Definitions and Terms
Using more/longer than intended, failed attempts to cut down, intense cravings, neglecting responsibilities, continued use despite problems, risky use, and tolerance/withdrawal are part of diagnosis these conditions.
What is a substance use disorder?
This substances is involved in roughly one-third of suicides, and is present in 40-60% of domestic abuse situations, potentially increasing violence severity, while this substance-dependent individuals face significantly higher suicide risk (e.g., 120x more likely)
What is Alcohol?
In this Stage pf Change the individual is experiencing ambivalence about change. They can see reasons to change their behavior, but they are still hesitant. The problem behavior continue
What is Contemplation?
He is the puppet maker who created Pinocchio.
Who is Geppetto?
45-120 days
This stage may feature a return to old behaviors; an inability to enjoy normal pleasures, anger, hostility, irritability, aggression, depression, anxiety; cravings and using thoughts may increase. It includes mood swings, isolation, unclear thinking, relationship problems, and feeling “defeated”, with an increase in mental health symptoms, feeling exhausted, sleeping more and having using dreams.
Potential relapse factors in this stage include increased emotions, relationship conflicts, relapse justifications, loss of motivation, lack of vision in recovery, insomnia, low energy, fatigue, exhaustion, dissolution of structure, no longer completing positive behavioral changes, secondary use of substances and increased mental health symptoms.
What is the Wall?
He help Wendy, Michael and John go to Neverland.
Who is Peter Pan?
This skill includes exercises, spending time outdoors, crafting, hobbies, creative activities, breathing exercises, mindfulness, mediation, connect with others who are supportive of your recovery, volunteer.
What are Healthy Outlets for Stress?
He is Mickey’s dog.
Who is Pluto?
This intense reaction can happened after a trigger, and without use of coping skills, can drastically increase likelihood of relapsing. .
What is a Craving?
Approximately 48.4 million people in the U.S., aged 12 or older, struggled with this.
What is a substance use disorder?
The changes made during the action stage are maintained. The individual may continue to face challenges, but at this point they have successfully changed their behavior for a significant period of time.
What is Meintenance?
This is the first phase of the three phases of relapse. During this stage, the person is not actively thinking about using drugs or alcohol but has started to engage in these warning signs: bottling up your emotions, Not going to recovery support group meetings, Isolating yourself from peers and family, Poor eating and sleeping habits, Going to meetings but not sharing, Focusing on other people and their problems to avoid your own, Not managing anxiety, anger, or other emotional problems in a healthy way, Intolerance, Defensiveness, Mood swings, Not asking for help, Poor self-care emotionally or physical, Not having sober fun or taking time for oneself
What is Emotional Relapse?
n this stage the recovering person can develop insights into the underlying problems that contributed to their addiction, develop insights into unhealthy relationships, may experience cycling patterns of addictive behavior and struggle with the “lifelong” concept of addiction. Other dysfunctional patterns may emerge.
Potential relapse factors in this stage include returning to old behaviors, reuniting with using people/places/other triggers, relaxation of their recovery structure and program, and the eventual discontinuation of meetings/treatment.
What is Resolution?
This type of trigger includes People like Old using partners, people who pressure you. Places like Bars, specific rooms, places where you used. Things like Seeing drugs, syringes, certain cars, specific objects. Situations like Social gatherings, increased responsibilities, positive experiences
What is external triggers?
She is the villain in 101 Dalmatians.
Who is Cruella De Vil?
Practicing this can help individuals stay present and reduce overwhelming emotions. Meditation can help manage stress and promote mental clarity.
What is Mindfulness and Meditation?
The process by which presentation of a stimulus such as a drug increases the probability of a response like drug taking. This is one of the main factors in building a habit of using substances.
What is Positive Reinforcement?
He famously said, "Dishonor! Dishonor on your whole family! Make a note of this: dishonor on you, dishonor on your cow!"
Who is Mushu?
In this Stage of Change significant steps are taken to end the problem behavior. The individual might be avoiding triggers, reaching out for help, or taking other steps to avoid temptation.
What is Action?
He is sometimes called Experiment 626.
Who is Stitch?
15-45 days
In this stage the recovering person often feels really good and may become overconfident, have difficulty concentrating, develop memory problems, have intense feelings, become overly emotional, experience mood swings, and talk about making many lifestyle changes at one time.
Potential relapse factors in this stage include overconfidence, secondary use of other substances, other compulsive behaviors, discontinuation of their structure, resistance to behavioral change, a return to old behaviors/friends/places/lifestyle or an inability to prioritize.
The Honeymoon Stage or "Pink Cloud"
The common trigger acronym H.A.L.T. helps you identify what basic needs?
What is Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired?
When you sense your mind going down a negative train of thought, snapping this disrupts the pleasure center of your brain, serving as a quick reminder to take captive of negative thoughts as they surface.
What is a rubber band?
He is the intruder who helps Rapunzel out of her tower to see the world.
Who is Flynn Rider?
He is Mrs. Potts' son.
Who is Chip?
This plays about 40% to 60% of a person risk of addiction.
What is Genetics?
Pocahontas saves the life of this English explorer.
Who is John Smith?
When a person doesn’t take the time to acknowledge and address the symptoms from emotional and mental relapse, it doesn’t take long to lead down the path to this relapse stage. This includes the act of drinking alcohol or using other drugs. The key is to reach out for help if you find yourself in in this stage immediately in order to stop the vicious cycle of addiction before it is too late.
What is physical relapse?
These are the anmes of Hades' minions in Hercules?
Who are Pain and Panic?
This type of trigger includes feelings like Shame, guilt, anger, sadness, fear, anxiety, hopelessness. Mental States like Boredom, stress, negative self-talk, intrusive thoughts. Mental Health such as Co-occurring conditions like depression or PTSD.
What is internal triggers?
Cinderella leaves this behind at the ball.
What is a glass slippper?
Building this means creating a set of repeated actions and habits, like waking up, exercising, working, and winding down at specific times, to bring structure, reduce stress, and align daily tasks with bigger goals for greater productivity and well-being. It's about transforming intentional effort into consistent patterns that support mental clarity, physical health, and overall life balance, rather than relying purely on willpower.
What is building a daily routine?
This cause feelings, experiences and physical reactions that occur when someone stops using and something can be fatal.
What is Withdrawal?
7.7 million people had this disorder, meaning they have both an alcohol and a drug use disorder simultaneously.
What is Co-Occurring Disorder?
The costs of the problem behavior (such as drug use) are not yet recognized. The individual is in denial and is not seriously considering changing their behavior. They may have made previous attempts to change, but have since given up.
What is Precontemplation?
These involves distorted, self-centered thoughts that justify substance use and include Denial/Minimization, Rationalization, All-or-Nothing Thinking, Self-Pity/Victim Mentality, Grandiosity/Uniqueness, Fear of Exposure/Shame, Impulsivity/Pleasure-Seeking, Control/Powerlessness, Selective Effort/Perfectionism
What is Addictive/distorted thinking?
She is Mickey Mouse's sweetheart.
Who is Minnie Mouse?
These triggers involve the body's physical states and sensations, experiencing physical discomfort or pain, fatigue, or the body's craving due to withdrawal, often linked to underlying stress, or even positive highs that mimic past substance-induced euphoria, prompting a desire to "feel normal" or escape physical/emotional distress.
What is physiological triggers?
These directly decrease the likelihood of substance use and behavioral health problems or reduce the impact of risk factors on behavioral health problems.
What are Protective Factors?
Delay, Drink water, Distract, Deep Breathing (de-stress), and Decatastrophizing are part of this acronym.
What is the 5-D's?
He voiced Mufasa .
Who is James Earl Jones?
These are the names of the seven dwarves
Who areSneezy, Bashful, Sleepy, Happy, Grumpy, Doc, and Dopey?
The individual has decided to change their behavior, and they begin to think about how to do so. During this stage they will begin to make minor changes to support their goal, but they might not have completely ended the unwanted behavior
What is Preparation?
Ursula takes this from Ariel in The Little Mermaid.
What is her voice?
120-180 days
This stage may feature relationship problems, boredom, lack of goals and direction, guilt and shame over past behaviors, job dissatisfaction and relationship dissatisfaction. Underlying psychopathology/trauma/life issues that contributed to the addictive behavior may surface.
Potential relapse factors include developing a secondary addiction, relaxing of structure, and a struggling with acceptance of disease, along with reemergence of underlying psychopathology/trauma/life issues.
What is Adjustment Stage?
This type of trigger includes Seeing drug-related items (lighters, mirrors, rolling papers). Witnessing scenes of substance use in movies or shows. The sight of specific substances (e.g., white powder resembling cocaine).Physical sensations like the texture of a pipe or rolling paper. The smell of alcohol, cigarettes, or specific drugs. Certain foods or drinks (e.g., sugary drinks) that mimic drug textures or taste. Specific songs or music associated with past use. Sounds of parties or social gatherings where substances were present. Ringing phones or other sounds linked to getting or using drugs.
What is Sensory Triggers?
This skill helps control behaviors such as drug and alcohol use, emotional outbursts, aggression, and other unwanted impulses. The goal of this technique is to recognize and accept the feelings of an urge, rather than trying to suppress them.
What is Urge Surfing?
He Who sang “I can show you the world”.
Who is Aladdin?
This is the process in which the same amount of a substance no longer cause the same reaction. It causes increase use as one needs more and more of the substances to feel it's effects.
What is Tolerance?
Only about this number in 5 (19.3%, or 10.2 million) of those classified as needing substance use treatment actually received it in 2024.
What is 1?
What is the name of Simba's Uncle?
Who is Scar?
When we choose to not work on any signs or symptoms of the emotional stage, there is increased risk of transitioning to the second stage of relapse. Once in this relapse stage, which is best described as a war going on inside one’s mind, the individual is at high risk for physical relapse. Part of them wants to use, while the other part doesn’t. Fantasizing about using is not uncommon in this stage. As individuals go deeper into the mental relapse stage, their cognitive resistance to relapse diminishes and their need of escape increases.
What is Mental Relapse?
This Stage Occurs in 0-15 days. During this stage the recovering person will likely experience physical detoxification, along with cravings, depression, low energy, irritability, insomnia and disordered thinking.
Potential relapse factors in this stage may include having unstructured time, nearness of triggers, other using behavior, powerful cravings, using dreams, paranoia, anxiety, depression and sleep problems.
What is Withdrawal?
This is a cue that brings back thoughts, feelings, or memories of addiction, leading to potential relapse.
What is triggers?
This visualization technique involves you thinking about all the potential circumstances that will arise if you do give in to your desire to relapse. This exercise aims to show the individual that if they give in to “just one drink,” they could be right back where they were before they went through recovery.
What is Playing the Tape?
Doing this with your thoughts and feelings can provide clarity and help manage emotions. This allows individuals to process their experiences and reflect on their progress, offering a space for self-exploration and growth.
What is journaling?