Abstract
With millions of people reported as being in recovery from substance use disorder (SUD), surprisingly little is known about what helps to sustain recovery and avoid relapse in the long run. Healthy SUD recovery habits might contribute to maintaining remission over the years. In this chapter, we review what is known about predictors of long-term SUD recovery and healthy habits learned in three commonly used approaches that people seeking help for SUD are exposed to: 12-step peer-support groups, cognitive-behavioural SUD treatment, and mindfulness-based relapse prevention. Our pilot data shows that habits learned through 12-step group participation are considered important by individuals in recovery from SUD. Further, we propose that establishing healthy sleep and exercise habits might aid relapse prevention, even though these are not typically considered in SUD treatment. Throughout the chapter, gaps in the current knowledge on long-term recovery are identified.
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Notes
- 1.
With regard to frequency, item heterogeneity made it difficult to interpret item-level variance. For some items, frequency was largely a function of opportunity (as in agreeing to requests for help); while for others, frequency was directly determined by personal decision (e.g., practicing self-affirmations). With regard to cues, participants reported different interpretations of the question, with some understanding “cue” as a stimulus in the external or internal environment (as intended), but others perceiving “cue” as synonymous with “reason” (e.g., “I just know it is important, and that is my cue.”).
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Acknowledgements
Financial support for this work was received from the Templeton Foundation (#014-2017) and National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA, R01DA038648, PI: Amaro). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health or the Templeton Foundation. The authors thank Holly Sherman and Sharon Weber of USC’s “The Haven at College” for their collaboration in developing the Recovery Habits interview used in this chapter.
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Arnaudova, I., Amaro, H., Monterosso, J. (2018). Recovery Habits: A Habit Perspective on Recovery from Substance Use Disorder. In: Verplanken, B. (eds) The Psychology of Habit. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-97529-0_17
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