Triggers & Cravings
A client smells alcohol and suddenly wants to drink.
What is an environmental trigger?
Being around others who are actively using.
What is a social trigger?
Taking slow, deep breaths to calm the body.
What is grounding (or breathing technique)?
A client uses after an argument with a partner.
What is emotional trigger?
Legal problems related to substance use are this type of consequence.
What are external consequences?
A person feels bored and begins thinking about using.
What is an emotional/internal trigger?
Major life stress (loss, conflict, job issues) increases risk of this.
What is relapse?
Calling someone instead of using.
What is using a support system?
A client stops going to meetings and slowly isolates.
What is relapse warning sign?
A client continues using despite consequences. This shows what?
What is loss of control (or addiction)?
What is an emotional/internal trigger?
What is a short period (minutes, not forever)?
Celebrations or “good times” can also trigger use. This is called what type of trigger?
What is a positive trigger?
Replacing substance use with exercise or hobbies.
What is a healthy coping skill?
A person replaces substance use with work, exercise, or relationships in an extreme way.
What is cross-addiction (or replacement behavior)?
Skipping routines, isolating, and poor sleep are early signs of this.
What are relapse warning signs?
A strategy where someone “rides out” a craving without acting on it.
What is urge surfing?
A person feels overconfident and stops using coping skills.
What is relapse risk due to overconfidence?
Planning ahead for triggers before they happen.
What is relapse prevention planning?
A client says, “I feel nothing without using.”
What is early recovery emotional flatness?
Isolation increases risk, while this reduces it.
What is connection?
A client says cravings hit hardest at night when alone. What pattern is this?
What is a high-risk situation (time + isolation trigger)?
A client has money, free time, and no accountability.
What is a high-risk environment?
Recognizing early warning signs before relapse occurs.
What is self-awareness (or relapse awareness)?
A person has cravings, isolates, stops coping skills, then uses.
What is the relapse process (not just a single event)?
Group therapy helps by providing shared experience and this.
What is belonging?