The Stages of Addiction Recovery

While each person will have a unique path to recovery, there are several general stages of addiction recovery most people go through in the healing process. Everyone who goes through addiction, detox, and treatment will go through the stages of recovery in one way or another. There are five primary stages of recovery:

• Precontemplation stage
• Contemplation stage
• Preparation stage
• Action stage
• Maintenance stage

At Victory Bay Recovery Center, our team of counselors and therapists will be at your side at every step providing you with the resources and support necessary for you to heal.

Pre-contemplation Stage

The pre-contemplation stage is one where the client is not yet considering seeking help or stopping substance abuse. They may not yet be ready to change. This is the first stage because people often don’t think that their behaviors are problematic. They may have just realized that their behaviors have negative side effects, too, which pushes them on to the contemplation stage.

Contemplation Stage

In the contemplation stage, those struggling with addiction start to think about quitting or moderating their behaviors. In this stage, the client might be willing to think about how changes would positively help them or be open to learning strategies for controlling their behaviors. They may not yet be ready to move forward with action, though.

Preparation Stage

In the preparation stage, the individuals tarts to think about what they would do if they wanted to carry out the changes that they’re thinking of. They might learn more about a substance abuse treatment program or start to look into the financial options they have. They may put together a support team or decide how to make the changes they want in their life.

Action Stage

The action stage works rapidly because it’s when the individual client decides that it’s time to move forward with treatment. This is the stage when real changes happen.

It’s worth mentioning that the action stage is among the most stressful. Even though the individual is making changes that will benefit them in the long-term, the reality is that changing their behaviors may be difficult. Detoxification could be frustrating, time-consuming, or painful. They may struggle with the early phases of treatment.

Since this stage is so complex, working with a treatment facility is a good idea. Having enough support helps the client set realistic goals and expectations to happen when they need to. For some people, the changes happen slowly over time. For others, everything happens all at once, like a major life change.

Maintenance Stage

The maintenance stage is the last. This happens after someone leaves addiction treatment and works to maintain their sobriety. This stage focuses on holding onto their intentions and maintaining the new behaviors they’ve learned for people who have addictions to drugs or alcohol.

If the maintenance stage fails, then they will enter into the relapse stage. Coming out of that, the individual may go back to the preparation or action stage before maintaining it once again.

Think of the stages of addiction recovery as a cyclical process. While most people want the process to be a straight line, someone in the contemplation stage can move back into pre-contemplation or relapse. It’s also possible to maintain sobriety in the maintenance stage and never go back to the relapse stage.

Note that the relapse stage is not always included in the recovery stages because it’s when an addictive behavior is started again. Depending on the individual, this might happen several times before maintenance is reached for the long-term.

Contact Victory Bay for Help with Addiction Recovery

At Victory Bay, we know how powerful addiction recovery can be and how it changes your life. Whether you or a loved one needs support, we’re here to help. Call today at [Direct] to learn more about the individualized treatment programs we have available.