A lot of people think that coming home right after having stayed in an alcoholism rehab center is the best way to introduce recovering family member to a brand new world. Fact is a lot of these individuals have come to experience relapses due to the abrupt situations. These awkward instances may appear every now and then which may cause patients to either withdraw from society or return to their old abusive ways using the same substance that brought them to an institution for treatment.
If this happens, more time and money will be spent and previous efforts would be put to waste. One thing for sure is to learn how a sober living home can help recovering patients tackle life itself slowly— but surely. Relapses can be avoided if there is constant monitoring of daily activities. Behaviors are recorded and may serve as gauge to know whether a patient is lagging in the recovery phase or trying to fake results of the process by hastening things up.
Here are clear manifestations of a relapse:
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Emotional states on the negative side – Moods change a lot. Anger and loneliness cannot be contained. There are instances of nightmares and hallucinations brought about by trauma during treatment process.
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Physical pain or discomfort – The patient experiences pain and other withdrawal symptoms such as vomiting and sleepless nights as he battles the urge to go back to using the substance.
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Inability to control urge – If just to test whether he can take control of a situation, the recovering individual may try to test himself if he has fully recovered by getting himself a taste of alcohol once again which could lead him back to zero phase.
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Pretense – To make everybody feel better and treat him as normal, there is a chance that the person who is in the recovery stage would pretend that he is doing fine even though when left all by himself manifestations of sadness is evident.
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Cravings – There is still a possibility that even the strongest-willed among reformed alcoholics may return to his previous state once he sees liquor lying in and around the house. An almost empty bottle could spark a craving once it is on sight.
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Giving in to peer pressure – Celebrations are part of family traditions and relationship bonding and a means for a previous alcohol addict to re-track his old ways. A simple invitation to taste just a bit of alcohol that a family member or a friend offers could trigger another wave of substance abuse.
Trigger factors abound while living outside a rehab center or at home which can subject recovering addicts to go back to their old patterns. It is best to know how you can help in the recovery process but it is wiser to learn how to deal with the manifestations of a possible return to a rehab establishment.
Unless you are knowledgeable enough to gauge the patient’s progress, you may be up for another bout of expenditures and may even develop a certain kind of trauma within yourself. That is why there are sober living homes built for this special reason.