Knowing and Avoiding Triggers

Relapse Prevention 02Title: Knowing and Avoiding TriggersFocus Keyphrase: Addiction TriggersExcerpt: People in recovery need to be careful about handling triggers.Talking Points:A trigger can be anything that brings back thoughts, feelings, or memories that have to do with our addiction. External triggers are the persons, places and things that remind you of the days you used. These need to be avoided at all costs.Internal triggers are the emotions and thoughts that surrounded your desire to use in the past.How you can avoid the triggers:Pray. Recognize the temptation and pray for strength to say “No!” Matthew 26:41Submit to God. Choose God’s will instead of allowing your emotions and thoughts to lead you. James 4:7Stay accountable to a sponsor or mentor. You need someone who can ask the hard questions and hold you accountable. Proverbs 11:14Change your lifestyle. Create new habits and a new way of doing things. 2 Corinthians 5:17 Discussion:Initial reactions to this topic? What jumped out at you?Warm up question: Has anyone shot a gun before?  Can you explain what the steps are leading up to the shot being fired?How does it make you feel that God wants a personal relationship with you and cares about the intimate details of your life?Why do you think it would be important to get rid of sin in other areas of your life in order to help you stay abstinent from your addiction?Read Proverbs 11:14 NASB Do you have someone to help with guidance in your life?Can you think of a personal internal trigger you are facing or have faced in the past? What is a way you can cope with or avoid this trigger?Can you think of a personal external trigger you are facing or have faced in the past? What is a way you can cope with or avoid this trigger?Read 1 Corinthians 10:13 ESV.  How is being tempted different than hardships and struggle?Is there a step you need to take based on today’s topic?See Also:Emotional IntelligenceStep 4/Recovery - Getting RealDealing with Our ThoughtsShownotes:People in recovery need to be careful about handling triggers.Hook/IntroMost addicts have experienced, at one point or another, short-term victory over their addiction, only to find themselves right back into it again. And I’m sure we’ve all asked ourselves, “how did I get back here to this place?”Last week we talked about how relapse is a process, not an event.Emotional, Mental, and then PhysicalAnd today, we’re going to talk about the personal emotional and mental elements that can lead us down the track to relapse.We call these personal elements “triggers”Triggers are unique to each individualAddiction triggers are probably one of the most difficult things to understand for the non-addict.Most non-addicts just think an addict should be able to make a decision and simply stop using.They fail to realize that for most addicts, if they could simply choose to stop with a snap of their fingers, they would.Triggers are the reason that recovery itself is a process, not a snap decision.Learning what our triggers are and how to avoid them is crucial in the battle against relapse.Hopefully our conversation today will be helpful not just for the addict to identify triggers, but also for those who...