For most, the beginning of the year has been triggering. For those in recovery from substance use disorder, triggers can create cravings or unhealthy emotional responses linked to past substance use or unhealthy behaviors. This is why I wanted to take the time to talk about tiggers more in depth.
First, let’s look at the different type of triggers. You have emotional triggers that manifest in the form of stress, anxiety or depression at times. Next is environmental triggers like places, situations or stil associating with restive people from the past. Last, but not least are social triggers like peer pressure and social gatherings.
It’s import to take note of your triggers so you can be proactive against the possible thought of relapse that may come when they arise. Think of examples in your life where you were successful in navigating something that was a trigger and take note. Also identify new strategies to deal with navigating triggers while in recovery.
The people you associate yourself with is key, especially for those of us living a sober life. These re the people that you can count on for support when triggering moments come about. Supportive relationships can be greatly beneficial for the recovery process, while on the other hand, negative relationships or toxic environments can be the cause of someone going back to a substance and relapsing.
List the people in your circle and ask yourself are they good for my recovery? When you list the qualities of the people you associate with, you’ll se that they’ll either fit in the supportive or non supportive box. As an exercise you can list three potential triggering problems that may arise and place the friend or support group you can lean on if that arises. Your recovery partly counts on who you are around.
It is always a great idea for those of us in recovery to come up with a personal action plan for when those triggers arise. Identify the support network you would reach out to as well as what you could do individually. Those that plan seem to make the most progress so ask yourself have you drawn up your plan yet?
