Coping Skills
Methods/strategies to help you tolerate uncomfortable emotions or stressful situations.
Coping Skills
To help people recover from alcoholism through mutual support and the 12-Steps.
Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)
Condition in which a person feels a strong, often difficult-to-control need to use a substance or engage in a behavior, even when it causes harmful consequences.
Addiction
Strong desire or PHYSICAL urge to use a substance or engage in an addictive behavior.
Craving
The presence of both a mental health disorder and a substance use disorder.
Co-Occurring Disorders
Give an example of a healthy coping skill.
Going for a walk, taking a shower/bath, creating a to-do list, engaging in a hobby, exercising, reading, asking for support from a friend and/or professional, leaving unhealthy situations, mindfulness, etc.
What is the name of the book that AA reads/studies?
The Big Book
Returning to substance use after a period of abstinence or recovery.
Relapse
Example of an external trigger.
Parties, sporting events, bars/clubs, trap house, concerts, driving, liquor stores, sober support groups, weekends, the park, after getting paid, when carrying money, when gaining weight, movies, after work, etc.
Name a mental health disorder.
Depression, anxiety, PTSD, ADHD, panic disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, OCD, Borderline Personality Disorder, etc.
Give an example of an unhealthy coping skill.
Alcohol or drug use, gambling, overworking, isolating, shopping/overspending, avoiding, negative self-talk, procrastinating, doom-scrolling, comparing yourself to others, etc.
"We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable".
What is the term for needing more of a substance to achieve the same effect?
Tolerance
Example of an internal trigger.
Fear, anger, frustration, happy, confident, depressed, anxious, irritated, sad, excited, bored, tired/exhausted, worried, grieving, hungry, etc.
What does PTSD stand for?
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (common in people with substance use disorders)
Why do we talk about coping skills in treatment?
Many people were not intentionally taught about coping skills as children, people may have seen their family or friends use unhealthy coping skills, some people have never learned how to cope using healthy strategies, or for many people in treatment, using substances was their #1 way to cope.
Who founded AA (2 names)?
Bill Wilson (Bill W.) and Dr. Bob Smith (Dr. Bob)
What are physical and/or psychological symptoms that can occur when reducing or stopping a substance?
Withdrawal symptoms
What does HALT stand for?
Hungry, angry, lonely, and tired.
What is the term when someone is using alcohol, drugs, or another behavior to try to manage emotional or psychological symptoms?
Self-Medication
Two TYPES of healthy coping skills. __________ -focused.
Emotion-focused and problem-focused.
What year was AA founded?
1935
Replacing one addictive substance or behavior with another.
Cross-Addiction
How long can a craving last for (minutes)?
9-10 minutes
What is another term for co-occurring disorders (2)?
Dual diagnosis or co-morbidity