilates
- Massage therapy
- Meditation
- Art therapy
- Dietary changes
Holistic treatments focus on healing your physical, emotional, and spiritual health. Mindfulness exercises can help you improve your focus, decrease stress, and improve your ability to relax. Meditation offers you time to decompress and calm your thoughts and feelings. Improving mindfulness is a healthy, effective way to decrease stress and negative emotions, which can lead to relapses.
Dietary changes can help your body recover the following addiction by replenishing essential vitamins and minerals. Increasing your intake of things like Vitamin C can strengthen your immune system. Additionally, limiting your use of caffeine and sugar can help improve your sleep cycle. Poor sleep cannot only weaken your immune system but also hurt your ability to cope with stress.
How Relapse Prevention Helps During Recovery
When you are in recovery, it can be difficult to cope with things like cravings and triggers. Relapsing during recovery can be challenging to deal with, especially if you achieved sustained sobriety following treatment. A relapse can be especially difficult to cope with if you are experiencing employment, legal, or marital problems. Relapsing does not mean you failed, but rather that you need to return to treatment and focus on developing a strong relapse prevention plan.
Proper relapse prevention plans help improve the likelihood that you will successfully recover from addiction or substance abuse issues. Relapse prevention plans help you outline strategies to handle cravings, stress, triggers, and negative emotions in a healthy manner. If you have a plan to address triggers, it can help you better manage your recovery.
Finding Help
Mindfulness based relapse prevention is a highly effective way to properly cope with triggers and cravings throughout recovery. Meditation and mindfulness exercises are a healthy way to gain better clarity and decrease stress, which can help prevent relapses during recovery.
If you or a loved one is struggling with a substance abuse issue, reaching out for help is the first step towards recovery. Providence Treatment specializes in utilizing evidence-based and holistic treatment strategies to help you overcome substance abuse issues and offers unique programs catering to working professionals. To find out more about our programs and mindfulness based relapse prevention, call us today at 866.247.3307.