CDawg
05-05-2008, 11:33 AM
SMART Recovery is a 4 Point program....
Point 2: Coping with Urges.
We often have unrealistic beliefs about urges, or exaggerate their intensity. People commonly believe that:
1. Urges are awful or unbearable.
2. Urges are constant, and get worse.
3. Urges force one to use or act, that we can't control our behavior when we really want something.
4. We will suffer serious mental anguish if we don't act on our urges.
You can become more aware of your urges and notice useful patterns by keeping a log or journal. This can help you identify triggers or specific situations which seem to lead to urges. Note the time, place, intensity, your emotional state. This can help you predict when urges are likely to occur. Don't make this a self-fulfilling prophecy! Just have other activities planned for those likely times.
Here are some specific methods suggested by Dr. Robert Sarmiento
Accept the urge ”but don't act on it.
Ignore the urge.
Detach from the urge.
Rate the urge.
Distract yourself. Do something.
Focus on the time "the moment, what you were thinking" when you decided to change your behavior.
Do relaxation or visualization exercises.
Personify the urge, call it "the alcohol salesman" in your head.
Remind yourself that the urge will pass.
Confront the urge.
Here are some behavioral suggestions from a presentation by Dr. Joe Gerstein, past president of SMART Recovery:
Put a rubber band on your wrist, snap it when you feel an urge.
Write a sh*t list on a 3 x 5 card, carry it in your pocket.
Distract yourself! Try deep breathing, running in place, count backwards from 100. Try this one: subtract 7 from 100, and keep going.
"Surf the wave" urges are time-limited. Just wait.
Do some relaxation exercises.
Reward yourself. Do something simple, inexpensive.
Cognitive approaches to urges focus on identifying the harmful beliefs and disputing them.
Beliefs to watch out for include
Disempowerment statements. "I wasn't thinking anything"¯
Predictive thoughts. "I'm just going to drink anyway. If someone offers me a drink I know I'll accept it".
Urge-intensifying statements. "Ill just have one. I should be able to drink like everyone else".
Absolute thoughts. Watch for Should...Must...Have to...Can't...Ought...All...Need...Always...Never .. ..Awful.....Terrible.. Horrible...Can't Stand¯
Disputing these types of statements and thoughts is done most easily with questions.
Question the validity or accuracy: is the belief or statement accurate, or is it untrue, distorted, or exaggerated?
Replace the statement or thought with an accurate statement. Note: this is not a process of replacing negative thoughts with positive ones. It can be much more useful to be realistic.
Repeat these more accurate statements, they will become your new beliefs.
The ABC is the basic tool for disputing irrational beliefs, and there are excellent essays and worksheets on how to do an ABC elsewhere. What we're doing is describing an emotional condition in which we find ourselves
identifying the beliefs that underlie that condition consciously disputing them.
Disputing irrational beliefs has been called "the heart of the process". So keep the rest of the ABC simple. The emotional condition can usually be described in one or two words (angry, upset, overwhelmed, sad). We may not be able to readily identify an activating event, or we may get overly detailed in that. Keep the fundamental principle in mind: our behavior results from our beliefs, and our beliefs can be changed.
Don S
(adapted from an article by Dr. Robert Sarmiento, and presentations by SMART Recovery facilitators)
Reposted with permission
Peace,
C
Point 2: Coping with Urges.
We often have unrealistic beliefs about urges, or exaggerate their intensity. People commonly believe that:
1. Urges are awful or unbearable.
2. Urges are constant, and get worse.
3. Urges force one to use or act, that we can't control our behavior when we really want something.
4. We will suffer serious mental anguish if we don't act on our urges.
You can become more aware of your urges and notice useful patterns by keeping a log or journal. This can help you identify triggers or specific situations which seem to lead to urges. Note the time, place, intensity, your emotional state. This can help you predict when urges are likely to occur. Don't make this a self-fulfilling prophecy! Just have other activities planned for those likely times.
Here are some specific methods suggested by Dr. Robert Sarmiento
Accept the urge ”but don't act on it.
Ignore the urge.
Detach from the urge.
Rate the urge.
Distract yourself. Do something.
Focus on the time "the moment, what you were thinking" when you decided to change your behavior.
Do relaxation or visualization exercises.
Personify the urge, call it "the alcohol salesman" in your head.
Remind yourself that the urge will pass.
Confront the urge.
Here are some behavioral suggestions from a presentation by Dr. Joe Gerstein, past president of SMART Recovery:
Put a rubber band on your wrist, snap it when you feel an urge.
Write a sh*t list on a 3 x 5 card, carry it in your pocket.
Distract yourself! Try deep breathing, running in place, count backwards from 100. Try this one: subtract 7 from 100, and keep going.
"Surf the wave" urges are time-limited. Just wait.
Do some relaxation exercises.
Reward yourself. Do something simple, inexpensive.
Cognitive approaches to urges focus on identifying the harmful beliefs and disputing them.
Beliefs to watch out for include
Disempowerment statements. "I wasn't thinking anything"¯
Predictive thoughts. "I'm just going to drink anyway. If someone offers me a drink I know I'll accept it".
Urge-intensifying statements. "Ill just have one. I should be able to drink like everyone else".
Absolute thoughts. Watch for Should...Must...Have to...Can't...Ought...All...Need...Always...Never .. ..Awful.....Terrible.. Horrible...Can't Stand¯
Disputing these types of statements and thoughts is done most easily with questions.
Question the validity or accuracy: is the belief or statement accurate, or is it untrue, distorted, or exaggerated?
Replace the statement or thought with an accurate statement. Note: this is not a process of replacing negative thoughts with positive ones. It can be much more useful to be realistic.
Repeat these more accurate statements, they will become your new beliefs.
The ABC is the basic tool for disputing irrational beliefs, and there are excellent essays and worksheets on how to do an ABC elsewhere. What we're doing is describing an emotional condition in which we find ourselves
identifying the beliefs that underlie that condition consciously disputing them.
Disputing irrational beliefs has been called "the heart of the process". So keep the rest of the ABC simple. The emotional condition can usually be described in one or two words (angry, upset, overwhelmed, sad). We may not be able to readily identify an activating event, or we may get overly detailed in that. Keep the fundamental principle in mind: our behavior results from our beliefs, and our beliefs can be changed.
Don S
(adapted from an article by Dr. Robert Sarmiento, and presentations by SMART Recovery facilitators)
Reposted with permission
Peace,
C