Coping Strategies for MAT Patients: Tips for Staying in Recovery Long Term

Starting medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is an exciting step in the recovery process. It shows how committed you are to recovering from opioid use disorder (OUD), but it’s not the end of the road.

Coping strategies for MAT patients will empower you to continue with your recovery journey, even when you feel tempted to return to use. To manage your cravings during recovery, you need to be able to identify your triggers, develop a relapse prevention plan, prioritize self-care, and remember to celebrate your recovery.

Studies suggest that patients taking buprenorphine-based medications are 40% less likely to return to use than those not taking a medication. Still, learning to cope with the psychological parts of recovery is important if you want to heal for the long term.

At ReVIDA® Recovery, we’re dedicated to empowering you to succeed in recovery. That’s why we focus on treating all aspects of OUD.

Key Takeaways

• The first step to coping during MAT and recovery is to identify your triggers so you can avoid them when possible and deal with them when they occur.
• A relapse prevention plan, or a written document that identifies your triggers, goals for recovery, and personalized coping strategies, is helpful, especially during triggering situations.
• Prioritizing self-care by using tactics like the HALT method to identify your specific needs helps you to reduce stress and maintain your recovery.
• Coping strategies often focus on understanding what could go wrong and preventing it, but it’s also important to remember your successes.

Coping With Triggers During Recovery

If you’re in MAT, that means you probably don’t experience many of the physical withdrawal symptoms associated with ending opioid use, including cravings. Being able to avoid the physical aspects of withdrawal improves the likelihood that you’ll succeed in recovery for the long term.

However, it’s also important to handle the psychological aspects of recovery. For most people, managing triggers during opioid recovery is the key to maintaining long-term success.

Identifying Triggers During Recovery

The first step in coping with triggers during recovery is identifying them. Your triggers are going to be unique to you. They’re reminders of your experience with opioids and make you want to return to use.

Most triggers fit into one of two categories: internal or external.

To cope with your triggers effectively, you must first identify them. When you’re trying to identify your triggers, consider doing things like:

• Brainstorming potential triggers with a mental health professional
• Talking to trusted loved ones about your triggers
• Start a list on your phone or in a journal
• Take time to check in with your body and see how familiar environments make you feel

Strategies for Avoiding Triggers When Possible

Avoiding triggers, when possible, is a healthy part of recovery. During MAT, you’ll make serious life changes. Part of changing your life for the better is building new routines and relationships that support the lifestyle that you want to live in recovery.

Tips for avoiding triggers include:

• Setting boundaries with others who are still taking opioids
• Removing yourself from settings that remind you of opioids
• Develop new routines that don’t involve triggers
• Manage negative emotions in healthy ways
• Get treatment for co-occurring mental health conditions

Dealing with Triggers When They Occur

It isn’t always possible to avoid triggers entirely. Sometimes, you’ll have to go places that remind you of your opioid use or interact with people who still actively take them. This can be overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to lead to a return to use.

The best way to cope with triggers is to be prepared for them to occur. This helps you know what to do when they happen.

For example, consider:

• Taking a trusted individual with you to places where triggers could occur
• Practicing how you’ll respond to triggers ahead of time
• Finding healthy short-term distractions, like listening to music
• Using deep breathing and mindfulness techniques

The most important part of coping with your triggers is staying calm and remembering your goals. Triggers can be overwhelming, but focusing on your goals for recovery will give you a sense of control and remind you what you’re working towards.

Relapse Prevention Planning While You’re in MAT

Creating a relapse prevention plan is one of the most effective ways to prepare for coping during recovery. A relapse prevention plan is a predetermined, written-out plan where you lay out what you’re going to do to avoid returning to use when you’re feeling tempted or triggered.

The 3 essential elements you should include in your relapse prevention plan are:

1. A list of triggers: Your written relapse prevention plan should include a section where you note what your biggest triggers are. This list can evolve over time, but just getting it started helps you stay aware of what makes you want to return to use.
2. Preventative strategies: Make notes of what routine activities you can do to prevent yourself from feeling the desire to return to use. Consider volunteer opportunities, fulfilling hobbies, and meaningful relationships that remind you why you’ve chosen life without opioids.
3. Coping tools: List a few easily accessible strategies you can use when you feel like you want to return to use. Consider who you might be able to call, what exercises help you feel calm, and what distractions hold your attention in difficult situations.

Your relapse prevention plan should serve as a document that you can easily reference when you’re you need some direction or you feel like you might return to use. This plan can be adjusted over time as your needs change.

Prioritizing Self-Care During MAT

To successfully cope during MAT, it’s necessary to prioritize self-care. This can mean different things to different people, but it means taking care of your own well-being.

If you’re like most people with OUD, taking opioids was probably an attempt to self-medicate physical or emotional problems that you didn’t know how to handle on your own. During recovery, you’re learning to take care of yourself in a healthy way.

When you focus on taking care of yourself, you’re less likely to experience internal triggers, like extreme negative emotions and shame spirals.

The HALT Method

When you’re first relearning how to take care of yourself, knowing where to start can be difficult. If you’re feeling triggered or overwhelmed, and you’re not sure what to do for yourself, consider the HALT method.

HALT stands for:

• Hungry or thirsty
• Angry or anxious
• Lonely, isolated
• Tired or bored

If you’re feeling like you want to return to use, consider these root causes. Even when you’re not actively feeling triggered, the HALT method can remind you to slow down and take care of your basic needs. Eat regularly, build time into your schedule to relax, socialize with people you care about, and be sure to get enough sleep.

Celebrating Your Successes During MAT

Another key part of staying in recovery is recognizing how far you have already come. It’s easy to get caught up in your triggers and difficult feelings. It can make you feel like you’re right back where you started.

Be sure to remind yourself of all the things you’ve already accomplished during recovery. Recovery is about more than just whether or not you’re taking opioids; it’s about building a life that you’re proud of.

Consider the new opportunities you’ve had since you started recovery.

Some questions to ask yourself include:

• Have you started a new job or education program?
• Do you have new friends?
• Have you developed new hobbies?

These life changes serve as reminders that the person you’ve become during recovery isn’t the same person you were before.