There maybe many times in your journey of sobriety that teeters on the brink of relapse.
In this post, I want to tell you how to avoid alcohol triggers that may lead to relapse.
What is an alcohol trigger?
An alcohol trigger is, one of those times that you may come close to losing all that you have so bravely fought to keep you sober.
What I mean by this is, one of those times you feel like you’re going to “snap” and fall off the wagon because of something that happens around you that you may not have any control of.
After researching many websites about this, I found some interesting articles on this topic.
Here is a short video about alcohol triggers
Here are a few subjects in which I found on a few other sites:
External triggers are people, places, things, or times of day that offer drinking opportunities or remind you of drinking. These “high-risk situations” are more obvious, predictable, and avoidable than internal triggers.
Internal triggers can be puzzling because the urge to drink just seems to “pop up.” But if you pause to think about it when it happens, you’ll find that the urge may have been set off by a fleeting thought, a positive emotion such as excitement, a negative emotion such as frustration, or a physical sensation such as a headache, tension, or nervousness.
For me, I get the internal triggers more than the external triggers only because I tend to stay away from people or things that remind me of my past alcoholic tendencies.
Another website I went to, had these topics as alcohol related triggers:
- Becoming Overconfident
- Feeling Full of Self Pity
- Unrealistic Expectations for Recovery
- Lying and Other Forms of Dishonesty
- Symptoms of Depression
- Feelings of Frustration in Recovery
- Expecting Too Much of Other People
- Taking Recovery for Granted
- Abusing Other Substances (trading addictions)
- Hunger, Anger, Loneliness, Tiredness
Now, with many of these topics of alcohol triggers, some I can relate to and some not so much but in the end of all ends, these have much to do with alcohol relapse and what sets the person into motion.
Why triggers may lead to relapse
For all those who are in recovery, relapse is one of those words that we don’t want to think about yet is somewhere in the back of our minds.
Or at least should be…
Why do these triggers do what they do, is a mystery. Yet for some, a very scary reality as many have fallen off that wagon of sobriety many a times due to alcohol triggers.
I for one, have not fallen off yet, have come so close on many a time!
I find that the one trigger that gets to me every damn time is frustration! When everything seems to come crashing down all at once.
For example… At work, when everybody comes to me to ask questions that are super simple to figure out and I have to go out of my way to explain…that get’s under my skin.
Back in the day, I would not have given them a second thought and continued on my way out to my truck to refill that beer.
Another time is when I can’t figure something so simple out for myself. It seemed easier when I was drinking for some reason but when sober, I just can’t wrap my head around it. Even though my thoughts are much clearer these days.
Another trigger for me is when I get off of work and remember back to those days when an ice cold beer was so super tasty after a long day of working in unbearable heat. Nowadays an ice cold tea is just as fulfilling.
I’m sorry, I’m getting off topic…
The reason why triggers may lead to relapse is an easy question to answer for a recovering alcoholic. It is because, we know what we were like and just what happened to us to want that drink!
If you are not mindful of your actions, you might just lose all reality, walk into the store and grab that cold beer instead of an ice tea. You see where this is leading? Slam that beer, thinking… “well, it’s just one. One will not do me any harm” and right back to relapse you will go!
Oh, and by the way… Even if it is a non alcoholic brew, it still contains trace amounts of alcohol. Hence the fermentation process.
Another trigger you really need to be mindful of is when you are sick with the flu or a cold and run to the store for that bottle of Nyquil. That has alcohol in it as well…
You might try to convince yourself that it is so you can rest and feel a little better. That my friends, would cause a major relapse because, that is what you would think when consuming an alcoholic beverage, right??
That in itself might lead you right back to a full blown relapse as well.
I’m just trying to give a few examples of what may trigger you into a relapse. It would not take much, even as simple as some cough syrup!
One major trigger for most would probably be a life changing event like a death of a loved one or something similar. I have lost many friends during my sobriety and have thought about drowning out the pain with a beer or 12 or more.
But, I am so glad I went to that place in my brain that said, “going there would not honor those who you have lost who knew you as an alcoholic and have watched you blossom into an awesome person with recovery”!
You see my point?
Another major trigger that many do to themselves
Some people out there that have more than one addiction are the ones who put themselves in a far greater danger.
I’m talking about the ones who have a drug and alcohol problem.
They may stop the alcohol yet the drug addiction is still present and some may get wasted enough to say to themselves, “I don’t care to stay sober from alcohol” while smoking this joint or snorting a line or doing whatever their drug of choice is.
Their minds will lose that ability to keep focusing on that one trigger to keep from drinking and say “screw it” I’m having a drink anyway.
I have heard some people say “AA and NA is for quitters and I am no quitter” as they smoke the weed and pound down a beer only to forget what they did that night. What fun is that?
Some may quit one addiction and start another one to replace the one they quit and that is referred to as “trading addictions”. This is especially dangerous as it will most of the time fail.
Only to get back to the first drug or drink ending up with an even larger problem that they first had!
So you see, there are many triggers that can set you back to the start or even the end (death).
You need to be conscience at all times what is happening in your surroundings if you are to stay on your toes and keep from having those triggers get the best of you and have you relapsing.
How to avoid alcohol triggers that may lead to relapse
There are a few things you can do to avoid alcohol triggers…
- Stay positive
- Surround yourself with a great support group or person
- Understand what sets you off
- Deep breathing helps with anger or walking away from the situation
- Exercise
- Do something that takes your mind off of what is making you nervous or upset
- Remember how you were when not sober
- Get plenty of sleep
- Eat right
- Stay focused on your sobriety
- Don’t sweat the small stuff
- Relax whenever you can
- Don’t take life so serious at times
- Play with a dog or a cat
- Chew gum
- Get to an AA or NA meeting quick if you can
- Call your sponsor if you have one
You see…. there are many things you can do to get yourself back to focusing on staying sober and keep those triggers from getting the best of you so you don’t relapse!
Focus is the key here folks!
I want to say thanks to all who have not given up to any of their alcoholic triggers as I have not either, it is not so easy at times but once you get past them, it gets easier every time one hits you.
And for all those who think they have nobody to chat with, email me at cbuda20606jwireman@gmail.com and write in the subject line HELP and I will!
I check my email many times during the day and I am always willing to help another recovering alcoholic stay on task and stay focused on keeping their sobriety.
You can also find me on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/ANewStartOnLife
Thanks for taking the time to read this, I really hope it helps. 🙂