Cravings are your body and mind’s response to various triggers in which you typically turn to drugs or alcohol. For example, if every time you get anxious or depressed you turn to drugs or alcohol, cravings then arise. Getting sober doesn’t mean you’ll never have triggers again, which is why it’s important to learn how to work through these cravings. Mindfulness is a great form of relapse prevention because you learn how to work with your cravings.
Through this form of relapse prevention, you’ll begin to learn how to observe your cravings with a gentle curiosity. One form of mindfulness is a body scan, and in this practice, you recognize what your body feels like when you have cravings. This is extremely beneficial because it’s much easier to deal with physical sensations than thoughts. Of course, thoughts will arise, but mindfulness will help you allow them to pass without latching onto them.
Since you’re going to face many intense triggers in early recovery, it’s important to have a skill that you can use anywhere. With mindfulness relapse prevention, you’ll see that not only can you do it formally, but you can do it informally as well. There are practices such as mindful walking, mindful eating, mindful listening, and many more. The more you do the various practices, the sooner you’ll see your cravings and emotions begin to become more manageable.
Ardu Recovery Center is a Utah addiction treatment program that’s here to help you overcome your addiction. Not only do we teach you mindfulness, but we have a wide range of other therapeutic methods we use. We’re also a dual diagnosis treatment facility, which means we can assist you with any mental illness you may be struggling with. Our 80-person residential treatment facility provides you with a great peer support system so you can see that you’re not alone in your journey of recovery.
