Slips and Relapses
Response to Slips and Relapses
Slips and relapses are considered normal and even expected parts of early recovery, as are frequent urges to drink.
The 12 step model regards addiction as an illness characterized by compulsion that overwhelms individual willpower. Until the client is solidly connected to a 12 step fellowship, he or she is expected to experience difficulty sustaining sobriety even with the best of intentions.
The primary purpose of the review part of the Brief-TSF session is to assess the client’s recovery and to evaluate urges and slips and how the client dealt with them. This material becomes an important context in which the facilitator gradually shapes greater involvement in AA.
Typically, a pattern is discerned in slips. For example, it is common for a client to stay clean and sober for 1 or 2 days after a meeting and then to slip. Identifying this pattern (often with the aid of a calendar) can help to reinforce the importance of active involvement in AA.
In some circumstances a pattern of frequent slips despite attendance at meetings will lead the facilitator to recommend inpatient treatment.
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