It would be wonderful if completing treatment meant you would never experience another craving for drugs or alcohol. Unfortunately, addiction is a chronic disease, so you probably will have cravings for months or even years after you complete treatment. For this reason, it is important to have a plan for how you will manage cravings that arise. At Safe Harbor Recovery Center in Portsmouth, Virginia, we treat clients who have faced addiction and develop individualized care plans with them that include craving management.
Normalizing Cravings
It is not unusual for people who have experienced addiction to have cravings. It does not mean that you will relapse or that you aren’t committed to your recovery. It’s just part of the journey. You don’t need to feel bad about admitting that you experience cravings. SMART Recovery recommends the DEADS strategy to address cravings:
- Delay. Know that the craving will go away with time. Try to do something else that will occupy your mind and time. Cravings typically only last about 15-30 minutes, so you may not need to redirect your brain for very long, but being able to do it for long enough is an important skill. Some activities you can try include:
- Watching a movie or TV show
- Reading a book
- Going for a walk outside
- Journaling
- Drawing, painting, or enjoying some other creative hobby
- Listening to music
- Escape. If you find a craving trigger staring you in the face, remove yourself from that situation as quickly as possible and try not to find yourself in that situation again, if you can avoid it. If it’s wine bottles in the grocery store, consider shopping somewhere that does not sell alcohol or buying your groceries online. If it’s a person drinking or using at a party, find the door.
- Accept. Understand that your cravings are normal, they will pass, and take the opportunity to practice being uncomfortable. When you get through this, you will feel better about staying sober.
- Dispute. If you have developed counterstatements that help you attack your urges and cravings, you can use these to remind yourself that urges and cravings aren’t rational and won’t move you forward with the life you want.
- Substitute. As soon as you feel a craving coming on, quickly think of something that would be more beneficial or fun. You can make a list beforehand, so that it is readily available when you need it. If you’re struggling to think through how you would like to manage your cravings, you could try using a worksheet to guide you.
Additional Strategies for Managing Cravings
Each person is unique, so that means their recovery is also unique. How you manage your cravings may be different from the next person, so you have to find what works for you so that you can avoid a relapse. The following are ideas that have worked for other people in recovery:
- Stress management. No one does their best decision-making when they are stressed out. If you used substances in the past to manage stress, your brain is more likely to think of that solution, as unhelpful as it was for you, than a newer coping skill you’re still developing, so it’s best to manage your stress before it gets out of control.
- Give your body quality rest and nutrition. Eating well and sleeping well will leave you feeling a lot better than if you’re skipping sleep and eating junk food. The better you feel, the more readily you can cope with whatever comes your way.
- Mindfulness. Deep breathing, meditation, yoga, and other mindfulness practices that keep you in the moment can help you push through a craving and remember that they are only temporary.
- Turning off anything that glorifies drinking or drug use. Music, movies, TV shows, books, or other forms of entertainment that make substance use seem cool or fun can be a trigger for cravings. You will likely find it more helpful to take in entertainment that talks about people who recovered, to strengthen your commitment to being in recovery. You may also find that specific visuals are triggering for you, such as lighters, bottles, or paraphernalia.
- Reaching out for support. A friend, family member, therapist, sponsor, or peer from the recovery community can be a good support when you’re struggling. Have the numbers of several people saved in your phone, in case you need to talk.
- Finding a meeting. There are in-person and online recovery meetings you can attend pretty much any day of the week. AA, NA, SMART Recovery, Celebrate Recovery, and others have schedules and meeting locations on their websites.
Depending on what substances you’re recovering from, there may also be medications that can help to reduce cravings. At Safe Harbor Recovery Center, we offer medication-assisted treatment and also work with clients to manage underlying mental health issues that could complicate their recovery from addiction.